[Kendyll]

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.

[hvert]

It doesn't hurt to start taking 1-2 courses. You never know what will happen. For one thing, you might make a friend in one of your classes who knows about a job that would be perfect for you. It's also just nice to feel like you are making progress, even if you aren't going to get that degree next year. I was able to test out of about a year's worth of courses at my university, so that's another option to help speed things along.

I also have a hard time figuring out what will be a good fit. Forward motion is better than no motion for me...

[CosmicRose]

Coming from someone who has a crummy job and who is actively looking for work in this crummy economy, I have to be honest when I say my personal opinion is that you should stay put and focus on the positive things your work affords you. Is there any way you can make your work life more exciting just by changing your attitude?
Your job sounds like something I would love to have.
If you went back to school and quit this job, you would be having just as much trouble as your husband finding work somewhere else - and there's no guarantee that you would like that work any better, or the people there for that matter, any better.
So if you quit this cushy job, you're taking a huge gamble on many different things. You're taking a gamble on finding work elsewhere in a reasonable amount of time, you're taking a gamble on whether or not you'll actually like that work for another 20 years, you're taking a gamble on the types of people you would be working with at the new job, and you're taking a gamble on whether or not more education would pay off in the long run.
You really need to think about this long and hard. More education doesn't necessarily guarantee anything except spending more money on it. That's just my personal opinion.

I would definitely stay put if I were you, and I would try to make work more enjoyable. I wouldn't take this huge risk while my husband is struggling with permanent employment. Personally, I would be afraid that I would end up hating the new job and not liking the people I work with in a new job. You might not be able to imagine doing the work you're doing now for another 20 years, but what if you took the chance and got a new job and you couldn't imagine doing that work for another 20 years either? My sister said to me the other day, "No one likes their job! You just have to do it! Stop trying to look for the perfect job because it's not realistic. Everyone doesn't like going to work, that's why its called work." She's actually right.

[hvert]

Another random thought - sometimes when you are in the middle of job dissatisfaction, interviewing somewhere else can be nice. It may highlight some underappreciated aspects of your job or make you realize that you can do better elsewhere.

[Little Lulu]

What about calling a mortician or two and see if they would meet with you to discuss what they do, what education you need, what the job opportunities might be, whether or not they like their job, etc?

[Perna]

Little Lulu has a good idea. I was thinking maybe look into jobs at morticians, see if your experience could transfer to some job with them. All businesses are basically the same, sales, accounting, customer service, administration, etc.? I have moved sideways a lot; my elevator didn't really do up/down

I read Barbara Sher's books, Barbara Sher's Official Website especially her first one, Wishcraft and that got me unstuck from a couple jobs/places and moving forward. Your local library should have her books or Wishcraft is free online. Any of her books should get your juices going so you have a bit more hope and some ideas of things to try. She's big on forming friend groups and the fact that a friend will know a friend who knows a friend, etc. who can get you an intro to someone who can help you. My stepson does that with his business. Maybe join a breakfast peer group (like my stepson belongs to)? A networking group?