Trying to get back into frontend development (Angular) after years away?

Hi everyone,

I’m 36 now, and I wanted to share a bit of my journey. Right now, I’m feeling stuck and unsure about my path, so I’d really appreciate your support and guidance.

I started working in 2017 and have experience in frontend development — mainly HTML, CSS, and some JavaScript. I’m a self-learner, and over the years I’ve worked in startup environments where I had to wear many hats — coding, HR tasks, gathering requirements, dealing with clients — you name it. Because of that, I never had the chance to fully focus and master any one skill.

I’ve worked a bit with Angular, TypeScript, Node.js, and MongoDB too, but honestly, I never felt confident in any specific area. I was always under pressure from upper management, and that made things more stressful.

In 2022, I moved to Canada as a immigrant. I wasn’t confident enough to apply for tech jobs right away, so I started working in a warehouse to make ends meet. Later, I decided to shift into UI/UX design since I had some past experience with Figma and Adobe XD. I took a few courses and created a portfolio. I even went to some interviews for web and UI/UX design roles here in Canada.

But one major challenge for me has been communication. English isn’t my first language, and I’m not a strong speaker. Especially in the UX field, I realized that verbal communication is so important, and I feel like that’s holding me back.

Now, I’m thinking of returning to frontend development, especially focusing on Angular. But I have a few concerns: 1. I haven’t written a single line of code in the last 5 years. How should I start from scratch? 2. Is it okay to make this shift at age 36? Is it too late? 3. With the rise of AI, is there still space in the market for junior frontend devs? 4. Can you recommend any YouTube channels, threads, or exercises for learning Angular the right way? 5. Many jobs ask for real-world experience or enterprise-level projects. How can I overcome that if I’m restarting?

Any advice, resources, or words of encouragement would mean a lot right now. Thanks so much for reading ❤️