• Are you starting over in an unfamiliar place — a new town, an ending relationship, a changing job?

• Do you feel unsettled with your current life and worry about things staying the same?

• Do you sense there is something more you want from life?

• Are you scared of the unknown and not having all the answers?

The Problem

Change is normal and inevitable. We age, we grow, we learn. Sometimes change can be a welcome reprieve. Other times, it can be an overwhelming challenge.

You may have moved to a new town for a fresh start. Maybe you’re trying to “find yourself.” Or maybe you’re trying to escape your past.

Perhaps an unforeseen loss of a job or relationship has destroyed the dreams for your future.

Whether change occurs on your terms or not, life transitions can stir a variety of emotions:

• Overwhelm

• Worry

• Feeling defeated

• Grief

• Existential questions

• Guilt or shame

• Loneliness

• Feeling transient, not present

• Self-doubt

Life transitions are hard because you haven’t lived through them before — you’re navigating uncharted waters. You’re using your “best guess” with the wisdom and insight you currently have, but sometimes it can feel like it’s not enough.

Likewise, transitions can be challenging because it feels like history is repeating itself — you’ve done all you can to avoid the same outcome, and yet you are back in the same space. You’re discouraged that you can’t break out of this cycle.

Each of these changes can make you feel directionless and powerless.

The Path Forward

Your perspective is a key factor in how you navigate change: Is change a dread or an opportunity?

When you fixate on things you cannot control or don’t know, you can feel overwhelmed. Perhaps there have been life events that tell you the unknown is scary, which ramps up your anxiety. Perhaps you’ve bought into narratives that you’re incapable of navigating change well, and so you beat yourself up and don’t give yourself a chance to try something different.

Therapy is a chance to confront your core fears:

• Do you fear being alone?

• Do you fear not being good enough?

• Are there past wounds that still linger?

Exploring these helps identify what drives you and what holds you back.

You’re living life for the first time; of course there are things you haven’t experienced yet. Part of the healing process is learning to extend yourself grace & compassion.

From there, you can start to discern your values and how you want to move forward — What would it be like to embrace all the opportunities that come with change? — a chance to improve, to evolve, to become more like the person you want to be? Reframing puts the ball in your hands, allowing you to feel in control to pursue the change you want.

Together, we can explore your hopes & goals for navigating a transition. It may be learning to break free from unhelpful coping patterns or learning to enjoy your own company. Maybe it’s learning to enjoy life as it is, even if it’s not yet exactly what you want it to be.

You won’t have all the answers; perhaps that’s half the fun of living life. Regardless, you can learn to take manageable, but meaningful, steps forward. You can use your values as signposts to guide you through the new and unfamiliar.

The goal is not as much, “Where do you want to go,” but rather, “Who do you want to be” along the way?