Career Change Stress and How Vocational Counseling Helps

What vocational counseling is

Vocational counseling and career counseling are two names for the same kind of help. A study published in the International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance describes career counseling as helping people become more aware of themselves and form a clear picture of who they are and how they fit in the world of work.

The same article points out that it is about more than making one decision. Career counseling also deals with frustration and disappointment at work, unemployment, relationships with people in the workplace, choices about going back to a career or to school, and finding a balance between the different roles in your life.

So it is counseling first. It is a conversation with a trained professional about a part of life that takes up most of your waking hours and shapes how you see yourself.

Why choosing or changing careers is so stressful

MedlinePlus, from the National Library of Medicine, describes stress as how your brain and body respond to a challenge or demand. A career decision is a large demand. It touches money, time, family, where you live and who you think you are, often all at once.

MedlinePlus lists the routine pressures of work and money as one kind of stress, and a sudden, difficult change such as losing a job as another. A career change can bring both: the daily strain of a job that no longer fits, and the jolt of leaving something familiar.

Stress is not always a bad sign. Short bursts can be useful. The concern is stress that goes on for weeks or months, which MedlinePlus says can lead to trouble sleeping, headaches, stomach problems and feeling sad, angry or easily upset, and may over time contribute to depression and anxiety.

Work itself can add to the load. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health defines job stress as the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of a job do not match the capabilities, resources or needs of the worker. If that mismatch is what you live with every day, wanting a change makes sense.

Common sticking points

People who come to counseling about work are often stuck in one of a few places. You may recognize one of these.

• Circling the same stay-or-go question for months without getting closer to an answer
• Knowing what you do not want, and drawing a blank on what you do
• Feeling too old, too far along or too invested to start something new
• Worrying about letting down a partner, parents or a team
• Losing confidence after a layoff, a hard review or a long search
• Feeling that your job has become your whole identity, so changing it feels like losing yourself

How counseling helps with career decisions

A counselor does not hand you an answer. The work is to help you think more clearly than you can alone at two in the morning.

1. 1Get the whole situation on the tableYou describe what your work days are like, what has changed, and what you hope will be different. Saying it out loud to someone outside the situation often shows which parts are facts and which are fears.
2. 2Clarify what matters to youYou look at your values, strengths and limits, and at the other roles in your life. A choice that fits you on paper and ignores your family or your health is not a good fit.
3. 3Test your thinkingThe National Institute of Mental Health describes cognitive behavioral therapy as noticing automatic thoughts that are inaccurate or harmful and questioning them. "If I leave, I have wasted ten years" is the kind of thought worth a second look.
4. 4Lower the stress so you can decideIt is hard to choose well when you are worn out. MedlinePlus suggests regular exercise, relaxation practices, enough sleep, sorting out what is urgent from what can wait, and leaning on family and friends.
5. 5Choose a next step, not a whole futureMany decisions get easier when they are smaller: one conversation, one class, one application. You and your counselor can plan a step and then review how it went.

When stress is more than a hard decision

Sometimes work stress is the front door to something else. MedlinePlus advises getting help if you have severe symptoms for two weeks or more, such as trouble sleeping, changes in eating, difficulty getting out of bed, trouble focusing, or losing interest in things you usually enjoy.

The National Institute of Mental Health also explains the difference between stress and anxiety. Stress is a response to an outside cause and usually eases when the situation is resolved. Anxiety can continue when there is no current threat. If worry about work follows you everywhere, our anxiety therapy page may be useful, and if your mood has stayed low, so may our page on depression therapy.

If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988, or call 911. Locascio Wellness does not provide emergency services.

How we can help

Therapists on our team work with adults on work stress, career decisions and the changes that come with them. Our career counseling page explains the service in more detail. It is counseling with a licensed therapist. We do not place people in jobs, write resumes or act as recruiters.

Sessions are by secure video, and you must be physically located in Pennsylvania, West Virginia or Arizona during a session. Many therapists offer evening and weekend appointments, which helps when the workday is the problem.

A free 15-minute consultation is a simple way to see whether this fits. You can choose a time on our booking page. Feeling unsure about work is common and it is workable. Many people find the next step looks clearer once they have room to think it through with someone.