- Date posted
- 3y
- Date posted
- 3y
It sounds to me like you are very passionate about going back to school to get your Master's. Don't let your negative thoughts ruin this for you. And definitely don't let thoughts of what your parents may or may not say to you get to you, especially without talking with them first. It is a big decision. I'm sure you are not too old to go back to school. Nobody's too old. I will say a prayer for you to make the right decision. Remember you have to be happy with your own decision.
- Date posted
- 3y
I know exactly what my parents would say "You tried going back to school before and it didn't work out." But back then, I was living with them. But I have been living on my own since 2017. So I feel like they should not have as much of a say. I also don't have any other debt and don't like the idea of getting more student loans. But I'm 45, so I'm sure I could get grants. If I could get school 100% paid for that would be awesome. But there are a lot of things to consider. I appreciate the prayers.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 3y
I’m actually in your similar boat. I’m a little younger, but still a decade older than the median of grad students. I’m pivoting away from work that I thought was my dream work to study and become an ocd therapist as well. I worried about the loans- but then it’s loan. It’s owed to the government, not to the school. You have as much time as you need to pay it back. And the investment in yourself is much more valuable than the money… I also thought about, how can I help others when sometimes I feel like I can’t help myself. And you know what? In my acceptance paper I wrote about being a wounded healer. The perspective of someone who has been in the trenches and really understands the fight. We need more of that in our mental health system. We need people who get it on a deeper and visceral level. Not just intellectual and conceptual…. And I thought about my age. But then I realized life isn’t about a timeline. It’s about getting up and moving and being present with your task. And connecting and having a relationship with what you are doing and those around you. So I went for it, and I got accepted. And I’m starting in April. And I’m taking the risk. Will it work out? I don’t know, but I’m excited for the adventure and the momentum of having a path that my soul is asking for . I wish you the same
- Date posted
- 3y
Wow! That is fantastic. Thank you for sharing. Based on the things I have seen you share on this forum, I think you will be awesome. That is one of the reasons why I want to become a therapist. OCD is something that you simply can't truly understand unless you have experienced it. I also have personal experience with depression and social anxiety. I am familiar with the concept of a wounded healer and its something that really resonates with me. Thanks again!
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 3y
@Lms526 Thank you! That means a lot. And I’m rooting for you! You will be amazing and it will be part of your own healing as well. Part of OCDs strength is our self absorption. But when you heal others you no longer are thinking about yourself. This path will help you uncover that. And I’m sure it will for me too.
- Date posted
- 3y
I met a woman in my history class who had retired from her old job and come back to college - you're never too old for learning. It sounds like you really want to become a counselor, and that is a good dream to have - if you're not passionate about your current job, then there's nothing wrong with changing careers. I would simply advise caution. Put some serious thought into how you're going to make your dream happen and what it's going to take so you have a plan of action. Whatever you decide, I wish you luck and success. <3
- Date posted
- 3y
Yeah, there is a lot I need to think about an consider. I'm not going to rush into anything, but I'm more worried about allowing fear and anxiety paralyze me.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 3y
@Lms526 The best step personally for me, was to go at my own pace, but go. Look up the info, take the introductions if offered, talk to people who went to the schools and got their degree. But just do things. Life isn’t as scary as ocd makes us think. And that little bit of confidence boost can help us see that
- Date posted
- 3y
@Sasha Its okay if you don't want to say, but what school were you accepted to? There are just SO many options. Its kind of overwhelming. Gah!
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 3y
@Lms526 Antioch, in Los Angeles. I picked it because it doesn’t require GRE or psych requisite courses. It’s also median age is 39, and it’s fitted for people who have full time jobs. And it’s also more centered on you as the person and less rigid.
- Date posted
- 3y
@Sasha Thank you!
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 3y
@Lms526 No problem! I know Pepperdine does this as well
Related posts
- Date posted
- 23w
My last and almost life long theme/sub-theme largely subsided recently and my ocd felt like it wasn’t even an issue. Then I went on winter break from uni and being alone made my mind come up with a whole new topic to obsess over. TLDR on my fears, my advisor wouldn’t email me back for a while about signing up for classes so my mind started to worry “what if he doesn’t in time and you can’t enroll this semester and you lose this whole life you just built and all these new friends” So when that issue was resolved my mind found other scarier ways I could be uprooted from my current life and friends that I’ve grown so attached to. Then my mind remembered back when I was struggling with false memories and scrupulosity and I essentially made a post on a forum 2 and a half years ago saying I did something or was convinced I did something that I never actually did. Now I’ve been spiraling about someone finding it reporting me and I either get seen as a horrible person or arrested or something over something I never actually did but “admitted” to out of fear of going to hell. My mind won’t let it go and keeps finding new reasons for it to be “valid” “logical” or even inevitable. I feel like it’s just hanging over my head and I can never rest easy. Especially when I try to focus on my daily tasks or plan for the future I get this horrible flair up of “why plan for the future when this could come back in that future and you get uprooted from all of it” my mind won’t rest without certainty being uprooted won’t happen but certainty doesn’t exist, at least not with ocd. This sucks and I miss being care free.
- Date posted
- 18w
I don’t know what I can do. I guess this is more of a depression thing than OCD but who knows. I have been battling this ongoing war within myself for years now and it’s been affecting my academic performance. situation of mine right now: I haven’t done a lot of work for my classes this month and I feel like I’m going to fail the semester again. I don’t know what it is but I can never seem to begin any work. I know I am capable but why can’t I get myself to start? why has this been going on for so long? I don’t understand. I have a history of good grades back in high school before I turned 17. I don’t even know how to describe it. it’s like I’ve been paralyzed and cannot do any work. but I can somehow do offside tasks like pinterest boards or random youtube videos. if I get rid of those, what do I do? I end up sleeping. because I’m tired. I have a low vitamin D deficiency & have been trying to get energy. I’m at a loss. I also bought unnecessary stuff on sunday when I went out with my family. I bought some things for the kids and I ended up buying myself a dress and a few accessories. now I have to work extra to gain that money back doing uber eats because I need it asap. it’s like I don’t want to work, for now. my coworkers who are around my age don’t work as much & I think to myself, “wow, they must be getting in the work done” meanwhile I’m working 3 days a week (which isn’t much) and attending school. I feel like if I change my schedule again, I’ll ruin it for the rest of my driver coworkers. I’m in a lead position at work so having to put on a mask is quite tiring. there’s so much I want to say that I don’t think it will fit in this post. I have booked a mental health session with a school counselor. all I want at the moment is to have my own place and be in a better mental state to take care of my cats. they mean a lot to me but this stupid ass undiagnosed mental issue is getting in the way. sorry for the long rant. I am tired.
- Date posted
- 18w
I'm going through a rough time. I used to think medication would brighten my world, but if anything, it's muted it. The physical anxiety is less, and I felt okay(ish) for a while, but things are getting bad again. I'm so afraid I'll never get to a point where I feel safe in my body and in my mind. Today is the first day I've cried in... I don't know how long. But I didn't feel the relief I thought I would. Initially, I did, but it morphed into dread, and now I'm sitting by myself, trying not to panic. I really want to begin seeing a therapist for OCD, but I don't know how much my insurance covers. There's just so much on my mind right now. A whole bunch of old themes are resurfacing. I wish I could've been given a different path in life. I'm trying to stay strong. It's just really difficult. I feel like I'm being sent back to square one :(
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