The depressing reality of a PhD is that the only people who truly know how hard it is to get one are other people who have got one. Nobody else really understands so you can't expect them to react proportionately.

These days I have surrendered to the reality that not only do most people not understand what it means to have a PhD, but many of them also don't care. When I first got my PhD I used to carefully study the reaction of people when I introduced myself as doctor, vainly hoping for some kind of impressed reaction. Far from it - most people didn't bat an eyelid and nothing has changed. Some assume I'm a medical doctor and when I correct them that I have a PhD instead they become less interested and maybe talk about some nephew of theirs who is also doing a degree in ancient pottery from a third rate university. They simply have no sense of proportion.

Nowadays I just don't bother telling anyone I have a PhD unless it's in a formal setting.