AITA For wanting hubby to step up due to me being burned out

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I am hoping for honest feedback because I feel guilty and like I am not being objective.

Hubby and I have been married 11 years, no kids, and living in a high cost of living state (washington). I am a counselor making 70k a yr and he makes 40k. We cannot live on his income, we could on mine.

Here's the deal. I am burned out at my job. I have been a counselor for many years and want out in the near future. Our whole marriage i have been the bread winner, often working two or three job for us when money was tight. If I leave counseling, I will take a massive pay cut and we will survive but be paycheck to paycheck, whereas now life is quite cushy. I also need to mention that I work from home and have great benefits which my spouse does not, and he is a bit jealous. He complains about his job but never looks for another. He is jealous of my generous pto and pay and working from home but doesn't strive for anything better in his own end.

I know he has low self esteem when it comes to not making more but he also doesn't apply himself. He has always worked full time so I can't call him lazy but he isn't the type to apply himself or take new opportunities or be motivated for more. When I tell him I want to quit because this job is hard on my mental health, he tells me it's too good to quit and I should stay. When I tell him I want him to maybe step up this time and look for a better paying job he says he will never find one. But he never looked!

And on top of that, he's had opportunities to gain credentials at his job paid for by the company that he doesn't pursue. Meanwhile I am working on my real estate license on the side, trying anything and everything to get out of counseling one day. But this is a terrible time to be a real estate agent and I know it will takes years for me to be able to make what I do now counseling.

So, am I right to be angry that my spouse is so dismissive about my job and stress of it? Or do I need to suck it up? Is it wrong of me for me to want him to step up more and at least try to apply himself?

Posted Dec 3, 2025, 1:47 AM UTC

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