Inaugural Post

Welcome!

The news may surprise some of you who read this (if anyone does), but I'm leaving graduate school. I didn't like my program. And the stress was killing me. That's not an exaggeration. For the last several months I've been in and out of doctor's offices and trying out different medication regimens. So I've opted out.

Jonathan (my husband) and I still live out West. We're not planning on moving back to the Midwest. We love where we live. So that's one fabulous thing that came out of this year-long ordeal. We also made many awesome friends in this town and would hate to leave them.

If you've met me, you will know that I'm very hard on myself and like to be the best at everything. I struggled for many months with feeling like a failure. But lying on the doctor's table in Urgent Care one Friday morning in the midst of a panic attack was enough to convince me that leaving wasn't just the result of a crappy attitude. No amount of pulling myself up by my bootstraps was going to be enough to get me through the grueling years of study and research ahead. And quite frankly, why would I want a PhD in something I wasn't passionate about?

So this blog is my way of staying engaged and continuing to write (in some capacity) while I take a step back and enjoy my early twenties. I'm now a professional dog bather and in a few months, I hope to be sent to Grooming Academy to become a trained Groomer. Being a Dog Groomer may not be as prestigious as being a Cognitive Neuroscientist, but at least I've got my sanity and my health back.

And hey, keep an eye on this blog as I test and share new recipes! Baking is an actual passion of mine and I've been known to whip up some pretty tasty treats.

Thanks for joining me on this crazy ride.