No Regrets...

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Goodluckchuck

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Who here is a clinical psychologist who has gone through all the schooling, internship, post doc or what not and is currently working in the field of clinical psychology? More specifically I would like to hear from people who have NO regrets and sincerely enjoy working in the field and would NOT go back and change anything about their career choice.

I understand that people regretting their career choice is a reality but after reading an abundance of posts about psychologist's regretting their career choice I want to hear from the other side. Please share your reasons and experiences that have made you come to the realization that you chose the correct path and have zero (other than a few insignificant) regrets :)

Thanks!

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I'm not finished but I can understand where you are coming from. Sometimes I avoid SDN just because I know it is going to be a pity party about the sad state of affairs for psychology. I call it the "doom and gloom" threads. Just my .02
 
I'm not finished but I can understand where you are coming from. Sometimes I avoid SDN just because I know it is going to be a pity party about the sad state of affairs for psychology. I call it the "doom and gloom" threads. Just my .02

Well in our defense, every single forum that is designed for students or professionals that I have read (whether it be a psychology forum or not) has a lot of "doom and gloom". Sometimes you just need to take these threads and horror stories with a grain of salt. I find that if people are happy with their life, school, job, etc.they do not go on forums to talk about it.
 
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Well put TNS :) And Therapist4Change...your posts are both smart and sometimes humorous but jeez don't you have work at least sometimes?

So to kind of redirect this thread back on track...do any current clinical psychologist's on this forum enjoy their work and have no regrets about their chosen career path? Please share your reasons as to why..

S
 
Well put TNS :) And Therapist4Change...your posts are both smart and sometimes humorous but jeez don't you have work at least sometimes?

So to kind of redirect this thread back on track...do any current clinical psychologist's on this forum enjoy their work and have no regrets about their chosen career path? Please share your reasons as to why..

S

OK, I'll bite. Yes, I don't regret the psychologist gig (I work for the VA in Extended Care). Here's some reasons:

* My boss doesn't hassle me with bulls**t, in fact, he pretty much leaves me alone
* The people I work with respect me (actually seem to greatly appreciate me)
* The pay isn't bad
* The hours are extremely flexible
* I don't have to track my time or do fee-for-service billing, I just write notes and reports,
that's it
* The job duties are extremely variable so I don't get bored
* I'm perfectly allowed to write papers or do "professional development" while I'm on the
clock
* I get interesting administrative tasks from time to time
* I get free labor in the form of practicum students (I'm mean, I'll train them and edify them
and stuff, but really, they are my unpaid psych. techs, which is pretty awesome)
* I get called "doc" by most of the people I work with, which is nice

I wouldn't change my career choice, but I would change how I attained it. Funded program if I had to do it over again. My bad.
 
I know the doom and gloom is discouraging to some. For me it's had the opposite effect--I feel informed of the downsides of my field and still want to be a part of it. I'd never want to go through my program without hearing about the state of the field, my colleagues' regrets, etc. I've learned a lot and feel as though I'm more deliberate with the decisions I make in grad school because of others bad experiences and/or lessons learned. I'd much rather know about the doom and gloom now as opposed to later on.


Also, if you want really cynicism go to any legal forum! Now that's depressing.
 
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