I started seeing a therapist when my job as a Singapore Airlines flight attendant got too stressful. It changed my career path.

• Abby Ooi worked full-time arsenic a formation attendant while pursuing a bachelor's grade and a master's successful counseling.
• Ooi, 28, had to sacrifice sightseeing and slumber to drawback up pinch her assignments.
• Her days disconnected were spent fulfilling her internship hours.

This as-told-to effort is based connected a speech pinch Abby Ooi, a therapist, postgraduate student, and erstwhile Singapore Airlines formation attendant. The pursuing has been edited for magnitude and clarity.

At 18, I moved from Malaysia to Singapore pinch $230 and a profession plan.

I wanted to go a formation attendant — something I had fantasized astir since I was young. My mom raised my 2 older brothers and maine alone. Growing up, we couldn't spend to travel, so I thought I would do it connected my ain 1 day.

After moving successful unit for 3 years — and successful nan mediate of pursuing my bachelor's grade successful wide arts — I landed a occupation with Singapore Airlines arsenic a flight attendant astatine 22.

I was young, excited, and grateful that I had gotten nan job. I thought that I had everything I wanted.

But a fewer months into my 2nd twelvemonth of moving for Singapore Airlines, I started experiencing a batch of stress. I had to show up each time looking cleanable and being bully to everyone, past return to an quiet apartment and study for my bachelor's degree. I couldn't spend to return days disconnected because I needed nan salary.

I besides recovered nan manufacture expectations conflicting. There were strict rules to follow, and I couldn't situation myself to deliberation critically. Flying besides took a toll connected my body.

I decided to commencement seeing a therapist, and it helped. A fewer months in, she asked if I had ever considered a profession successful therapy. She told maine that I picked up connected things quickly and had precocious awareness.

By then, I had gained my bachelor's grade and had been moving for a fewer years. I realized I had nan capacity and resources to prosecute what had become my 2nd dream: becoming a therapist. My therapist's words encouraged maine to pursue this caller career.

In my 3rd twelvemonth arsenic a formation attendant, I completed a six-month postgraduate certificate people successful counseling and made nan determination to prosecute a part-time master's grade successful counseling.

Balancing activity and studies came pinch sacrifices

I spent around 60,000 Singapore dollars, aliases $45,500, connected my master's grade and postgraduate certificate from Monash University. Spending so overmuch money while avoiding loans made me feel committed to seeing it through.

My grade was part-time, pinch astir 12 hours of people each week. As a formation attendant, I had an mean of 120 hours of flying a month. Our schedules were irregular and unpredictable. However, arsenic classes were online, I recovered clip to fresh them into my schedule.

I won't glamorize nan life of moving and studying. There were sacrifices I had to make.

This was an illustration of my regular schedule: I would touch down early successful nan greeting successful a caller metropolis and commute to nan hotel. Feeling tired, I would group myself up astatine a table and attraction connected schoolwork. After spending hours connected that day's assignment, nan adjacent point I knew, it was clip for bed. I would group an siren for 5 a.m. to decorativeness up. Then, it would beryllium clip to time off for nan adjacent flight.

I retrieve really severely I wanted to spot nan Statue of Liberty successful New York City aliases sojourn Disneyland successful California. However, because I had assignments due, I didn't let myself get sidetracked by nan enticement of going retired pinch colleagues to spot caller things.

Sometimes, erstwhile I didn't person an duty due, I had nan clip to spell out. But I knew that by going retired pinch my colleagues, group would want to cheque retired restaurants and past divided bills accordingly. I knew I couldn't spend that, truthful I went to libraries and museums and spent clip alone. Because of this, my colleagues often assumed that I was antisocial.

At nan time, I besides avoided social media because I recovered it to beryllium excessively big of a distraction. It often felt lonely, but I was always looking astatine nan bigger picture. I thought, I don't request societal media correct now, and I don't request to spell retired pinch group because what's bigger correct now is my dream.

My days disconnected were spent connected internships

As portion of my grade requirement, I had to complete 250 hours of master acquisition done objective placements. So, my days disconnected were spent completing my 3 internships astatine clinics.

I completed my master's grade successful counseling from Monash University past year. After 6 years astatine Singapore Airlines, I near successful February and moved to Sydney a week later.

Eager to proceed studying, I had applied to nan University of Sydney and was granted a scholarship. I'm now pursuing a 2nd master's grade successful societal work.

Looking backmost astatine my clip arsenic a formation attendant, I saw different aspects of humanity by walking to different parts of nan world. I saw supplier addicts connected nan streets in San Francisco and starving kids successful Mumbai's slums.

It made maine think, really tin I thief people? It helped corroborate that I was readying for nan correct profession switch.

These days, I station astir my travel connected societal media and get messages from group asking really I studied while working.

This is what I show them: The early is for yourself. Take advantage of nan resources you have, and moreover if you don't person a lot, you tin multiply them pinch clip and effort.

It decidedly hasn't been easy, but it was worthy it.

A typical for Singapore Airlines did not respond to a petition for remark from BI.