I am 42. I was a SAHM for about ten years. The last few years I also studied and retrained into a health care role. At the end of it I got the job I wanted, 4 days a week. Yay for me.
I have been in the job for a year. I have just started a Masters course that should help me specialise. I asked for support from my trust but didn’t get any. They said it wasn’t required for my current role, which is fair enough. I was happy to go ahead independently.
But after another sleepless night stressing about it I am regretting it. I feel like it’s too late to build a career, those around me won’t be looking at me as a bright young thing who is going places. I should be happy to have got back into paid employment at all. I don’t think I have the head space for the masters, kids are pre teens, and needing just as much as ever, DH is brilliant but has just taken a major step up career wise himself so is going to be less available than I’ve got used to him being while I started my new job.
Oh yeah, we got a puppy a year ago too, he has been great but all of our newbie dog owner mistakes are starting to show.
And I can feel the menopause looming, it’s all too much. Why am I pushing myself? It doesn’t feel like it’s going to be worth it, no one is going to be interested in my progression.