Di, I love this! Chipping away a little bit at a time makes it less scary and much more doable.

fimac… stay tuned. My next post is on fear. 😉

Hello, I feel like I could have written this post as a fellow british dentist, 10 years qualified. I’d echo the advice given by Laura, try as many new things as you can to see what might work, where the opportunities lie and what you could see yourself doing. It takes time to make a transition, but the best way to do it is to plan a way to chip away at something (once you’ve figured out what the new thing is). I don’t mean a full career change, because that might not be right for you (or it might), but something that would allow you to have a more balanced lifestyle, so that you don’t dread getting up in the morning or crash when you go home. I did that for many years. Life really is just too short.

Hi fimac! I’m so glad to hear from you!! Thanks for connecting! I never want you to think you’re being self-indulgent. Everything you are experiencing is real and difficult, regardless of what anyone else (including me, LOL) is going through. When I think of what I’m going through now, the only other time in my life I that was equally as difficult (but in a slightly different way,) was when I felt similarly about dentistry.

Feeling stuck is so hard! Some people don’t understand at all, but there are a lot that do. I relate to so much of what you say… the anxiety, just getting through the day, pressure from others, and knowing that you’re still a happy, bright person. I can tell you that after getting unstuck, my happiness was able to finally shine. I imagine that would be the case for you too. My one piece of advice would be to get yourself into action in some way. That is what worked for me. Trying different things without expecting them to be my next career helped me get out of that stuck place, and every experience seemed to open a door to the next. It can take a while, but it’s still better than having no movement.

I hope you’ll continue to keep in touch (and you might get more replies on a different post— maybe the pros and cons of dentistry??) I really need to create a more interactive forum for people!

Your name is so familiar to me… I feel like we’ve been in contact before?? Anyway, thanks so much for connecting and thanks for your kind thoughts.

Thanks Kristy!!

I am a dentist, working just in oral surgery in a UK hospital (NHS based), I have been qualified now for nearly 8 years (where the hell does time go!) and ever since that day of gradation I’ve been in a pickle. I can honestly say, I don’t think I have ever enjoyed a day at work….I don’t really know how or why, or how I’ve managed to get myself into this mess, but 8 years down the line I am still here. I am an anxious person, and really I don’t think I should have ever done dentistry, it just isn’t an environment for people with anxiety. I have had many treatments and CBT to help myself, and the treatments really have helped me; but yet everyday I dread getting up, going to work, I literally just ‘get through the day,’ which just seems like such an awful way to live, but I feel stuck here. I don’t know where to turn to, probably out of fear. All the other ‘dental’ options just fill me with dread, I can’t see an alternative, so I have just been stuck here (I am one of the longest serving people in my department!). I am a total perfectionist, so I know that I do my job well, and a number of people around me can’t understand why I feel this way and think that I ‘have it all.’ Which I certainly don’t. I finish work and crash, I don’t move. I try to get out on the weekend and exercise but I can sit in my house for hours just thinking ‘what can I do to get out of this.’

I am sorry if I have rambled or if I seem terribly depressed – I’m not! I can assure you and any readers, I am a happy, bright person and I love life but my 9-5 just drains me and I’m not sure where to turn. I have seen some great advice and comments on your blog, so if there is anyone out there who can advise or offer words of wisdom, please I am open to them all!

I really hope you have a great year Lolabees, you desire it, your blog is such an inspiration xx