I've been in my field, doing what I do for over 20 years. The work is steady, I'm reasonably well compensated and the people here are nice enough. I work somewhat independently and I don't have to deal with the public. I really have nothing big to complain about.

But I want out. I've been doing pretty much the same job in the same field for over twenty years and I don't want to be doing it for another 25. There is no room for advancement with my level of education, and to tell you the truth, I don't really want to do the jobs of the people above me. I lucked into this job while I was in college and when the money for college ran out it seemed like a good stable career. And it was, but now I'm halfway through my working life and I do NOT want to do this anymore!

But I have a family to support (husband and two boys). Jon has been looking for work, but the economy is only so much improved - it can still be hard to find a decent full-time permanent type job. I'm the breadwinner and I need to keep working so that I can support my family.

If it were just me, I could see myself trying to go back to school full-time. If I really had to I could move back in with my mom...I don't think I could really make a change any other way, unless money falls out of the sky. There's no way for me to support a family of four AND pay for college. some people suggest just taking one course at a time. That would get me a degree in about ten of fifteen years...

I don't even know for sure what I'd like to do. I have some ideas, but no idea how I could make them work, or even if they'd be a good fit for me. For a long time, I thought I wanted to be a psychologist, until I realized that I wouldn't be able to turn off my clients' issues when I left the office (dodged a bullet on that one!). I've thought for years about being a mortician...How on earth would I get an introduction to THAT field? I know I could go to school for it, but I'd hate to get my one chance to try again and end up wasting it on something I hated worse than my current job.

Sorry this is so long. I just feel really trapped. I get anxious and panicky some days, and I've been warned against taking any sick days if I'm "not really sick". I get so frustrated I cry at my desk some days. I'd love to get back into therapy, but right now I can't even afford that - I make too much money to work on a sliding scale, but my insurance doesn't cover enough.