I have also been in the profession for 25 years, mostly in psychiatry and correctional medicine, with about six months spent in rehabilitative medicine. I am currently a DON in a medium security correctional facility. This has been a great career, in terms of both personal satisfaction and financially. Some strange things have happened (I literally closed one facility and I was on duty when two others changed ownership, for example), and I have become accustomed to regularly being sued (a professional hazard that comes with working in a prison). When I finally retire, I will probably keep my hand in it for a while, picking up a few hours here and there. I can't complain.
No two careers are alike, and different people like different things. I believe that it is irresponsible to try to dissuade everyone from pursuing a particular career path because of one's own negative experience.
