I am thinking about switching careers (and I'm in my late 30's). Has anyone ever switched careers in their 30's and up? What was the switch like?

I teach elementary school, but, am now thinking about being a child and youth worker. I have a B.A. (psych major) and a B.E.D. (bachelor of education), and may go for my Child and Youth Worker certification. It’s a ten month accelerated program (because I have the two degrees), which would normally take 3 years to complete. The pay is a bit less (around 40 grand/per year as opposed to up 50 that I could be making teaching). The thing is, this is where I feel that I belong. I am compassionate, get struggle, have a great deal of empathy and have always had a good rapport with kids and youth. The most rewarding jobs for me were when I worked with kids who were ADHD and came from rough homes. I did all that I could to help them. I feel that this is my “calling”.

If you switched, why did you?