Changing careers at 5 years into a job, is it realistic?, nurse's aide here

My layoff made me rethink whether to stay in my field. I have good customer skills and I am comfortable with spreadsheets. How did you start?

Try a small project in the new field before committing. It told me a lot about whether I would enjoy it.

I began with informational chats, then a short online course, then a related entry-level role. It took about 10 months.