EndGameNYC

Hi LBrain.

I wish you all the best.

When I got sober following my relapse, I was desperate to get back to work in my field. I couldn't even find mindless work, and things got very bad. Early on, I had a great interview for the kind of work that would have brought me close to the level of work I was doing before I relapsed, but I didn't get the job and was very disappointed, though still hopeful. I burned and buried a lot of bridges both before and during my relapse, and there's a tightly-knit group of people who work in my field in NYC. I managed to turn into a tremendous liability that which previously made it possible for me to make great advances in my career. That chapter of my life is now closed...or it at least seems to be so.

It took me two years of near-daily job-searching and/or job-related activities to get work in my field. It became increasingly difficult for me to remain optimistic as weeks turned into months, and months turned into years. The clock was ticking. I'd been away from the kind of work I enjoyed for an increasing amount of time, and I was getting older. Neither one of these things worked in my favor. I began contemplating applying for disability due to a history of depression and other options, but none of them made me anything other than extremely unhappy.

I've been working for almost two years, and I'm very happy with the work I'm doing. For other than personal financial reasons, I recently took on additional work, and just last week I had to turn down a couple of job offers. That hasn't happened in a very long time.

If I've learned to have faith in anything, it's perseverance, hard work, and patience.

I'm aware of your professional history as you've described it here. In your case, it seems that you're happy not working in your area of expertise, so I imagine that there's some conflict for you in returning to work. I get that, and I hope you find something for yourself that's rewarding.