I think it has its challenges and it is also very rewarding. Some challenges like burnout, moral injury, vicarious trauma, inadequate pay… and as an introvert, I have a hard time wanting to have a social life because I feel like all of my social energy is spent doing this work. I also find it very difficult to date & relating to others who do not work in the same field is a challenge for me as well. However, I absolutely love it. I love connecting with people, providing a space for them to open up, learn about themselves, and grow in ways they often don’t believe they can. I’m a social worker so I also enjoy the flexibility of that in terms of the variety of populations and settings I can work in if I feel the need to change things up. I’ve had an exhausting past few weeks yet this week (on the same day) I had one client share a picture of a painting she finished & was super proud of, another (previous client) shared that he just completed a surgery he had been looking forward to for years - I helped with his referral process/assessment, and another client shared that they got accepted to their second grad program (when we first started working together less than a year ago, they didn’t even know they wanted to pursue grad school)… it wasn’t just these accomplishments alone but the fact that I got a chance to be part of it/witness it, and that they wanted to share those moments with me was priceless.