Feeling like I made the wrong career choices/feel hopeless

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So be a speech pathologist during the school year and train dogs during the summer. That way you still get all the health benefits and retirement etc. of being a school employees.

By the way, that's what my mom did. Speech pathologist who worked with show dogs during the summer.

I get what you’re saying but it’s not quite the same. I want to help injured or sick animals, not show dogs for profit. I’m an introvert and I will inevitably burnout from being an SLP. I always wanted to work with animals but I have an ethical dilemma that I feel when it comes to profiting off of helping animals… which is why I didn’t choose to go into that and I chose to foster instead.

You might benefit from some cognitive behavioral therapy because some of your thinking patterns are very distorted. SLP is a great job with a potentially flexible schedule that will allow you to volunteer or even potentially have a job working with animals on the side or OT. I know a number of SLPs and they all work in different settings and have had different types of jobs over the years - hospitals, elementary schools, school system with much older kids in vocational programs, nursing homes, private practice with kids, association that represents speech pathologists, preschool kids in individual homes…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So be a speech pathologist during the school year and train dogs during the summer. That way you still get all the health benefits and retirement etc. of being a school employees.

By the way, that's what my mom did. Speech pathologist who worked with show dogs during the summer.

I get what you’re saying but it’s not quite the same. I want to help injured or sick animals, not show dogs for profit. I’m an introvert and I will inevitably burnout from being an SLP. I always wanted to work with animals but I have an ethical dilemma that I feel when it comes to profiting off of helping animals… which is why I didn’t choose to go into that and I chose to foster instead.

You might benefit from some cognitive behavioral therapy because some of your thinking patterns are very distorted. SLP is a great job with a potentially flexible schedule that will allow you to volunteer or even potentially have a job working with animals on the side or OT. I know a number of SLPs and they all work in different settings and have had different types of jobs over the years - hospitals, elementary schools, school system with much older kids in vocational programs, nursing homes, private practice with kids, association that represents speech pathologists, preschool kids in individual homes…

That should have said PT not OT - you could do animal hydrotherapy on the weekend or whatever. Envy/comparison is the thief of joy. We all know people who have some cushy set up or cool job we think we wish we could have. Often that cool job involves trade offs we wouldn’t want to make or the cushy set up is the result of luck or other circumstances which does happen but it doesn’t mean our own situation is bad.

[Anonymous]

If you couldn’t handle the stuff you thought was difficult with animals from the outside in, you definitely made the right career choice.

If you don’t like working for a school system, join a private practice or, if you have the resources and time, build one. The barriers to entry are no higher than your neighbor’s doggy daycare, and your clients won’t poop on the sidewalk (less than dogs do, anyway).

[Anonymous]

You need therapy. You sound like you lack confidence. Just get a job in your field before you start regretting it.

You have plenty of time to explore other careers down the line. But don’t doubt your decision based upon jealousy over what you THINK someone else's life is like.

[Anonymous]

Work isn't all that, OP. It's just a job at the end of the day. Be careful about just quitting; have a plan.

Build your personal life as much, if not more, than you build your work life. In the end, your personal life will matter so much more, so invest in it. Once you hit your 50s, the workplace becomes a cruel mistress, so plan wisely.

[Anonymous]

Um, guys, this thread is super old. OP is gone. Calm down everyone.