Hey all. I guess I need to purge again. Not sure what I’m looking for here, but I just need to get it all out.
If anyone doesn’t remember my story, I was enrolled in a Master’s program at a university last summer and fall (was making straight As!) but had to quit due to internship/work conflict. Simply put, the university, although it advertised “limited number of Saturday field placements,” would not work with me on creating an internship that would allow me to continue working. As a single mom, quitting my job seemed unconscionable, especially given that I’m only a few months away from vesting- at my job this is a 10 year process.
So, yesterday, on a whim, I called up a different local university to inquire about a program they offer. It seems as though the program might be a good fit for me. But I think I’m scared. Calling the university was a good thing- I was seeking information and I got that information. However, it awakened emotions inside me that I had been trying to keep stuffed down. Frankly, I think I’m depressed about having to quit grad school and overall I’m dissatisfied with the choices I’ve made for my life. I could literally kick myself for making the choices I’ve made, taking the paths I’ve taken, and essentially screwing everything up in the process. I’m not happy. I have a job, and thank God for that, but this work is far removed from anything I ever considered myself doing and is totally not rewarding. Further, it’s work that does not utilize my undergraduate degree in any way.
I had been talking sporadically to my pastor’s wife who was trying to give me some advice and a reference for some other jobs I interviewed for. I caught up with her again last night at church and we talked for a LOOOOONNNGGG time. She summed me up in one brief sentence, “you need to learn to think for yourself.” That statement was in response to another statement I had made but it has stuck with me. DO I think for myself? I’ve gone my entire life with a mom who, although I love her to pieces, has dissuaded me from nearly every path I was interested in. I was interested in Special Ed- she dismissed that and suggested I avoid education because so-and-so is a teacher and has had a very hard time with it. I wanted to do forensic science- she reminded me I’d have to “go to the body farm up in TN” and have to deal with badly decomposed bodies and can you really handle that, abbycadabby? And various jobs along the way- oh, you don’t want to work there, I’ve heard _________ about that place.
To top that off, I had my exWH telling me I couldn’t succeed as well. He never supported me and outright predicted that I would fail. He said I wouldn’t be able to “hack” grad school. As an aside, I did indeed have to quit grad school- does that mean my ex was right about me?
So, I’m thinking, maybe I don’t think for myself. With regard to potential employment fields, I listen to the people around me, and I then go research it on my own. I look up the employment outlook on the OOH and figure out how that job will look in the next 10 years or so. I determine what becoming ______ would require of me and determine whether or not I could handle that process. But then comes the uncertainty. Personally, I know who I am, I just don’t know what I want to be. I know what I’m good at, but there are so many paths I could take to get me to a place of contribution to society. I have no calling. I envy those around me who know (from a young age at times) what their life’s purpose is. I just don’t know what I want to do. I could go into counseling. I could go into education. I could get a second bachelors degree in something else. I could get a master’s degree in occupational therapy. I just can’t decide. Any of those seem like worthwhile endeavors, I just cannot pick. I’m not drawn to any particular career over anything else.
To compound the issue, I’m dating a really awesome guy. We’ve dated for almost 1.5 years. I’m crazy about him. We talk about marriage and while I’m not wearing an engagement ring yet, I very much like the idea of us getting married one day. It’s an LDR- he lives in a different state. But what does that mean for my future? If I start a program here locally will I have to quit again before I complete it? Do I put my dreams/talks of marriage on hold in order to finish my education? Or do I put education on hold for awhile and regroup emotionally, in the meantime figure out what path to take forward and then pursue my education after we marry? Or, do I commit to a local program and get married and have a long distance marriage until I finish school? OR, do I begin the program here and keep my fingers crossed that my credits transfer to a university in his state?
I feel stuck. I feel hopeless. I feel as though I’ve fucked my life up beyond repair. And I don’t know where to go from here.
Advice? 2x4s? Hugs?
If you made it this far, I thank you.
[This message edited by abbycadabby at 9:33 AM, June 11th (Wednesday)]