Greetings Mental Pod People

[Pumping Sunshine]

Alright everybody here is my scorecard

34 yr old Male
Married
Father of two
Depression
General anxiety disorder
ADHD
Nervous Breakdown

I'm a mess...I had my nervous breakdown while I was employed as a teacher, they were not sympathetic, and lost my job because of it. So now I am virtually unemployable as an educator and am now grossly underearning in a sales position that I feel might be sucking out large chunks of my soul everyday. I am on meds for my depression and anxiety and am attending regular counseling, but it is still really hard for me to feel positive about the future. The fact that I am so underemployed is the biggest cause for my anguish right now. My current job is so far beneath me and my abilities but I don't know how to recover. I don't know what to do next...even posting this here seems like a desperate clutching at straws that leaves me feeling pathetic. I want to do great things, but I feel so trapped by my past. I don't know what to do, and that is leaving more deflated that I can put into words. I am utterly lost.

[duck1]

hugs,

I identify on many levels.

[kitkat]

Big hugs and welcomes! I can't believe they would fire you over that. It sounds like something that should be illegal or something. :/

There are a few topics here about under earning and the like around the forum that might be helpful for you.

Best of luck!

[oak]

Hey!

You are not alone when it comes to underearning. Here is a thread relating my struggles with it from this summer:

http://mentalpod.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=61&t=8186

Speaking only for myself, underearning will destroy/kill me sooner or later. Unless I take action. I have found Good Orderly Direction, and in fact healing, through my Higher Power, Richard Nelson Bolles, author of "What Color is Your Parachute". I say this without being flip; underearning is no laughing matter.

I hope things work out for you.

A little tough love lesson I had to learn: I was able to stumble, half asleep, into underearning. To the extent that I am leaving it, I had to stride, stride towards a North Star.

I hope things get better for you.

There is hope.

[Hail Ceasar]

Welcome dude. Like many others, I can relate to your employment woes. Hope to see ya around these parts!

[reddelicious]

Greetings to you too!

There is such much of your story I can relate to. Thank you for sharing.

Hug!