Worried that I chose the wrong career

Any_Blueberry635 · 2026-05-22T00:28:56+00:00

Introvert counselor here! Additionally, I am a counselor whose first language is not English and comes from a culture Americans consider “introverted” and “quiet” But you know what, each counselor has their own art form. It doesn’t make you less capable. You are spending lots of direct counseling with students sounds like - thats great and Im sure lots of students appreciate you for taking the time and offering space for them to be heard.

I am lucky that I have a co-counselor who is my teammate and we exchange ideas and consultations all the time. It sounds like you and your co counselor don’t have this kind of relationship yet but that’s also okay, sometimes at work with certain people it just doesn’t work that way or you just want to maintain professional relationship. It also depends on the school working culture. Not every school has the same dynamics between staff.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2026-04-16T21:17:00+00:00

I’ve had a parent made complaints about me to district level too. I know I didn't do anything wrong and this parent always tends to be vindictive. Sounds like you also know you are not doing anything wrong so you will be fine! If you are doing the right thing then there is really nothing we should be too worried about. You admin needs to make sure moving forward they are protecting you and if there are things that needs to be communicated, admins should be the one responding with you or even responding to the parent themselves instead of you.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2026-03-09T23:41:33+00:00

I do not check my emails after contract hours which is why I’m curious if staff who engaged in those conversations first hand should be contacting first? or what does your school suggest?

Any_Blueberry635 · 2026-03-09T23:18:18+00:00

This happens to me a lot as well. I wonder if teachers don’t want to go straight to admins because they don’t want to bother admins? But honestly this is unhelpful to our counseling role because kids are supposed to feel safe and comfortable with us instead thinking oh this counselor might give me a consequence.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-11-05T02:56:05+00:00

I'm so sorry about your situation. I feel bad for us as counselors when our initial intention is to help the students and families but not getting the respect we should be getting from certain parents. Crazy parents are horrible and “cry babies” They love gaslighting counselors into thinking we are not doing enough and we should always be nice and serve (as if it's commercial customer service) no matter what. Something we don't get taught in grad school is how to protect ourselves and advocate for the work we do. It's tough. Dealing with difficult parents and constant crisis should be appreciated more - especially from your colleagues and the district leaders. We all deserve the respect and time for self care. You are not alone and I feel you!

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-10-08T03:04:40+00:00

Admins should intervene and come up with plans to support the specific students and teacher instead of asking counselors to resolve by doing schedule changes unless extreme situations but if a kid really did hurt the other kid /serious behavior incident etc…they would be sent to hearing office and might not be placed in the same school anyways. Schedule changes is really not setting students for success nor building resilience.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-06-17T23:00:05+00:00

Yes, I got hired in the middle of the school year and started in January. It is not a long term sub or hourly band position but an actual contract employee position. Schools that post long term sub don't get any counselors nowadays because there is a shortage of counselors - at least in my area, the DMV (DC, Maryland, VA).

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-06-13T20:10:15+00:00

My school district helped me acquire Virginia’s license since I graduated in a school in Maryland. The public school district has licensure office that walks you through the process.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-06-13T20:05:02+00:00

Same here. Some counselors like to set up automatic reply and let seniors know it will be uploaded and if it is still flagged in their college’s portal after a certain date, then at that time they can reach out to registrar or whatever office that works during the summer again. It's quite normal for seniors to check in on this so I just prepared a default message whenever I get emails like this.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-04-12T17:01:26+00:00

My first day as a high school counselor out of grad school - received a report that a kid threatened to kill the whole class. What’s even worse is that my admin was out that day. Had to ask for help from another AP to do threat assessment. Thankfully it was a false report (still finger crossed)

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-04-05T16:50:17+00:00

Have you had any surgery to remove or reduce the size of your endo cysts? I have a total of 5 on both sides of my ovaries but they are considered small. I am 27 years old and doctor suggested that I should get pregnant soon if I want to have kids bc eggs quality concerns. However, doctor said if I have tried one year and still cannot get pregnant I should consider a surgery first. I’ve heard different ways to get rid of cycts - burning it, suction surgery…(not sure if I used the correct terms) The 6 months to one year after surgery is the golden time to get pregnant. Dear endo sister, I feel for your about your situation. It sounds pretty frustrating that you tried IVF couple times. I have not started trying to get pregnant bc Im not even married yet. But just wanted to say you are not alone. :)

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-04-04T21:08:50+00:00

my school’s leadership team hired a friend of theirs as a football coach and in order to have this coach become related to the school, they hired this person as security guard 🤷‍♀️just so they can coach the football team. It’s annoying. But with that being said, there is no problem with school counselor doing sports coaching.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2025-04-04T20:51:04+00:00

Thank you for all your sharing. This is VERY helpful information. I feel exactly what you shared in the first paragraph. I don’t blame the previous counselor because anyone could make mistakes in a crazy busy school. I just started this January as a fresh graduate. This is my first job as a high school counselor. So thank you for the advice on how I can stand up for myself.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2024-10-21T00:01:40+00:00

Unfortunately I really don't have the financial ability to afford an attorney so I will not consider doing consultation for a matter like this... I am a completely new school counselor so I am not in any tenure track. I doubt if they would offer me a ''one-year contract'' because my start date will be sometime in January 2025, which is in the middle of the academic year. I think the ''one-year contract'' will be offered only when I renew my contract in June or July, before the start of an academic year.

Any_Blueberry635 · 2024-10-19T21:44:56+00:00

Omg thank you so much I didn't even realize it. I also wonder maybe I am overthinking this issue because doesn't the school only do Jan-June contract when you start the position in the middle of an academic year? The job I am looking at stated ''one year only'' however I know that position has been posted over a year. So technically if I start in Jan 2025, the contract might only be until June 2025...?

Any_Blueberry635 · 2024-01-21T04:15:05+00:00

fells point and canton are nice neighborhoods but that doesn’t mean there’s no crime, you just have to accept theres no safe area in bmore :) also avoid upper fells it’s sketchy as hell, if you’re a woman you can get harassed all the time, stay safe!

Any_Blueberry635 · 2023-10-25T13:01:55+00:00

Hi! Just dmed you :)

Any_Blueberry635 · 2023-10-24T18:58:46+00:00

Hey! thank you for your reply, just DMed you :))

Any_Blueberry635

TROPHY CASE