e_sort,
It can be lonely. The biggest thing about it is I don't feel lasting worth to it for me. I feel useful when I'm able to help people in a direct and tangable way. Teaching is one way I've found this but it didn't quite fit exactly. Counseling appears to offer more of this.
Yes, the pay is good I'm just not sure I want to do this type of work for the rest of my life. You sound like you have a pretty good understanding about what the field is like so you probably understand when I say the demands are burning me out. Thanks for your input!

apumic,
So would you recommend getting a doctorate directly instead of a masters? Would I still need the additional licenses you mentioned for a masters if I had a doctorate? What is the pay level for a doctorate?
I think I would like to help adolecents and adults mainly but children would okay too. Is that what you meant by a specific population?