Ex-coder, lost interest, moved to QA, no more options now

I picked up programming during my graduation. Was able to code fairly good on an academic level in C, C++ and Java. When I moved to my first full-time programming job, I struggled a lot with enterprise level coding. It came to a point where looking at code made my head hurt. I quit and took a job as a QA. In this role I faired well, since I do have a technical side to understand the minutiae and I also have the product sense to envision good features and UX. I was valued in this job for both my QA skills and my ideas. Due to some contractual obligations this job came to an end and I had to take the first one that was handed to me. Now the big buzzword in the field of QA is Test Automation. This lands be square back to where I started from 4 years ago. This has become an inescapable skill to land a good job in QA. Companies and recruiters have little or no appreciation for being technically competitive and adding value to the product from someone in my role. If I do not know Test Automation, I am considered as someone not being serious about their job. I am not sure what to do next.