Change is inevitable, and even positive or expected changes can cause stress or discomfort at times. Perhaps you’ve been noticing that certain recent stressors have been impacting your ability to lead the life you want. It might not hit you right away and your symptoms may not always be so intense or severe that you’d suspect them to be a major depressive episode or an anxiety disorder, but the stress of life transitions can still take a significant toll on daily functioning. Over time, this can lead to other serious mental health and physical health conditions. 

Examples of stressful life transitions may include adjusting to life at a university; losing a job; experiencing a break-up, ending a long-term relationship, or navigating a divorce (for oneself or within the family); processing a major health diagnosis (for oneself or a family member); processing the death of a family member or a terminal illness in the family; adjusting to life with a newborn; relocating to a new city or state; empty-nesting; nearing retirement; or adjusting to changes in a relationship as one partner transitions to the role of the caregiver for another. 
 

Therapy can help you to process what you’re going through, or what you’ve gone through, and support your ability to see the possibilities for growth. By reflecting with a therapist on what these life changes truly mean, you may find that therapy leaves you feeling more confident and better able to cope with other life transitions in the future.