O/T Please..I need advice.
 

I know..I know. More school stuff. But I dont know who else to ask. The schools wont tell me anything.

I want to change my major from digital graphics to chemical dependancy counceling. To do that I need to change schools all together.
I just called my advisor at the school I am enrolled in and told her what I wanted to do. And she told me to switch from digital graphics to business management? I asked if I could take general study classes and thats what she told me to do. I just got off the phone with the school I want to go to and she told me that business mgmnt has nothing to do with chem depend. And that the credits from that school are not tranferable to the one I want to go to.
I dont want to pay for classes I have no use for. And put time and money into somehting that will be of no use in the field I want or count toward future classes.
But the new classes dont start at the new school until Jan.

Should I just drop this school and work on doing what it is I really feel passionate about?
I dont want to feel like a failure cause I didnt finish with this first one. But it will be of zero use to me.
I need to make a decision before they make me pay the entire bill regardless if I drop or not.
I think I have 30 days.
I am not asking for anyone to tell me what to do. I am asking for guidance.
I am sure alot of you out there were undcided and changed your mind. I just want to do it before I end up wasting time and money.
Thx again all.

There is little or no money in Chemical Dependency Counseling, but it can be rewarding if your people succeed.

Business management knowledge can be applied to nearly any field.

Just a few thoughts. I was considering CDC myslf at one point, but the pay is dismal, and the work can be high stress.

Where you are at now, do they offer any courses in psychology, social work, anthropology, human behaviors? Anything like that? If you can find a course or two that will at least sustain your momentum.

I think it depends on how close you are to finishing in digital graphics. It might be worth finishing it and then getting certified for chemical dependency counseling.

I say this because there is more than one way to do what you love in life. One way is to pursue it to the exclusion of everything else. In the case of chemical dependency counseling, this may result in you spending a good portion of your life destitute. Fulfilled spiritually but not substantively.

Another way is to pursue what you love as a sideline until you are good enough or in demand enough to take it full time. That's the method I usually vote for...

An article I found to be very helpful is the following: How to Do What You Love

-Goat

I agree with Anvil T.

You know you've been jumping around a bit lately - I know you want to erase all that wasted time you spent 'out there', and get to where you want to be as soon as possible, but you're young - you have time to do everything you want to do.

At least take another week or two and see how things settle IMO.

I don't reckon time or money is ever wasted at school, myself :)

D

I disagree that you wouldn't have any use for Business Management.
From what you have told me what you want to do a having a background in
BM would only help. I don't see how it wouldn't help at all. Whichever path
you end up choosing in CD, I can only see it helping in your career.
I think it is important to stay in school also. It's so much easier to stay in school when you are in school.

JMO... Good luck with whatever you decide! :)

Yea..I'm not out to save the planet. And to be honest. I am not gearing toward so much being your regular type of a councelor. It is all explained in a couple threads I ahve posted recently.
I want to advocate mostly. But also want that educqation. It isnt something that just came to me. I almost enrolled for this a few years ago.
I will post my thread as to WHY.

Here is the first one

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...out-steps.html

And here is the second..

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...esses-one.html

I have no interest in Bus Mgmnt.

I am not in this one for the money.
Thats whats wrong with the world now a days. Everyone is so caught up in money. Yea..I would love to make good money. Its important and you need it.
But I am more wanting to do something that will help me as others. I feel really passionate about this. And not just trying to clean up other addicts. It not so much about that.
Like in my threads I posted. I am tired of people looking at me like an addict for the rest of my life. Cant get a job cause they want to do background checks and not even meet you f2f and get to know you as a person. I am coming from a total isolation from regualr society and found it very hard to transition back to the real world. I never learned how to do basic things like balance a check book and how to start school or find jobs or training for even minimum wage jobs. My life for the past 16 yrs has thrown alot of obstacles in my way as far wanting to move on with my life and better myself in whatever way possible.
I know for me...Its humiliating at times. Not just by how some people will treat you because of your past. But finding out I cant function in what should be basic life skills.
I want to be a person who can help people like me transition into regualr life again.
My mind is already made up. I just want some other views and opinions.
I agree I should have some clean time. But by the time classes start for the other school. I will have close to a year. By the time I graduate I will ahve 3 or more yrs.
I dont believe in waiting if you feel strongly about anything.
I waited around too long to even come this point in my life. I am ready to make things happen.

Did I mention that the credits from this school arent transferable to the next one?

You gotta follow your heart, girl. I am HUGE on that.

Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.-Joseph Campbell.

Nothing has a stronger influence psychologically on their environment and especially on their children than the unlived life of a parent.-Carl Jung from "The Development of Personality."

I spent four years in government service making "big bucks." I traded that in for my heart's work and relatively little pay and I swear I have not worked a day since I gave up my government service time. And, I have never been happier.

Follow your heart!

I chose graphic because thats what I wanted to do after high school. I have changed alot since then. My intersts. My exoperiences. I was trying to go back to the past. I loved art in school. but I am finding it isnt as much of an interest anymore. I am also finding from speaking with others who have already earned their degrees for it that the job market is very competitive and most have no use for it now because there just is no stability in it.
My mind is made up and if you read the initial post thoroughly you would have seen that I said I like to get others percpectives.

Maybe you missed that..Not sure.
It is not a sense of urgency. It is what feels right. If it were urgency I wouldnt be trying to figure this out. Yes..My mind is made up as far as I know thats what I def want to do. There is no doubt or fear in this for me. Not yet. Not like I have had with this digital graphics thing from the beginning. And if you have seen even earlier posts about my fear on that and being confused a couple weeks ago. You would know what I am saying.

I have nothing to prove to anyone but myself. The world is going to move with or without me. Its all about me and what I think and how I feel about what I am doing with my life.
I have to change schools because they dont offer anything that ties into what I want to do.
I dont know about you. But I live paycheck to paycheck and can barely pay my bills. If I am going to invest in something. I want to have some use for it. And if these credits arent transferable..and it has nothing to do with what it is I plan on doing. Than I dont have 10k just laying around to waste on it when that money can be put toward what I want.
I was so caught up in the whole actually going to school that I really didnt take the time to research other options. I oicked the first school I saw and found something that they offered I thought I may be interested in. NOW I have had time to reflect and feel and think about it. And have been for some time now. As has been proven in alot of my posts for at least the past month.
I come here for advice from people I trust. I am not looking for anyone here or in my f2f life to make my decision for me. But it never hurts to get others views. Cause they may see something I dont.

I think if you are not really that interested in the graphics program and you can get out of it and get your money back you should. Save it and use it for what you really want to take in January. Pretty easy choice to me. I know I personally wasted 4 years of university taking classes I had no interest in just to please my parents...I majored in economics and minored in history...I work in IT...The only thing I learned those four years that I carried with me the rest of my life was how to drink more and faster. I wish looking back I had of taken a few years off and figured out what I really wanted to take. That's my 2 cents. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

You know I was totally gung-ho on thinking that I wanted to go to school and do the whole Addiction counseling thing too. For me being new in sobriety was exciting and I wanted to learn more so I could share the mental wealth, HA HA!!!! :brain

HOWEVER, I really want to stick to what I want to do and while I'm still not even close, my dreams are still my goals. I have a lot of obstacles to get through but I know that I want more than anything to do what I love and excel in that.

I don't know if that helps but hope it does. :)

Maybe I should elaborate more.
Growing up I had alot of dream jobs.
I wanted to be a lawyer, judge, cop, interior designer, club owner, restaurant owner, fashion designer, phychiatrist..I wanted to be alot of things.
Mostly what I wanted to do for a long time was law, club owner, phychiatrist and art.
So I didnt just 'get clean' and decide to save the world.
I wanted to be a lawyer and a cop for the longest time even before my addicton to help people.
I think where alot of this comes from is I want to be that alternative to the norm where people looking to better their lives can go. Ones like many that dont want to do 12 steps and do what is so widely incorporated. Nothing against 12 steps. Not meaning it in that way. It was just an easy example. I of course am talking about things that have nothing to do with recovery programs. I feel there are not enough people in this world willing to take a chance on others. Not willing to try and give redemption to people who have lived wrong and now want to do right with an honest and hard effort.
I myself in my own experience have run into so much BS because people dont want to get to know the person behind the paper.
This has nothing to do with money, it has nothing to do with being right or wrong. It has nothing to do with proving anything to anyone.
It all comes down to me wanting to be of service somewhere with people like myself that find it as difficult to move forward as I have in the past. Not by their own fault but because people doubt you, judge you, categorize you.

Does this make any sense to anyone?
I know what I feel inside. It doesnt even have to be chemical dependency counselor. It can be anything that can help people that face things like this.
I just want to help. I know how it feels when no one wants to listen to you or look at the person you are now instead of were.
People change everyday. But the world doesnt look at it like that.
Its like what you did in your past is who you will be the rest of your life.
I want to help people break out of that box.
Because its things like that that keep addicts using. That takes their hope away.
I am not saying thats all it is. But it doesnt help when you want to better your life and then run into so much discrimination because you made mistakes.

So that is my thought process on that.
I am far from a martyr. And I am not trying to be.

I am going to come right out and say it.
I am a little hurt by some of these responses.
I know I asked and I am ok with that. But I didnt expect most of you to come across as I was making a mistake by wanting to help people. By wanting to make a differenc ein peoples lives just like us.
I took one posters comments as very negative and arrogant.
Like they were telling me I am delusional and I am just following some fantasy idea that everyone who gets clean gets.
And that person doesnt even comment ever to any of my posts. Funny how some just pop up to throw their negative critisizm in.
Yea..Maybe I am being over sensitive. But I am hurt by some of these comments.
When was it ever a bad thing to want to help people?
I am not here to prove jack to anyone but myself.
I feel there is a space in this society that needs alot of attention. Somewhere that most people dont want to deal with.
I know how it feels to be rejected and told you cant because of your past.
I just want to help people that face the same things.
I am all for hearing what i dont like. And that was the point of this thread. But how some of this came across was disturbing for me.
I will always be that person who will back anyone up if they have a dream. And this dream didnt just come out of nowhere.
It has been in my mind for a loong time. Years. Even before I decided to save myself.
And this is a perfect example of why I want to do this. So more people dont get that same stereotype of what most people want to assume.
Get to know someone for who they are. Not what they did.
Not what the next person did and why.
I havent felt like this in a long time here.
I have to say I am disappointed and wish I didnt even ask now.

i think it is admirable to want to help people. really...it's no different than someone that has been clean for a long time and being a sponsor in a.a.

just with a professional bend to it. honey....if it's your dream you go for it. i doubt if anyone on here meant to hurt your feelings. a lot of us are just much older and that tends to make us very cynical in life.

god bless the idealists that believe they can make a difference. you can. but you will also be in for many disappointments as us alkies and addicts can let the most positive person in the world down.

rock on aysha. i'm pulling for you and hope you can use your life experience as a strong base to help others.

Cynical One, it's unlikely that classes in english, maths and science would be core courses in a graphic arts program. Aysha, your idea about taking general courses is a good one, although you might find that the chemical dependency certificate is quite specialised. Since you asked, I would recommend the following:

1. Your current school should list its courses online, make note of any psychology courses (introduction to psychology, abnormal psychology, developmental psychology, etc). There may be other relevant areas that your school has courses in, like pharmacology and health education. Save or print out the course descriptions.
   
   
2. Talk to the college which offers the chemical dependency program and ask them whether the psych (etc) courses are likely to earn you any credit. You will need to show them the course descriptions before they can advise you.
   
   
3. If the courses match up and are eligible for credit, then ask your advisor to assist you with enrolling into the psych (etc) courses. You may need to enrol into these courses on a non-award basis, i.e. you are not enrolled into a certificate or degree, but are studying the courses individually. Your advisor will be able to assist you with any course fee questions.
   

Best of luck with it. :)

Follow your dreams, passion and your heart girl is all I can say. It is what has kept me clean and what makes me happy. But, No many people will not like it, many people do
not understand and sadly will never accept it. I was just explaining that to some important people here at SR the other day.
Not saying that is what is happening here, I don't know. I'm just saying if this is
"Your" passion, Your dream, go for it and don't let nothing or anyone stop you.
When you keep going you will start getting your feet so wet and deep into it, nothing
anyone says will matter :lala because you will be so happy with your choices and decisions.
Or that's my personal experience anyway, ;) and some of the others I've sent you. Living 'Your Dream' is like something you can never explain outloud.
Hang Tough!
:You_Rock_

by reading the threads,, i dont think anyone was intentionally trying to throw negatives at you, but i know what its like when you've made your mind up you just want others opinions and you are hoping for the RIGHT response,,,, but sometimes it doesnt come.... All people are different and see things differently try not to take it to heart...

but also how long have you been at this course for,, it would seem like a real waste of time and effort to change schools now if your nearing the end,,,, extra qualifications can do wonders down the track..... but certainly follow your dreams,, coz if we dont then we have nothing..... :)