Midlife Reassessment of Goals: Finding a Path to Meaning Through Counselling Psychology. Kate's journey.

Hi everyone and welcome to another inspiring blog post. Today we hear from Kate Hicks, Existential Psychotherapist, Counselling Psychologist in training, and Psychology lecturer. 

Kate talks of the trials and tribulations of pursuing a new career during midlife, but she has found her home in psychotherapy and psychology. Happy reading!

                     Kate Hicks

    Existential Psychotherapist

    Counselling Psychologist in 

                      training

           Psychology lecturer

Midlife Reassessment of Goals:           Finding a Path to Meaning Through Counselling Psychology

The lotus flower is often associated with growth emerging from difficult conditions. I don’t think personal or professional change is ever quite as pretty as that metaphor suggests, but looking back, many of my most challenging life experiences became pivot points that led me towards a very different path.

Ten years ago, if you had told me I would leave a successful corporate career to retrain as a Counselling Psychologist in my mid-40s, I would never have believed you. I started working full-time in retail straight after my A-levels and what began somewhat accidentally developed into a successful 30-year career in senior leadership roles across several major UK retail brands. I worked with many wonderful people and gained invaluable experience, but over time I began questioning whether the life I had built still felt meaningful or sustainable.

Looking back, I can recognise that I was likely peri-menopausal, although at the time all I knew was that my anxiety levels were increasing beyond anything I had experienced before. Stress I would once have taken in my stride suddenly felt overwhelming, and I became increasingly aware of a need to step away before reaching burnout. Alongside this, several deeply personal experiences completely shifted my perspective on life. 

My best friend’s husband died at 48 from stage 4 cancer. Previously fit and healthy, he had been given an 18-month prognosis and, tragically, that is how it played out. Eighteen months later, the same best friend was diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer. All of a sudden, life felt fragile, uncertain, and impossible to continue living on autopilot. Reaching retirement no longer felt like a given, and I wanted to spend more time with people I love and doing things that I love.

As I talked things through with friends and a coach, I realised the parts of leadership I had always loved most were supporting, developing, and coaching people rather than focusing on targets and performance metrics. My husband lovingly describes this period as my “midlife crisis”. I prefer to think of it as a midlife reassessment of goals. One exercise encouraged me to think about my life in terms of “productive years”. If I imagined working from 20 until 70, then at 45 I was only halfway through. That was a real lightbulb moment. Instead of thinking about what I could do with the experience I already had, a whole new world of possibility opened up. I suddenly realised I had time for a completely new career. I wasn't just writing a new chapter, I had time to write a whole new book.

Over the next couple of years, I explored possibilities and found myself increasingly drawn towards counselling and psychology, particularly around bereavement, loss, and meaning-making. A mentor suggested psychology might keep my future options broader at postgraduate level, and eventually I made the decision to apply to university. 

The timing could hardly have felt less certain. Just as COVID hit, I left a successful corporate career to begin a BSc in Counselling Psychology at the University of Chichester. It was both exciting and terrifying. After decades of financial independence and professional confidence, I suddenly found myself starting again in an entirely new field, relying on my husband’s income and questioning whether I would even be capable of succeeding academically or clinically.

During my undergraduate studies, I volunteered in bereavement and listening services, experiences that confirmed my desire to work with grief, loss, trauma, and caregiving. Around the same time, I discovered Viktor Frankl’s writing and became increasingly drawn to existential ideas and psychotherapy, which resonated deeply with both my own experiences and the kind of practitioner I hoped to become.

University quickly became more than gaining a qualification. Through opportunities to contribute as a student representative, teaching assistant, and research assistant, I unexpectedly found my way into a lectureship alongside my doctoral studies, combining psychology with the coaching and mentoring aspects of leadership I had always loved most.

Following my undergraduate degree, I was offered a place on the Doctorate in Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy at NSPC and Middlesex University, where I am now completing my final year of training. One of the unexpected gifts of the doctorate has been the friendships. Having a tribe of people alongside you who understand the highs, lows, self-doubt, and occasional "why on earth am I doing this?" moments has made all the difference. That's the polite version, of course!

Most recently, I have been offered a preceptorship Counselling Psychology role within the hospice where I first volunteered during my undergraduate studies. Moving from a placement role into employment there feels especially meaningful, given how much that experience shaped both my professional identity and personal direction.

If you had asked me ten years ago where my life would lead, I could never have imagined this path. Changing career in midlife felt frightening, uncertain, and at times deeply uncomfortable. Yet looking back, many of the experiences that disrupted my sense of certainty also opened the door to growth, connection, and change.

Perhaps unexpectedly, I’ve also stopped taking both myself and my work quite so seriously. In doing work that holds deep personal meaning, whether through teaching, research, training, or my client work, I have found love, laughter, and a sense of lightness that I never really experienced in my previous career. The work can still be emotionally demanding at times, but it feels deeply purposeful in a way that energises rather than depletes me.

I still have a final year of doctoral training ahead of me, alongside beginning this new clinical role. Yet I feel more at ease in myself than ever before, having found work, relationships, and communities that feel meaningful and authentic.

For anyone considering a later career change into psychology, my biggest learning has been that life experience is not something you leave behind when you retrain. You are not really “starting again”. The experiences, skills, relationships, successes, mistakes, and challenges that have shaped you become part of what you bring into the profession.

I would encourage you to stay curious and explore the possibilities. Many of the opportunities that shaped my journey came from conversations, connections, and being willing to take a chance on something new. 

If my story resonates with you, please feel free to get in touch. I’m always happy to connect with others who are exploring their own pathway into psychology or considering a change of direction later in life.

Thank you so much.

A big thank you to you Kate for writing about a time of vulnerability and uncertainty, but also a meaningful path which was there underneath it all. We wish you every success in the conclusion of your studies.

Maybe reading about Kate reminded you of your own training experience. Get in touch to share your reflections.

Kind regards,

The Pathways Team.