doctors and lawyers?
I think its particularly interesting that some here are suggesting that being a Pilot is somehow directly comparable to being a doctor or a lawyer?
Those two professions require typically 5 years at university at an extremely difficult level of technical and academic study, not to forget the effort required to get 5 A Grade A-levels or the financial burden of putting yourself through university, that's 25k+ if mummy and daddy aren't paying.
A Junior doctor gets 17-20k for the first two years and work 12hr shifts or worse. A lawyer typically gets the same (outside London) but with the promise of finance from their firm to cover bar exams, however some pay themselves. Typical biased pre-selection takes place in both professions and both require constant testing and training for the duration of their remaining career.
Don't get me wrong, being a pilot must be difficult but I believe the strain involved is to do with working hours, lack of structured home life and a significant initial investment by some.