“Everything can be taken from us but one thing, the last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
Counseling During Life Transitions
Being human is all about change.
Transitions such as moving to a new area, transitioning in or out of relationships, becoming a parent, getting laid off, finishing school, losing a love one, or sober living – can be difficult. Life transitions often cause suffering. Trouble adjusting to a life change can lead to mental health issues that decreases a person’s quality of life. Life transition counseling includes just the kind of support to ease distress.
Therapy can make transitions easier
Change is difficult, and everyone deserves support during times of stress. Therapy with a focus on moving through major life changes provides an opportunity to reevaluate, and yes, get better at not resisting what is. Through counseling, you will grow, learn, and discover something new about yourself. Change is often seen as something to fear, avoid, or resist at all costs. However, change can also be considered an exciting time.
Therapy during major life changes
Relocating & Moving Away
Often coupled with other big changes, moving can be very stressful. Moving out of town, to a new state or across the country can mean leaving relationships behind and having to start forming new communities. You may even be adjusting to a new culture or lifestyle.
Loss and grief
Therapy can help you emotionally prepare for the loss of a loved one. Or, counseling sessions help you manage feelings and reactions to a death. Loss is hard, but counseling gives you space to express and move through the pain.
Chronic illness or Medical Crises
There is no doubt that navigating the medical system can be stressful. Counseling provides neutral support when receiving a diagnosis or as you adjust to lifestyle and medication changes. Counseling helps you cope with changes in your emotions, mood and relationships.
School & Academic Issues
Sometimes the transition is related to school or academics. Maybe you’re a non traditional student or completing an intense graduate program. Therapy can address performance pressure in academic settings, on-going avoidance, procrastination, and performance or test anxiety.
Adjusting to Retirement
Retirement is something you’ve looked forward to, but is still a major change!
Therapy is a place to validate how this life change deeply impacts your identity. Through counseling, you’ll find support in making this time reflect what matters most to you.
Career Changes
Life transition counseling means getting support around professional growth or disappointment. Therapy may include career coaching. A therapist can help you develop a goals and action plans. With focused support, you can decide what’s next and how to make it happen.
If you have a stressful job in a helping profession, a high pressure academic post, are a business owner, work as a teacher, etc., we will discuss the unique challenges of your chosen profession.
Fertility struggles
You expect getting pregnant to be straight forward and it’s hard watching your friends conceive so easily. Counseling provides a place of validation and empowerment when facing feelings of hopelessness and intense physical symptoms. The therapy office provides specialized support beyond what medical professionals offer.
Childbirth/Postpartum Counseling
Specialized transition counseling honors what is unique about this life turning point. Becoming mindful of the impact childbirth and parenting has on individuals and relationships may help enhance self compassion and combat the “loss of the old you”. Counseling helps you evaluate if getting specialized evaluations are necessary to address symptoms of postpartum depression or anxiety.
Existential crisis counseling
Clients find a secure, inclusive place to experience exploration of self-worth and sense of purpose. Therapy helps with finding path ways when facing existential anxiety, current event fatigue, social media overload, constant dread, social injustice outrage, and feelings of meaninglessness.
Spiritual Identity
Many clients find it helpful to process the spiritual or church practices they were born into and how to move past rigid thinking patterns or guilt that may still govern their lives.
Most church or structured spiritual experiences are positive, but some individuals have experienced negative life events or even manipulation in a church environment. The power differentials can take many forms. The most common are religious/spiritual leader to congregant/disciple, teacher to student, and parent to child. If you want a safe place to talk out your prior religious experiences that don’t feel “quite right”, schedule a complimentary consultation today with an informed therapist, Jessica@jrevelscounseling.com
You are worth the investment.
Get research-based therapy
J Revels Counseling finds that clients of the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill, NC region are informed and appreciate a return on a therapy investment. Our counseling work together will draw on current research into how individual change happens and how relationships can evolve. Research supports the idea that “active” rather than passive counselors help to effectively facilitate change. I, Jessica Revels, believes the relationships “in the room” are important and offer a chance to experience what happens in daily life.
Counseling in Raleigh/Durham, NC
Change is hard. Even positive changes can be stressful! My goal is to create a safe, non-judgemental counseling space in the Raleigh and Durham area. In a world of stress and judgment, my counseling office is a place where you can come and say whatever is on your mind—all the things. Contact me, J Revels Counseling—office in Durham NC, 27707, to schedule a no-cost phone consultation for individual therapy, couples counseling, sex affirming relationship therapy, or marriage counseling. Invest now and save later.
Other Services Provided by Jessica Revels
Sometimes the issues we deal with are beyond the scope of life transitions. Perhaps you need support in other areas. I have a variety of counseling services for both individuals and couples. Individual services include depression therapy and anxiety treatment. I also see couples of all kinds, whether for premarital counseling, couples counseling, support after divorce or those in polyamorous or open relationships.