To not know what to do?

[PollyODarton]

Quick background for info: childhood trauma, toxic parents and undiagnosed ADHD meant I was chucked out the house at 17 and despite obtaining fairly ok exam results, had to give up my place at uni in order to work three jobs to pay rent.

Spent years travelling the work working job to job to get there then settled with ex husband, worked in sales which although I was good at, hated, then left when my first DC was born in order to he a SAHP to enable to allow XH to work his way up in is chosen field. Fast forward to now, on mat leave with 3rd DC and soon to go back to work. Low paying admin work which I actually do quite like although is not remotely challenging.

I want to do an open uni course. I just am so stuck kn what to do.

When I was 18, I was due to study Accountancy. I'm interested in psychology/counselling particularly working with children, I guess due to my own childhood and struggles with my first born DC. Although, I know everyone and their dog wants to do this at the moment

If you were in this situation, what would you do? What kind of degree would you want in order to pursue a better paying, fulfilling career?

Have you had trauma counselling? Doing the course brings up a lot of stuff. As you are qualifying you have to have counseling and your DP needs to fully support you. You mention ADHD, do you suffer from procrastination etc? Don't take on more than you can manage. Make sure that what course you pick does give you a recognised qualification. Don't look to heal via your work, I've seen counsellors and SW try to do this, it doesn't work. You've got to decide depending on the hours you can work, what you need to earn and what you are interested in enough to write essays/pieces of research etc on the subject matter.

@Ponoka7 thanks, I have had trauma counselling but I could probably do with more to be honest as, trying jot to be outing, but a lot has one to the surface recently that was previously unknown to me.
I guess one of my main concerns is that I would struggle with past things coming to light during the course of the qualification.

I can procrastinate but I am now on medication and I am a not as bad now but i can still struggle with decision making although deadlines are not an issue for me anymore. My DH is very supportive. I appreciate his sacrifice now, working extra shifts,etc to enable me to study. I just don't want to make the wrong decision and end up bad where I started. I want to out my all into the next 4 years in order to qualify in a field i can excel in, and get a better job, so we can have a better life.

There will be lots of opportunities in environmental consultancy as a result of increasing regulation in this area, this is what I would do if I were to retrain, especially if it’s an area that chimes with your personal values.

@TheCovidHalfStone I'd never even thought of this, thank you, gives me something else to look in to.

Hopefu bump for more ideas?

@PollyODarton geography could be an option. There are two strands physical and people. Both involve data collection, statistics and analysis plus there is the environmental and social science side. It is a degree that gives you a lot of options when looking for a career.

Also to consider is in the first year some Modules are relatively generic and keep your options open for longer.

@Foreversearch thank you, geography is not something I had ever considered but will certainly look onto it.

I just don't want to make the wrong decision and waste the next few years of my life doing the wrong thing. I want to get a degree under my belt and be able to work hard on order to live a more comfortable life and have job satisfaction.

Hi, OP-

Counselling is certainly important work. What kind of qualifications are needed to get the pay grade you would want? I thought most counsellors had MA degrees, but I could be wrong. I think the training usually involves a fair amount of on site work. Is that possible for you?

Accountancy, environmental consulting, geography, IT, business studies,, etc will likely offer better chances for independent study. But you need to feel enthusiastic or it will be nearly impossible to finish the course. And you deserve to enjoy it!

Best wishes. The OU is fabulous and employers have told me that they are impressed by students with the initiative and dedication to make it through their degree programmes.