Therapy to help you navigate change, reconnect with yourself, and move forward with intention.
Life Transitions Therapy Across Oregon
I’m Stephanie Schaefer, Psy.D., a licensed psychologist who helps adults navigate major life changes without losing their sense of who they are in the process. Whether you’re facing a career change, relationship transition, parenthood, an empty nest, or another unexpected shift, therapy can help you reconnect with yourself and move forward with intention. I provide online therapy to clients throughout Portland and across Oregon.
Life is changing–and you’re not sure who you are in the middle of it.
Change is happening all around you. Maybe you’re starting a new career and questioning your professional identity. Maybe your relationship has shifted or ended. Maybe you’re becoming a parent, your kids are leaving home, or you’re stepping into a stage of life you didn’t expect to feel this uncertain about.
And the hardest part? You feel untethered. Like you’re floating between who you used to be and who you’re becoming, and you can’t quite find solid ground. You don’t know what comes next.
You might feel:
- Lost or confused about your identity in this new chapter
- Anxious about whether you’re making the “right” decisions
- Overwhelmed by multiple changes all at once
- Grief for what you’re leaving behind, even if the change is ultimately for the best
- Uncertain about your role, your purpose, or what you want moving forward
- Adrift–like the version of yourself you once understood no longer fits
When you’re in the middle of a major transition, it doesn’t just affect one area of your life–it ripples through everything.
Do you:
- Struggle to focus at work because of changes in your personal life?
- Find yourself withdrawing from relationships because you’re not sure who you are right now?
- Second-guess decisions because you’re overwhelmed by uncertainty?
- Experience headaches, body aches, or body tension due to stress and anxiety?
- Have difficulty imagining what the future looks like?
Transitions are disorienting. And if previous transitions felt painful, destabilizing, or lonely, this change may be stirring up more than just what’s happening right now.
Therapy for life transitions helps you find your path forward–and discover who you’re becoming.
Imagine moving through this transition without the constant low-grade dread. Trusting that you can adapt and grow, even when life feels uncertain. Honoring both what you’re grieving and what you’re excited about.
Therapy can help you:
- Develop a clearer sense of identity and purpose
- Process the grief and loss alongside possibility and hope
- Feel grounded and confident, even amid uncertainty
- Make decisions from a place of clarity rather than panic
- Recognize your own resilience and capacity to adapt
- Create a vision for what comes next that actually feels like you
- Understand how past transitions shaped how you navigate current ones
- Build the emotional and practical tools to move forward with intention
How We Get There
Transitions are hard–and even meaningful or wanted changes can leave you feeling disoriented, emotional, or unsure of yourself. That doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It means you’re in the middle of change.
Together, we’ll:
- Understand what this transition means for your identity and sense of self
- Explore what you’re grieving and what you’re hoping for–and why both matter
- Look at how past transitions shaped the way you respond to change
- Clarify your values and priorities so decisions feel more grounded and intentional
- Process the mixed emotions that come with change: loss, hope, fear, uncertainty
- Develop practical tools for managing anxiety and overwhelm
- Notice the resilience you’ve already shown, even when it didn’t feel that way at the time
The goal is for you to move through this transition feeling more connected to yourself, your values, and the kind of life you want to build moving forward.
Therapy for life transitions can help you:
- Feel less like a stranger to yourself
- Make room for what you’re leaving behind, not just what’s ahead
- Stop bracing for the worst every time something changes
- Let go of the idea that you need to have this all figured out already
- Stop replaying the same decision over and over once you’ve made it
- Get excited about what’s next, instead of just white-knuckling your way there
You don’t have to have all the answers right now.
It’s possible to feel uncertain and still be ok–and it’s possible to come through this transition feeling more confident in who you are.
Online Therapy for Life Transitions Throughout Oregon
I provide online therapy for adults across Oregon who are navigating major life changes, including career shifts, relationship transitions, becoming a parent, an empty nest, grief and loss, or any change that has left you feeling untethered or uncertain about what comes next. Therapy can help you make sense of where you’ve been, reconnect with what matters most to you, and figure out where you want to go next.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is it normal to feel both grief and excitement about a transition?
A: Absolutely. Life transitions are rarely one-dimensional. You can be genuinely excited about a new career while grieving the identity you’re leaving behind. You can be thrilled about a new relationship while missing your old life. These feelings can coexist, and both are valid. Therapy makes space for all of it–the loss and the hope, the uncertainty and the possibility.
Q: What if this transition is happening by choice and I’m still struggling?
A: Even positive or wanted changes can feel emotionally overwhelming. Starting a new career, becoming a parent, moving, ending an unhealthy relationship, or entering a new stage of life can still bring grief, uncertainty, fear, or identity shifts. Struggling with a transition doesn’t mean it was the wrong decision–it means you’re adjusting to change.
Q: I’m going through multiple transitions at once. Can therapy help with that?
A: Yes. In fact, that’s when therapy is especially valuable. Multiple simultaneous transitions can feel paralyzing because your identity and your sense of stability are being challenged on multiple fronts. We’ll help you prioritize, process, and build a plan so the overwhelm feels more manageable.
Q: What if I’m worried I’m not resilient enough to handle this transition?
A: Most people underestimate their ability to adapt, especially when they’re in the middle of uncertainty. In therapy, we’ll look at how you’ve already survived and navigated difficult seasons in your life–even if you didn’t feel confident while doing it. We’ll also build practical tools and support so this transition feels less overwhelming and more manageable.
Q: What if I’m afraid I’m making the wrong choice about this transition?
A: Fear is a typical part of navigating change. In therapy, we’ll explore what’s driving that fear and help you distinguish between intuition telling you something important versus anxiety creating doubt. We’ll also work on building confidence in your ability to handle whatever comes next, even if some things don’t go exactly as planned.
Q: Do I need to know what I want my life to look like after this transition?
A: Not at all. In fact, many people come to therapy because they don’t know what they want anymore. Transitions can disrupt the roles, routines, and identities that once felt familiar. Therapy gives you space to slow down, reconnect with yourself, and figure out what actually matters to you now.
Q: How long does it take to move through a major life transition?
A: That varies depending on the type of transition, whether you’re dealing with multiple changes at once, and how you process change. Some people feel significantly better within a few months; others need more time to fully integrate a major shift in identity or life circumstance. What matters is that you have support while navigating the uncertainty, rather than trying to push through it alone.