Career advice needed

For most of my life, I never had a clear passion or “dream career.” I always felt pressure to have an answer, but I didn’t. I worked retail/management jobs for a while, and then kind of took a chance and applied to a pediatric dental office just to try something new. I ended up loving dentistry.

Now I work at a specialty dental office (father/son practice) and have been there for over 2 years. I genuinely love where I work. The doctors are amazing, they value me, I’ve learned a lot, and I feel appreciated. I take my job seriously and put a lot into it, and they’ve made it very clear they want me to stay (offering raises, flexibility, even a management role if I want it).

About a year into working there, I decided to pursue hygiene school for stability and higher income (if I loved teeth, why not get paid more to pursue that?). I worked hard did all my prereqs while balancing my FT job and just received my acceptance to hygiene school earlier this month.

The problem is… my life looks very different now.

I’m in a much better financial position, and I’m in a serious relationship where my partner wants to be a provider and doesn’t expect me to work if I don’t want to. So now I’m questioning if going through a demanding program for a career I’m not 100% passionate about still makes sense.

I do love dentistry, LOVE having such an impact on my patients/having them walk out happier than when they came in, and I enjoy learning about all things teeth, but hygiene has never been a “dream” of mine — it just felt like the logical next step financially. At the same time, I’m worried that if I don’t do it, I’ll feel like I’m settling or that I’ll regret not pushing myself further.

I also struggle with the idea of identity. Part of me feels like if I don’t have a “title” like hygienist, I’ll feel embarrassed or like I didn’t live up to my potential — even though I actually like what I do now and am proud of where I work.

Another big factor is my age. I’m about to be 28, and I feel like the rest of my 20s would be consumed by school. I worry about missing out on important life things — strengthening relationships, getting engaged/married, starting a family, and just being present for this phase of life. It honestly makes me a little sad thinking about putting everything on hold.

At the same time, I also think — what if I meet great people in hygiene school? What if I actually love it? What if this is something that builds my confidence long-term?

I feel stuck between not wanting to be complacent and also not wanting to sacrifice years of my life for something I’m not fully sure about.

For those in dental hygiene (or who considered it) I would love to get some perspectives/advice from you guys

I feel really torn between staying somewhere I’m happy (for the most part) and valued vs. pursuing something that might give me more long-term security/identity.

Any honest opinions would really help.