Is making a career as a molecular neuroscientist worth it?

I am considering a career change from chemical engineering to neuroscience. I am passionate about mental health and want to study the molecular and cellular mechanisms of psychiatric diseases. My question for this group is: will it be worth the opportunity cost to gain research experience, take biology classes, get into grad school and graduate to work in this field? Ultimately I want to run a research group / do research in a well funded lab but I see most academics come from very prestigious backgrounds. How likely is one to succeed in this field without grinding through years of postdoc appointments?