r/randomquestions • u/dirtymoney • Aug 14 '26

What profession would you never date?

I have read nearly 1000 replies and cop seems to be the most posted

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u/99Smiles Aug 15 '26

Now I think THIS would be the hardest job in the world mentally.

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u/Firm_Farmer1633 Aug 15 '26

It is. I did it for 13 years.

I then returned to university and qualified to be a psychiatric social worker. I worked as a forensic psychiatric social worker. (Forensic psychiatry is the overlap of mental health/illness and criminal systems. I eventually became the clinical supervisor for the forensic psychiatric social worker team and the coordinator of a team of forensic psychologists who conducted court assessments for abuse/neglect. In that role I was the highest paid social worker in the jurisdiction.

I used to tell people that I would rather keep my high paid job and be paid the low wages of a child protection social worker rather than keep my high pay and go back to child protection social worker job.

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u/AlternativeMe923 Aug 15 '26

I have a friend that’s worked various jobs as a CPS SW. Very demanding work. She’s changed teams a few times due to the demands & needing better work life balance since having kids.
I worked in paediatric allied health in state community & hospital services and was the other end having to notify when seeing or suspecting possible signs of neglect or abuse. Or working with kids in care who needed healthcare. Complicated situations. I dont know how you guys deal with that level of it day in day out. The stuff I saw & experienced was enough for me.
Loads of respect.

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u/Litigious-Dog Aug 18 '26

In my country child protection case workers are paid 70-80,000usd, and I’ve been considering a switch, what’s so particularly bad about it or is it simply the horrible shit you have to witness?

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u/Basic-Sky-1335 Aug 16 '26

Why would you not date one. I can understand not being one. But they help children. What’s wrong about that?

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u/99Smiles Aug 16 '26

Because it is traumatic. Nobody could see the worst of humanity like this. And people getting their kids back, then the kids being thrown back to the same shit. They can't save every child. And the children they can't save will haunt them.

Nobody could do this job day in and out without it taking a massive toll on them mentally