Baldrick, I have stopped flying after 45 years of it. Reason? I got sick of dealing with d1ckhead students and demanding bosses and having to make decisions about weather, alternates, fuel, recency, serviceability, health, fitness, blah bluddy blah but I still miss the money. Grumpy old blokes make a reasonable living these days, not like I had to put up with until about 2001. If you are about 40 now with around 6000 hrs, you have to opportunity to put away enough to properly retire.
The best path for you is: suck it up, stay in the well-paying job. Make a bucket of money, then tell them to stick it.
Fly for fun. Enjoy it. But you are most likely too old to get the experience necessary to become a commercial pilot and get a well-paying job before you hit 60, and your health will then start playing a larger part in the overall scheme of things.
