There’s a reason change should be fun. When we reach the right age, get a new job, travel to a new place, get married, have our kids grow up and move out, retire, these are things we are encouraged to celebrate. Why do people feel uneasy or emotionally out of control at the time of some significant life transition?
Life transition therapy takes place here. As opposed to general talk therapy which can more often than not delve into long and longstanding patterns, past trauma and or continuing mental health concerns, Life Transitions therapy has been designed to help you with a season of Transition – confusion, grief loss, identity shifts, or stress.
In this guide, we’ll explain what life transition therapy is, what it entails, who benefits from it, and why it is different from a more traditional talk therapy – so you can determine whether it is the type of support that is suitable to the situation in which you find yourself.
What Is Life Transitions Therapy?
Life transitions therapy is a specific type of therapy that targets a specific goal, focusing on how to cope during a major life transition – such as graduating from college, having a baby, losing a job, or losing a loved one.
It’s when you have ever conducted a Google search at 2am after reaching a place that you feel like you need some therapy and you entered the term “what is life transitions therapy” into Google, and the short answer to that is it’s therapy that treats your discomfort as if it’s a symptom of something much deeper, and that’s a symptom of your transition.
Common elements of therapy about life transitions include:
- Unaware of emotional burden of change (Grief, fear, excitement, guilt)
- Discovering a sense of identity and stability
- Creating concrete coping strategies in transition period
- Having appropriate expectations about what adjustment is going to be like
At Go Beyond Talk Therapist our work with life transitions is about more than just talking about how you are feeling; it involves giving you something to do, so you can actually move through rather than survive the transitions.
Examples of Life Transitions People Seek Support For
There are many different types of life transitions that can occur, and there are none that are “too small” to look for help from. There are some of the most common times when people find their way into therapy, such as:
- Relationship changes – Marriage, divorce, separation and empty nest
- Career shifts – Refers to losing and changing jobs or making a promotion or retirement.
- Family changes – Becoming a parent, blended families, or caring for aging parents
- Loss and grief – Death of loved one, loss of a pet or even, a loss of identity previously
- Health transition – A new or existing diagnosis in person, a chronic illness in person or a recovery journey
- Relocation changes – Relocation to another city, downsizing, or relocation due to partner’s job
- Individual transitions – Coming out, gender change, defining purpose after an event or experience
If you experience any of these you’re not being overreactive. These are the perfect times that life transitions counseling can help with.
Why Are Life Transitions So Hard?
Not only is it a fair question, but one that is asked frequently. When things go through change, why is it so difficult even when it’s something we want?
The solution is a way that our brains cope with uncertainty. Good changes mess with routine, identity, predictability – all three of which underlie a sense of safety for them. If these anchors are changing, it’s only natural to feel:
- Anxiety about the unknown
- Grief about what is left behind, (even when it’s better what you are moving toward.)
- Loss of sense of self or self-serving
- Tiredness from having to strive and adjust to new situations all around
- Wear and tear on relationships as roles and routines change
That’s why it’s hard to maintain a positive mindset when transitioning – partly because it’s not just a mindset issue! When a disruption occurs, it’s a natural reaction, and it needs more than some reassurance; it needs to be properly addressed.
How Does Life Transitions Therapy Work?
So, how does life transition therapy work in practice? Sessions usually focus on that one beach sign you’re working with, in place of an open-ended discussion of your life history.
These are going to be a typical process that consists of:
- Recognizing the transition and the effect – Naming what’s changing and how the transition is making you feel, changing in your relationships, or changing in your daily life.
- Emotionally Responding – Allow for a response feeling intact without judgment – grief, fear, anger, joy.
- Reestablishing the stability – Establishing new habits, limits and coping strategies fitting in the new chapter you’re on.
- Reframing identity – Several changes bring changes in our identity – Therapy allows you to redefine yourself on the other side of the changes.
- Creating a forward plan – What to do and how to do it to navigate the challenges of transition with less overwhelm and more confidence.
This is a more accelerated pace than standard talk therapy, and one of the most important things people look for when seeking assistance as they transition rather than therapy.
Life Transitions Therapy vs. Talk Therapy: What’s the Difference?
This is where it is all about – and probably why you’re here. Life transitions therapy vs talk therapy isn’t all that different from talking therapy, although it is a discussion that always includes talking. Let’s take a look at how they differ:
| Regular Talk Therapy | Life Transitions Therapy |
|---|---|
| Often open and of a long duration | Concentrated and brief |
| Describes the general history of mental health | Is centered on a particular change or event |
| May pay a lot of attention to past experiences | Takes a current and future perspective |
| General emotional support | A set of tools to support a specific transition |
| May have uncertainty without a “win” | Designed around clearly marked indicators of progress |
Talk therapy is an invaluable resource – particularly for the treatment of continuing mental health disorders, for difficult, entrenched patterns or trauma processing. However, if you are experiencing a transition in your life that is right now, therapy focused on transition will start to get you unstuck, as it is specifically designed to help you transition.
For those of you experiencing added relationship challenges during a transition right now, our post about how to build a great relationship without heading to any traditional therapy can dive into why the traditional talk-therapy model doesn’t always work for couples on transition.
Benefits of Life Transitions Therapy
The benefits of life transition therapy go beyond simply “feeling better.” Clients often report:
- Lower levels of anxiety and overwhelm about uncertainty
- Quicker emotional processing of grief, loss or fear related to the change
- Improved clarity in decision making at a time when decision making often seems hazy
- Better relationships transitions may strain relationships – partners, family, friendships – strengthen better
- A new sense of identity and purpose when the dust has settled
- Realistic coping tools that can be used in other transitions as needed
This can also be a directed therapy, aimed more at a clear objective, which means that changes that are meaningful to the person can be seen quicker than may be expected, particularly when compared to an open therapy structure.
Life Transitions Therapy for Anxiety
One of the many reasons people come to you for life transition therapy is for anxiety in relation to life changes. One of the primary causes of anxiety is uncertainty, and major life changes cause the greatest uncertainty.
It’s not surprising you’ve experienced racing thoughts, difficulty sleeping, irritability or an ongoing feeling of worry since you started the transition, but it’s not something you have to do on your own. Coping tools, structure, and predictability can help to break the anxious cycle during a time when the world feels unpredictable all around, for all the uncertainty, transition-focused therapy can help. If fears and worries have grown to be more of a challenge than the transition itself, it could be helpful to discuss anxiety and depression along with your transition process.
Who Needs Life Transitions Therapy?
You likely don’t want to be the one who has to deal with life transition therapy, but you would be surprised who wants one. This type of support is especially helpful if you’re:
- Stress or feeling overwhelmed with emotions from a recent or upcoming transition
- Finding it hard to make choices about next steps in life
- Recognizing the shift is impacting relationships, sleep or work
- Feeling a loss of identity, routine or role
- Facing a change others do not truly comprehend and/or do not take seriously
- Navigating a transition time in addition to its already stressful time in life
It is not necessary to have a diagnosis or a crisis to get help from this type of services. Many people just want a consistent, reliable mentor in what seem to be the confusing times of the year.
When to Seek Life Transitions Therapy
Often life transitions build up slowly and gradually without them announcing themselves, making it difficult to know when to seek Life Transitions Therapy. Think about contacting if:
- This modification has occurred weeks or months before and you are still “stuck” feeling that way
- You are thinking about transition and you want to be supported in the lead up to it
- Relationship changes are causing conflict in your relationships
- Notice any new worry, sadness, and or irritability symptoms that didn’t occur previously
- You have lots of decisions to make and need information rather than reassurance
The sooner you seek help, the more proactive – as opposed to reactive – your therapy will be.
Coping With Major Life Changes: Practical Tips
Although there’s a significant amount of help that should come from a pro, there are ways to begin dealing with the big life changes yourself:
- Identify what is changing – Record what is different now than before
- Expect a grief period – Even for positive changes – it’s normal, not a red flag
- Rebuild one routine at a time – Don’t attempt to change your whole life all at once
- Communicate with a non-judgmental hearer – Transitions do not occur in a linear fashion
- Allow yourself to have two emotions concurrently – Excited and scared, relieved and sad
These short-term strategies are helpful, but for an “overwhelming” transition, it’s often easier on the day to day to go through structured therapy for major life changes.
How Go Beyond Talk Therapist Can Help
Working through the most difficult transition periods of life with a practical, clear and structured approach: divorce or retirement, loss, career change and more – we at Go Beyond Talk Therapist focus on helping you do just that.
We have divorce counseling and adjustment services designed specifically for when you are going through your divorce or changing a significant aspect in your relationship. But when stress from the middle-piece of your transition season is affecting all areas of your life, our stress management therapy may be right for you to get back in control.
Open to speaking with a person who is knowledgeable about transitions? Call us today and begin to move forward with support that is tailored to where you’re at.
Frequently Asked Questions About Life Transitions Therapy
Q.1 What is life transitions therapy?
Life transitions therapy is a specific kind of counseling that aids with the process and development of transitioning through major life changes (such as divorce, bereavement, being out of the workforce, over-resuming your career, etc.), focusing on effective coping skills instead of broad exploration.
Q.2 How is life transitions therapy vs talk therapy different?
Life transition therapy tends to be more of the concerns focused on a specific transition in life, whereas common talk therapy is more focused on a mental health history and or patterns in one’s thinking.
Q.3 Why are life transitions so hard, even positive ones?
Change, even change which is good, harms routine, identity and predictability, and as is only normal for our nervous system, evokes stress and anxiety, not a personal fault.
Q.4 Who needs life transitions therapy?
A person doesn’t need to be diagnosed with a mental illness or mental disorder to benefit from this program, if they feel stuck, anxious, and emotionally overwhelmed due to an expected or unexpected life change.
Q.5 Can life transitions therapy help with anxiety?
Yes. Life transition therapy for anxiety is about minimizing anxiety, which is the result of uncertainty, by developing structure, coping skills, and clarity in a time of transition.
Q.6 When should I seek life transitions therapy?
It’s helpful to ask for help some weeks or months after a change has taken place when you feel “stuck”, when you’re at the point where you’re expecting a big change, or when a change is impacting your relationships, sleep, or decisions.
