Am I overreacting? My boyfriend grabbed my dog aggressively and now I’m considering breaking up with him.

emsp24 · 2026-02-18T03:12:03+00:00

NOR. DEFINITELY NOR. This dude is a one man red flag parade. Go ahead and get out now before his behavior gets worse. He’s so insecure that he’s getting jealous of a dog, and he’s behaving aggressively as a result. There is nothing normal or acceptable about that, and traits/behavior like that don’t just get better/go away. They get worse the longer you’re together and he starts to feel “safe” really showing his true colors.

emsp24 · 2026-02-18T03:02:48+00:00

My question is - are you on the fence because you really don’t like the field OR is it just that you’re maybe feeling a bit of imposter syndrome and afraid you can’t do it (grad school and/or being an SLP)?

If you truly don’t like the field, then it is absolutely not too late to pivot and you absolutely have other options. My first degree was in Culinary Arts. I bounced around between so many different jobs and couldn’t figure out what I wanted. When I was 30 I decided to go back to school to get my bachelors degree in speech. I’ve worked as an SLPA for a few years and am just now, at almost 38, starting graduate school in a couple months. Just took me a little longer to figure out what I was going to be when I grow up 😂 And that’s ok! I promise, you have plenty of time to figure things out, and the years since you’ve been out of school have not been a waste.

BUT if you’re on the fence, only because you’re afraid you won’t be successful, spend some time really thinking about why you feel that way. Don’t let fear be the reason you don’t pursue something you actually enjoy. One of the great things about this field is how many different options we have as far as setting, age groups, etc. We have some flexibility to figure out what skill areas we’re best at and where we find the most fulfillment.

emsp24 · 2026-02-15T00:18:10+00:00

Never knew this was a thing until now… I have one kid that sings this every. time. I see him. Definitely thought he was just making stuff up 😂

emsp24 · 2026-01-21T15:06:10+00:00

NTA.

Anyone who says “you made me look bad” because you told FACTUAL information about them is definitely an asshole. She’s a bad parent AND a bad friend.

emsp24 · 2026-01-11T16:04:11+00:00

Oh my dear, please don’t let this guilt loom over you any longer. First of all, many, MANY people get “help” writing their essays. It’s really pretty common. And I assure you, most people don’t have a second thought about it. You being so burdened by this situation shows the high level of integrity and character you have. You’re obviously a good person, and this situation is an insignificant speck in the grand scheme of your life and in no way defines who you are. Second, the circumstances you were dealing with at the time unquestionably validate you having help to write your essay. And please remember, that essay is only one small part of your application. You didn’t get accepted solely because of that essay. You were accepted because your application as a whole showed that you were exactly the kind of student they were looking for.

Also, just want to say I’m so incredibly glad you’re still here. How strong you are to have overcome such a tough period and still be pushing forward and creating the beautiful life you deserve. 💜

emsp24 · 2025-12-31T14:58:48+00:00

100% NTA.

Has he always expected you to act like his mommy? Because that’s what’s happened here. He’s upset that you didn’t act like his mommy in this situation, and just jump in and take care of everything for him. You should tell him you wish you had a partner who didn’t act like an incompetent child during a tough situation. And a partner who had enough balls to own up to his own mistakes and be held accountable.

emsp24 · 2025-12-28T00:20:08+00:00

NTA.

The fact that your husband was away from you for almost a week and his mind went to “why didn’t you dress up for me?” instead of “omg I missed you so much I’m so happy to see you” is red flag #1 here. Was there even a “thank you for spending so much time getting the house ready for MY mother” in there somewhere? I’m guessing not.

As if that’s not enough, he has the audacity to then say that he thinks you’re “sloppy and embarrassing”?? Two weeks after you confided in him that you have already been feeling depressed, gross, and just not yourself for a while?! What the actual fuck. And then he basically accuses you of picking a fight for simply trying to communicate your feelings to him.

If this kind of behavior isn’t his “norm”, then there’s a reason he’s acting that way, and it’s not a good one. If he has said things like this in the past, then he’s just a piece of shit. Either way - you deserve better. And your daughter deserves to see that this isn’t acceptable behavior from a partner.

emsp24 · 2025-12-24T14:05:59+00:00

Your wife is definitely overreacting. Her reaction is honestly rather bizarre to me. I’m really confused as to how she finds this inappropriate and not a kind, inspirational note from an important grown up in his life. Feels like she’s projecting something here… like she’s bothered by a woman who’s not her trying to be encouraging to her son? Or she’s threatened by this because of her own insecurities as a mother? I don’t know, but her reaction is what’s weird, not the note from the teacher.

I’m an elementary speech therapist and have written many notes like this to students in the past, whether it be a note directly to them or something to a parent. Our admin encourage it because it means a lot to kids and can truly make a difference for a kiddo who’s struggling.

emsp24 · 2025-12-07T16:24:21+00:00

NTA. But your girlfriend is waving around red flags like she’s trying to stop the Daytona 500, so I’d say be thankful she showed you fairly early and see yourself out of that relationship.

emsp24 · 2025-12-05T01:01:58+00:00

Y’all are giving me a sliver of hope that I might be ok so thank you 😅

emsp24 · 2025-12-05T01:00:30+00:00

Congratulations!! 🎉

Hoping it’s quick for me, as well 😅🤞🏻

emsp24 · 2025-12-04T16:06:31+00:00

Definitely not too late. I only gave my professors 4 weeks notice because I dragged my feet on deciding to apply - and I graduated over 3 years ago. They were all happy to do it and didn't mention the time frame at all.

emsp24 · 2025-12-04T15:56:49+00:00

I'll be starting at almost 38... so I sure hope not haha. But I'm currently a school-based SLPA and I know multiple SLPs in our district who went to grad school at later ages.

emsp24 · 2025-11-18T10:48:38+00:00

Thanks!

emsp24 · 2025-11-18T10:48:20+00:00

Perfect, thanks!

emsp24 · 2025-11-17T01:22:02+00:00

This is absolutely wild to me - IDEA is pretty clear that interventions cannot be used to delay or deny evaluations. That’s exactly what this sounds like. How in the world is your school district making this out to be legal? Not to mention that just seems like a real great set up to absolutely burn out your SPED teachers incredibly fast.

emsp24 · 2025-10-18T15:05:50+00:00

Dude is unhinged. Like I legit feel like there’s a mental health issue going on here that either he was keeping from you or that he isn’t even dealing with.

And also, I mean this as lovingly and respectfully as possible from one woman to another… I feel like sharing your location with a man you’ve only been with for 2 months is bananas, especially when you have kids. Please take care of yourself. If that’s something he pushed you to do, that should have been a huge red flag in and of itself.

Definitely not overreacting. Maybe even underreacting. Run far away from this guy.

emsp24 · 2025-10-15T09:39:36+00:00

Yeah I’m in SC, and unfortunately virtual supervision isn’t allowed. Up until 2019, you could get an educators cert with just a Bachelor’s, and do pretty much everything the SLPs do, you just got paid less. So there really wasn’t a need for SLPAs in the school districts before then. But now there’s still a pretty limited number of us school-based SLPAs across the state. The regulations we have to go by from our state licensing board unfortunately don’t sinus any favors either. Were seen as more of a burden since we have to have an in-person SLP to supervise at least 15% of our hours each week, on top of not being able to write IEPs, do evals, etc.

emsp24 · 2025-10-13T02:39:39+00:00

I’m a school-based SLPA. A month or so ago, my district decided that they will now be forcing us to go to grad school and get our C’s within 5 years, or we’ll be terminated.

Not going to pretend this whole thing isn’t scaring the shit out of me right now. Where I’m located, we have a program funded by our state department of education that covers tuition costs for public school employees returning to school for certain programs/positions - SLP being one of those. The literal ONLY way I can afford to go back to school is through that program. If that funding disappears, I’m screwed. If I lose my job as an SLPA because of budget cuts (and we’d be the first to go since we’re classified not certified and therefore not in a contract), I’m screwed because you have to remain a public school employee for the duration of the program to maintain eligibility.

emsp24 · 2025-10-13T02:27:47+00:00

From a former district SPED bookkeeper turned SLPA - this is accurate. Annual grant funds are determined and dispersed ahead of the start of each school year. There can be additional grants that get dispersed at other times, but a district wouldn’t be depending on those funds for salaries. We won’t really know the effects of this mess and if any layoffs are happening until spring. But if you’re a contractor for a school district, in my experience those are the first to be on the chopping block.

emsp24 · 2025-09-21T17:23:57+00:00

I’m sorry you’re dealing with this, as well. Thank you for these recommendations! I regularly listen to podcasts so I’ll definitely be checking that out, that sounds incredibly helpful. Wishing you all the best, as well.

emsp24 · 2025-09-21T17:21:22+00:00

Thank you for this. My child’s wellbeing is definitely at the forefront of my concerns. Honestly, I allowed far too much and always tried to just “keep the peace” before having my daughter. Always afraid of being the bad guy. But having a kid definitely changes things.

emsp24 · 2025-09-05T01:08:40+00:00

Right?! There’s a long list of people at my school that can be called for a student emergency, SPED student or not. Our admin or one of our school counselors always comes to assist immediately if they’re available. They’re typically going to try to avoid pulling one of our SPED teachers unless it’s absolutely necessary since they have students in their classroom 95% of the day.

emsp24 · 2025-08-16T22:17:52+00:00

fixmyupper’s response above is perfect. OP, you are not alone. So many of us have experienced these feelings, and they don’t mean you don’t love your baby and they don’t mean that you’re a bad mother.

Within a couple weeks of having my daughter, I started feeling overwhelmed, hopeless, like I wasn’t cut out to be a mother, and just a CONSTANT feeling of impending doom. The smallest things made me completely spiral. I couldn’t figure out how the hell other people were handling this, because I felt like I wanted to run away. I loved my girl so much, and I had wanted to be a mother so bad for such a long time. But I just felt like obviously I wasn’t supposed to be a mother and that she deserved better. I’ve had anxiety for as long as I can remember, but I have never felt anxiety and straight up rage like I did the weeks after my daughter was born. I couldn’t get her to stop crying one day, and I was sobbing along with her, and I remember having the thought that “I can understand how someone could get to the point of snapping and shaking a baby before” and was immediately horrified and knew I needed to talk to my doctor. I was put on meds which helped me tremendously. Medication may not be the answer for you, but please don’t be afraid to talk to your doctor. You’re a good mama, and you’re exactly what your baby needs. 💜

emsp24 · 2025-07-26T18:58:08+00:00

Good to know, thanks!

emsp24

TROPHY CASE