Hey. 24/M/Kent UK here and I know exactly what you mean. I left my retail job back in June last year to go travelling (which as I found out is also fraught with problems when suffering from anxiety) and because my store was winding down in preparation for closing this year. End of the line, really.

But every job application is mentally hard, and actually following through is near-impossible. I've psyched myself up for days just to face simple telephone interviews and succeeded, but then because I can't see the logic in preparing for the real interview I fail. After all, why would they hire me? I'm a failure, I'm everything they don't want, even if I meet all the criteria. There's some flaw I can't see that they'll pick up on.

The worst times I've had recently are when the pressure has been so intense that I've ducked out of interviews, assessment days and appointments with employers or recruiters to avoid being "found out" as some kind of fraud, as if I haven't earned my place or my qualifications. It relieves the pressure in the short-term, but in the long-term it's making everything worse, since these jobs tend to be the ones that I really want and they don't come by easily in my home town. Now my standards are slipping and I'm just applying for easy jobs that I might be able to get without much effort or doing anything like a presentation or panel interview, but won't fulfil me.

Maybe consider volunteering? That's what I'm looking at doing once a course the Jobcentre put me on is over in a few weeks. It won't pay the bills, but it will keep the career gap to a minimum and add skills to your CV, and the very basic interviews that some volunteering positions involve might be an aid to overcoming that hurdle. I don't really have any answers, I'm afraid!