I’ve been playing with the idea of going back to school for years. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve made social media posts about it, and even though at the time (all of them) I was 100% behind my decision, things just never manifested, either due to outside forces – money being the major factor in most cases – or to my own failings (thanks, depression!). When I was in Louisville, I retook Anatomy & Physiology I, and then … well, I honestly don’t know what happened. Life got in the way, I suppose, and I kind of just got into the field I wanted – medicine – tangentially by becoming a pharmacy technician and thinking I’d be satisfied with that.

Well, three years later, I’m not even a practicing CPhT any longer, although I am putting my medical knowledge and pharmacy experience to good use at a renal care pharmacy. But it’s just … not fulfilling. I mean, okay … I actually really like my job. I’m one of the people that makes sure our dialysis patients get their phosphorus binders and other necessary medications to keep them healthy, so it’s not that I’m not doing good in the world. But I feel like there’s only so far I can go before I want to do more, and so many of my talents are either not being utilized properly or I have no use for them period.

So Spring 2021? I’m starting at MTSU in their nursing program. Covid (and depression and a couple other things) kept me from starting this fall, but I’m actually grateful that it happened that way. I’ll be able to really focus on saving money, getting some of my debt paid off, and preparing myself mentally to be a student again. My goal is to be graduated and licensed and everything before my 40th birthday, so that gives me a little over three years to accomplish this, and I think that I might just be able to do this this time.

Good god, pray for me.