kudos for sticking it out and best of luck in the field. academia was the second career i said "nah, fuck this" to after getting a taste of it. like you said, it's a tough business and more so if teaching is your passion. plenty of adjuncts and lecturers with PhDs. these unis want you to show them the money (they will call it "research") and if you can teach or not is just a threshold matter that can be negotiated. but of course many people i know have had a lot of success in academia and managed to have multiple platforms in order to both indulge their passion and make money. i hope you find that and feel confident that you will.