Why I Became a Psychologist

I didn’t start out studying psychology. My path began in a science and business degree, and it took a while before I found my way to where I actually belonged. Looking back, the signs were there long before I had the language for it, I’d always been the person people came to talk to. Something about listening, really listening, came naturally to me, and I found myself drawn to understanding why people think, feel and act the way they do.

A big part of what pulled me toward this field was personal. I’ve navigated my own mental health, and I’ve watched people close to me, family, friends, go through real struggle. Seeing that up close changes how you understand pain, and it left me wanting to be someone who could actually sit with people in it, rather than look away. Volunteering with Lifeline was a turning point for me. Being there with someone in a moment of crisis, often a stranger, taught me just how much it can mean simply to be heard.

What keeps me drawn to this path now isn’t just the goal of “fixing” things. It’s the privilege of getting a genuine understanding of people, their history, their patterns, what’s shaped them. And when I can help, that matters deeply to me. But even when there isn’t a clear fix, being able to share that moment with someone, to sit in it alongside them, still means something.

The joy I get from someone trusting me enough to open up is hard to put into words, but it confirms, again and again, that I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.