What is Life Transition Counseling?
Life Transitions Counselling is a form of therapy that focuses on helping individuals navigate and cope with significant changes or transitions in their lives. These transitions can be planned and unexpected, such as starting a new job, getting married, becoming a parent, going through a divorce, experiencing loss or grief, retiring, or adjusting to a new culture or environment.
Various emotions, including stress, anxiety, sadness, confusion, or a sense of loss, can accompany life transitions. During these times, individuals may find it helpful to seek support from a trained professional, such as a life transitions counselor, to explore their feelings, gain clarity, and develop strategies to adapt and thrive during the transition.
Life Transitions Counselling typically involves a collaborative and supportive therapeutic relationship between the counselor and the client. The counselor provides a safe space for the individual to express their concerns, fears, and hopes about the transition. They may help the client identify their strengths, values, and goals and assist them in developing coping skills and strategies to manage the challenges of the transition.
The counseling process may include various techniques and approaches, depending on the needs of the individual. These may include talk therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), mindfulness techniques, relaxation exercises, and exploration of self-care practices. The counselor may also guide decision-making, problem-solving, and creating a support network.
Overall, Life Transitions Counselling aims to support individuals in navigating the complexities and emotional aspects of significant life changes, empowering them to adapt, grow, and find meaning in their new circumstances.
Co-Creating Your Future
I help you create a vision of the future that you want, then support you as you pursue it.
If you’re a teacher, and you feel like you’re destined to do something more. At first, you may feel uncomfortable being where you are — your career feels like a jacket that no longer fits. The style is wrong, it’s uncomfortable, and you need to change.
You feel like you want something more. You want to make a more meaningful contribution to your life. Some elements are clear, while other aspects feel vague and uncertain.
That’s when we start to create our new reality. We work to build a vision of this reality, just like an architect will design renderings of a new home. We co-design this concept and idea of what you want your life to become.
If this teacher is engaged and she and her partner, who both grew up in Toronto, want to move to Vancouver.
We put Vancouver on the map and look at the attributes of this life you envision.
- Why Vancouver?
- What’s the change she is seeking from that place?
- We’ll start to think about her career — does she still want to practice law, or perhaps she’d like to move into advocacy?
- Or would she like to get involved with the cannabis industry that’s taken root in Vancouver?
We discuss, formulate, and experiment with ideas by moving forward on multiple paths to decide what works and doesn’t. Your transition is an iterative process. I partner with you and coach you through it.
I’ve seen dreams that “feel so crazy that they might just work” come into focus and become a reality. I know how to work with you to support you in moving toward a future that surprises and delights you.
There are many terms for this coaching approach— transition coach, personal development coach, action coach, personal coach, life mentor, and life coach.