Self-promotion: I Didn't Want To Lean Out

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I've written about my choice to leave the field of chemistry in Model View Culture's Lean Out issue.

You can find it here: I Didn't Want To Lean Out: Why I Left, How I Left, and What It Would Have Taken to Keep Me in STEM.

When I decided to leave, I let go of my intention to continue contributing to the advancement of human knowledge as a scientist and a chemist. I mourned that I would not achieve my goal of changing the culture of organic chemistry, and I knew that my leaving would mean one less woman for other women to talk to, network with, and lean on for professional support. I fought feelings of obligation and squashed that nagging sense that I was letting down The Sisterhood™.

I was furious. I saw that little about my situation was fair, but there it was, and there I was.

In the end, I chose my own health and happiness and I chose self-respect.