The In Between: How to Soothe Yourself Through Life’s Transitions

Spring is a time of change and transition.

As the crocus sprouts, tiny buds on tree tips emerge, and the chill in the air softens, I am reminded of the in between’s in life — those threshold moments when one significant period ends and a new one begins.

These times stir up emotion.

Excitement and hope on one hand, dread and sadness on the other. It’s a familiar pattern, one that repeats whether the change involves a relationship, a career, a health journey, the clearing of old trauma, or simply the turning of a season. Transitions can feel deeply unstable and uncomfortable, no matter how many times we’ve been through them.

You might notice a momentary personal regression — a seemingly child-like way of coping with the uncertainty. It could look like heightened sensitivity, emotional reactivity, or an increased need for acknowledgment and comfort from loved ones.

This is normal.

It’s the way our very complex psyche responds during transitional periods, when a younger part of us feels activated. It may not be the healthiest or most “adult” way of moving through a situation — but it happens, and that deserves acknowledgment.

So if a younger part of yourself is doing the coping, how can you soothe that inner child?

1. Acknowledge that a younger part has been activated.

2. Identify the motivation behind it — was there an earlier time when this response was helpful or even necessary?

3. Notice that its intentions are good.

4. Thank it for trying to help, and gently ask it to soften.

5. Observe how you feel toward this younger part. Curious? Compassionate?

If you want to go deeper, this is rich territory to explore with a therapist. What is the part afraid will happen if it doesn’t react the way it does? Would it choose something different if it didn’t feel it had to react that way? What does it need to feel safe, soothed, and comforted? How might it open to new ways of being?

Transitions are tumultuous by nature.

They shake up a stable internal system — what is known begins to leave, and the unknown begins to enter. Maintaining curiosity, clarity, compassion, and calm will help carry you through. And sometimes, that simply means taking a step back, drawing a deep breath, and turning your gaze inward.

Growth rarely feels graceful in the moment.

But on the other side of every in between is a new version of yourself — one who has moved through the discomfort, tended to the tender parts, and arrived somewhere worth the journey. Trust the process, even when — especially when — it asks more of you than you expected.