Does anyone else just feel utterly stuck in their working life?

[C4ndle]

I'm mid 40s and have worked in administration/project management for 20 years. It's not something I even remotely love but I got trapped in it and now don't know how to escape - I'd love to do something massively different, either creative like graphic design or people based like counselling. But I have young DC (10 and under) and so need to work part time (my DH is the main earner and has a job that isn't massively flexible) and so don't have the flexibility with time to study (I only have a specific day off) and also definitely don't have the spare money for the courses I would need to do.

But then I just think, is this it? Am I stuck in these kind of jobs for the next 10 - 15 years until my children are older and I have more time and spare money? By which point I'll be mid 50s/60 anyway - surely too old to retrain?

Does anyone else feel like this? Or have any ideas about ways around having no money and very limited specific time to study? I hate feeling so hopeless as I normally like to have a plan and an idea but after so many evenings of fruitless googling I just can't see any way of moving to a job that I would actually enjoy 🤦‍♀️ Any ideas (and a bit of hope!) would be really welcome.

I think this is so true! It does feel like there's an untapped market there.

It's interesting that there seems to be a split between burn out or trapped in jobs that work around family/life but are not fulfilling at all - I think I'm probably in the latter camp but I get how both situations happen. It's so frustrating!

@DrunkenElephant thank you for your story (it's inspiring) - I didn't want to come across all woe is me, it's impossible! when it's possibly not but for me it's the funding part that's hard - counselling courses (near me anyway) aren't covered by student loans/advanced learner loans and I couldn't afford to pay myself. I've got a degree as well so not sure if I can get student finance for another undergraduate degree? I'll keep looking though!

Like I said, I'm sorry there's so many of us in the same boat - though in a weird way it's reassuring 😫

oh goodness yes. I’d leave tomorrow if I could.

@Thewolvesarerunningagain
Someone should start a middle aged professional women’s career change service. Really.

God yes. Where do I sign up?!
I wonder out of interest how many of us are single parents. If I had the cushion of a second household income I think I possibly might retrain. But it's pie in the sky because there's no one else here to pay the mortgage.
And my Dull-Ass job, as dull as it is, pays the bills, allows me to be home with the kids when I need to be, do the school run etc.
@cheesedome your post really resonates with me

Hi there I am in the same boat, two teenagers and in a dull role. I had hoped to progress but that's proving to be difficult as I have been declined for roles I have applied for. I am mid fifties and wondering if the conflict between self actualisation by pushing on and an easy dull life is ever resolved,,😔

I’m not a single parent but we’d never be able to survive just on my partner’s wage. To be honest I’d be terrified of quitting my job without a new job lined up.
I think a lot of it is to do with lack of confidence. It might be a class thing as well for me. I was brought up on the attitude that any job is fine and should be clung on to for dear life.

Yep! I feel like since having kids I’ve done ‘convenient’ jobs that work around the kids and enable DH to do his job. The kids are more important to me than any job and I am grateful I’ve been able to be around for them. But it does mean I haven’t found my ‘thing’ work wise.

One job I did enjoy didn’t exist post covid. I’ve had two jobs since 2021 and I’ve had little to no enthusiasm for either of them. No idea what I want to do - aside from stay at home mum 😂