Should I go for a long career/degree in Psychology even though I am 28?

OK. I'm like a Freelance Artist and writer by profession, needless to say this **** ain't working out. At one point things were going good, I was near being published... my art started to get recognition and in a flash it all came to nothing. It was entirely out of my control, but to make a long story short people all of a sudden changed their minds and went in other directions. This really got to me and ever since I can't even do art anymore.

So it got me thinking, all this time I wasted, I'm 28 years old now and all the work I did, I have pretty much nothing to show for it. So now I'm like, okay maybe I should just go to college/university even though I stubbornly don't want too. I have been thinking, what can I do? What careers would be the best options. To be honest, my writings could be said to be "esoteric psychology". I am very much so a man of the thinking of Carl Jung and G.I. Gurdjieff/P.D. Ouspensky, but individual to myself. Now with such interest, one would think, AHH psychology is where you should major. To be honest I would really do this, out of the things I see, my attention moves to psychology. The problem is for this type of field, it is only worthwhile if you are willing to continue on beyond the associate degree ... heck it may really only pay off if you go all the way up to get your doctorate. I have been told by different people that I shouldn't care about the time it will take, with my type of mind and vision, they could see me as a professor. But I am 28 years old ...

I really do have an aim that goes beyond just making money, I just wish I had discovered these things when I was 18/17. But what can you do, took 10 years of learning and growing to see what I need to do.

Thoughts on this confused state I am in?

2011-04-06T09:56:20Z

PHILIP: thanks for the encouragement to keep on going. I have never heard of that book before, maybe I'll check it out. To be honest, when you try something for long, only to have it fall before your feet to nothing... it makes me no longer want to dream anymore, at least for me. Wakes you up to the nature of some people, then you realize that if you have something precious you don't entrust it to others, as they won't apply the same value to it, as they do their own thing. So they can move on, but you are left behind, after having your dreams shattered to fragments. I know that sounds terrible, lol I think I will be okay. I just have to recollect the pieces, I guess.

Anne Wulf: Wow thank you for the response. That's a lot to think about about. So psychology is that rigid. Maybe not the direction then. Psychotherapy... psychosynthasis... sounds interesting. I have big ideas, I tend to think big. The art I do is all about the mind and stuff, just symbolic. But with disappoint, it saps

2011-04-06T09:57:10Z

PHILIP: thanks for the encouragement to keep on going. I have never heard of that book before, maybe I'll check it out. To be honest, when you try something for long, only to have it fall before your feet to nothing... it makes me no longer want to dream anymore, at least for me. Wakes you up to the nature of some people, then you realize that if you have something precious you don't entrust it to others, as they won't apply the same value to it, as they do their own thing. So they can move on, but you are left behind, after having your dreams shattered to fragments. I know that sounds terrible, lol I think I will be okay. I just have to recollect the pieces, I guess.

Anne Wulf: Wow thank you for the response. That's a lot to think about about. So psychology is that rigid. Maybe not the direction then. Psychotherapy... psychosynthasis... sounds interesting. I have big ideas, I tend to think big. The art I do is all about the mind and stuff, just symbolic. But with disappoint, it saps

2011-04-06T09:57:39Z

Anne Wulf: Wow thank you for the response. That's a lot to think about about. So psychology is that rigid. Maybe not the direction then. Psychotherapy... psychosynthasis... sounds interesting. I have big ideas, I tend to think big. The art I do is all about the mind and stuff, just symbolic. But with disappoint, it saps my desire to create. I want to make a career out of my work, but it's sooo hard when you don't have the support. Don't want to just settle for something. I have a website with some of my writings and art, It's esoteric psychological like, but there is a definite spiritual element to it, without a doubt: http://rasteve.net16.net/

In any case you have given me some good advice, thank you.

2011-04-06T10:01:26Z

Roaringmice, wow more good advice. it sounds like you are saying I should feel out what I want to do, while getting the entirety level stuff out of the way. Philosophy sounds interesting, but it's something about it that makes it appear to me to not be as "worthwhile", although what I write would likely be labeled philosophical. But it has been in my mind as well. It's something to think about. thank you.

Anonymous2011-04-06T09:13:32Z

Favorite Answer

Never give up your dream. If you put forth your greatest effort with your art, you cannot fail. Don't let setbacks make a failure out of you. Think like a genius is a book you should read. It is by Tod Siler.

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Anonymous2011-04-06T09:23:37Z

Hey I am an artist too and I think about becoming a psychotherapist in the Jungian tradition but it is expensive and takes a long time to train. Also psychology courses are pretty scientific and people only really start looking at Jung etc at post grad level and even then Carl Jung, G.I. Gurdjieff, P.D. Ouspensky etc these people are not taken seriously by professional psychologists at all. Most psychologists do things like administer tests to see if a kid has dyslexia etc they are not involved in the esoteric. Nowadays people want the quick fix of cognative behavioural therapy and aren't interested in dreams etc.

What about doing a post grad in art therapy? Or doing a post grad just in art or some other humanities where you can explore your interest in the work of Jung etc Or you could train as a psychotherapist look into psychosynthasis!

I don't think you are too old to retrain but I do think you will be disapointed in psychology if esoteric psychology is what you want to look into as it is not taken seriously in that feild.

Also as an artist myself I know it is hard to keep going but remember you aren't doing it for money or fame but for the chance to express youself.

Also a Phd might be a mistake. I always wanted to do one but in reality it is very expensive. In the past it was needed to enter academia but now education is being squeezed especially non science and engineering subjects so there are fewer and fewer teaching oppertunities and more and more people wanting to teach so you have to be brutally honest with yourself about your abilities. If an actually proffessor is saying wow you should be an academic then that is good feed back if it's just people you know then take that with a pinch of salt.

With advances in sciene too people are just less into esoteric psychology. It's more of a new age self development thing.

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RoaringMice2011-04-06T09:24:58Z

My thought is that you shouldn't actually worry about what to major in just yet. Instead, enter a community college with plans to transfer to a university. Take the basic classes that all people have to take - math, English, history... and in addition, also take a class or two in the fields you think might interest you. My thought is that you should take classes in psychology, philosophy, and maybe sociology. And oddly enough, I actually think you may be a match for philosophy, rather than psych; but take the classes and see how it goes. See what you like. It's often quite different to study something formally than to just do it on your own, so keep your mind open to new things and new ideas, and see which classes most appeal to you. Take direction from there.

Just take it step by step. First, enter the college. Do well, term by term. Take classes that let you explore your potential interests. By the end of your associates, decide firmly on a major. Transfer for the bachelors. Then on, if necessary, for grad school. At each end-point, where you get a degree, decide your next steps.

Not caring about the time it would take is not realistic. Of course you care about that. You also need to care about the reality of your situation - if you get to the cc classes and hate them/bomb them, then a PhD is not happening, so you'd need to find a different path. But you'd do that. And for now, take it step by step, do well, and see where it all takes you.

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Alioth2011-04-06T20:07:20Z

If you are interested in esoteric psychology you will find it a challenge to conform with expectations of of institutional psychology necessary to get a qualification that would allow you to work in a clinical capacity.

If you are interested in being able to pursue more education with a longer term aim of being able to make a living and help people heal themselves you could look at other alternative medicine paths that tend to be more open minded. Chiropractors for instance work on improving the energy pathways of the body but many of them will also work to provide their patients with diet and lifestyle advice to improve overall vitality. In the meantime learning to do chiropractic would not involve compromising yourself of the areas of thought/philosophy/psychology that you know and hold sacred.

Of course, chiropractic is just one example. The point was just that there may be other healing modalities that can be used to apply what you Know that are of interest and can ultimately server to provide a living for you and your family.

Light.

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