How I Scrapped My Future Plans to Become A Writer

For most of my life, I wanted to be a veterinarian. I was dead set on it. Whenever I started to question whether it was really what I wanted to do, I would convince myself that it was.

All through high school, it should have been a sign that I enjoyed and was better at English than I was at science, and later on math. But I refused to think that I needed to be anything other than a veterinarian. The signs were there:

I loved animals.

I wanted a career that would offer variety.

It was good pay.

Everything that I wanted in a job was there.

Then, Covid-19 hit.

I was in my first year of undergraduate school when the schools were shut down, and to be honest, I thrived at home. I didn't learn as much as I did while I was physically at school, but I loved being at home. But I didn't see what being at home all the time was doing to me.

When the schools reopened in 2021, I was in my third year of undergrad. When I tried to go back to traditional college, I couldn't go without being extremely anxious. I even had a few anxiety attacks. And it wasn't just school. I couldn't go anywhere without being anxious. Vacations, shopping, anywhere that wasn't my own house.

I made the extremely hard decision to transfer to an online school to be a veterinary technician. Then, as my anxiety got better, I got a job as a kennel technician at a vet clinic. As I kept working, I realized that I didn't want to work with animals at all, professionally.

I had to decide what career path I wanted to take, so I looked at what I was good at and what I enjoyed doing. I eventually thought about how much I loved reading and writing, and it made sense. I heard someone one time say to look at what you do for fun when you're not working, and then make a career out of it.

I then enrolled in college to work on an English B.A. degree. I also realized that I wanted to start writing more, so I started writing recreationally on Medium.

I always thought that I would be too scared to ever change my mind about my career choice. And when I got into my pre-vet degree, I felt like I was too old to change, even though I knew that wasn't true.

I just kept looking at the people around me who had steady jobs or were graduating to go into their dream job. It made me overthink big time. And even when I ended up changing my career path, I wondered, and sometimes still do, if people think I'm flaky, or if it was the right decision.

But, the other day, somebody told me that it's more courageous to change your mind in the middle of your degree than it is to keep pursuing a career that's not right for you. That has really helped me come to terms with and fully embrace my decision to write. I would rather be wrong for two years than for twenty. And, just an FYI, no one is judging you for changing your career path.

1. They have their own stuff to worry about.

2. We're all just trying to figure this stuff out. You're not the only one.

So, if you're in a similar situation, or if you want to start fully committing to writing, I hope that this encourages you and gives you the peace to do what you need to do.