Stuck in a Dilemma

Trucking can be hard on family life, and it's certainly not for everybody. Not to be negative.....but if you're already worried or having a breakdown as you said, this may not be the career for you. Or at least OTR.

If you can "suck it up" or "grow a pair", however...it does have the potential to be a very rewarding career.

As for your wife getting a 2nd shift job, in my opinion she shouldn't have to. First off you're not gonna be in school forever....so why would she need to change her schedule for your temporary change of schedule? And secondly, I love my girl as much as the next....but she needs to be happy and comfortable, too. Either way...just my opinion.

Good luck to you no matter what you decide!

 

Where do you live that there's no local work? Sometimes there's local work new drivers aren't even aware of. Some companies such as Sygma Network hire drivers with only a CDL permit. It's food service local work. Most new drivers have never heard of this company.

 

Greco, it sounds like you'll need LTL work, or local delivery. If you need family contact frequently, avoid OTR work.

 

Sounds like you need to rethink this career then if you're already having a breakdown over it before you've even started. You can only take it one day at a time. Some days, its one hour at a time. I'm not trying to sound harsh but text does that. No, do not have your wife change her work schedule just to accommodate yours. That is not fair to her. Put your time in, make the sacrifices that come along with it and get into a company that will allow you more home time in the near future.

Some days I'm playing phone tag with my wife and kids. The only communication are the messages she left while I was sleeping and by the time I see them, I'm hitting the road and she's sleeping. It's just the way it is. Other days I can stop close to home and have them visit or at least have enough time for a phone call during an unload. I'm not out here doing this for me. Just like you'll be doing it for your family. You have to always keep the bigger picture in your mind otherwise you'll get eaten up and burned out real quick.
Good luck to you.

 

Is there an LTL outfit by your house? Many of them hire inexperienced drivers.

 

You are going to be alone for long periods of time, you have to like yourself and those who you love such as wife supportive. They pay a price too.

When I went into trucking you can say I lost my family, but after a long hard think I realized I never really had them in the first place. (Long story...) once I got past that, everything else fell into place.

You are in a early stage of OTR work that will be coming with a much greater load of self reliance, love of learning each day and night. Plus some terror. If you have not been in fear of your life before, you will need to decide here and now that no matter how sideways a situation slips in before your lying eyes and unbelieving mind you must resolve that you will continue to make a decision and follow through for better or worse.

Enjoy your days and nights as you have them before you go on the road. The memories you make here will sustain you when you are homesick out there.

You are getting ready to be involved in something bigger than yourself, something that keeps American going every day in good times and in bad. If you are lucky you will get through this and prosper without injury, loss of freedom or death.

Now that I have said all that, remember the one thing that I believe everyone should know before doing this.

your state of mind, emotions, thoughts should not contain any sinful violence, anger, lust or greed. You should be able to make decisions not only for yourself, but also as a company agent for the safety of you, your truck and most important of all the freight in that rig. Anything bad happening in a 72 hour period such as a yelling argument with wife over a telephone when you both have lost tempers set up a situation that threatens not just you and her, but also someone or several someones out there on the road in the near future. People go into accidents due to unresolved issues within 3 days of a root cause of something truly bad happening to the driver personally.

You are going to see wonders in the USA, you are going to meet many good people. Some nuts too. Like me maybe. But you also will need to be ready to go into bad areas where truly there is no emphaty for your life (It's cheap.. worth nothing) and only what the parasites can harvest out of you while you stand there wondering what just happened?

Knowledge. information and accurate maps are key to your success. I can fill a internet trying to explain these things. But I wish you best of luck and be sure to understand what you are going to get into not only has a price on you but also those you love and those who love you.

 

I had same issue you had. I knew i couldnt be away. Iasted 1 month otr. Luckily i was able to go local. But if yoy know now you cant. Either look for local or try it for a month and see

 

To be blunt means speaking a truth.

Your Uncle expresses one of the biggest problems to face a trucker. Company Dispatch. YOU might feel it's vital to be home from say 1200 miles away in two days to attend a very important life event of your child or someone in the family... but Dispatch will send you the other way. Don't think they wont.

I am a softie at heart. I hate to be blunt but it's all I know how to share information without the bull, nice talk, pretty words to make you feel less ####ty. So Im blunt.

At least I don't throw in a F word or something worse anymore after all these years. But you can count on that profanity returning the moment I put hands on a 18 wheeler. Why? It's very expressive and to the point.

My spouse had problems with that as did my family. I needed a couple of days alone when home doing essentially small things like a hobby project or fishing or something to have the cares, weight and troubles to come off the shoulders. You never really relax with that tractor in the drive, you can even consider it a mistress. You have a wife and children you love very much.. but your thoughts and cares go to the rig several times an hour even if you are supposed to be off on holiday.

That's ok. Just so long you are not thinking of so and so in the city, someone else who blew you stars in another place or some thing else sinful when you are on the road. Society has degenerated to the point that it's truly repulsive to me now to see men standing on the fuel tank proposing me for company when women used to do the same thing for example. It's all I can do not to shoot the men who have lost the man card in my book.