Re-Igniting Your Life After Job Loss - Part I

Coping with Job Loss

You've lost your job!  Your world has been shaken to its core.  You may be feeling a sense of overwhelm and paralysis and be at a loss as to what to do next.  You may have derived a large part of your identity from your job and your work helped you to fill, structure and manage your time.  You knew who you were and what you would be doing, where, and when for at least 40 hours a week.  Now you wonder, how do I tell my family and friends?  What does this say about me?  Who am I?  How will I fill my time?  Will I be able to find another job?  And you think, I was doing a good job, why me?  Your job loss may have had nothing to do with you or your performance, but you may still face these questions.

Losing a job is the third most stressful event of life, behind death of a loved one and divorce.  You may feel the same reactions that you would feel with any other emotional trauma, including shock, bargaining, denial, anger, depression, acceptance and adjustment.  These emotions vary in intensity, length, and order, and you may cycle through them more than once.  This is a grieving process and is normal when facing this type of loss.

You may also experience several different types of symptoms that make you feel like you're going crazy.  I assure you; you're not!  You're just reacting to the stress of a major life change.  The symptoms of the stress you are feeling can affect you in many ways, cognitively, physically, emotionally, and behaviorally.  They can include:  confusion, uncertainty, lack of attention or concentration, feeling drained or exhausted, body aches, digestive problems, headaches, trouble sleeping or sleeping too much, teeth grinding, rapid heart rate, tightness in your chest, feelings of powerlessness and worthlessness, depression, anxiety, guilt, grief, panic, irritability, intense anger, loss of emotional control, overeating, smoking, drinking, overmedicating, fidgeting, withdrawal, inability to rest, loss or increase of appetite, forgetfulness and indecisiveness, and changes in social activity.  These are just a few of the normal reactions to this type of stress.

These reactions, along with an overall feeling of loss of control can be debilitating.  Understand that working through this stressful event will take time.  You may feel badly for a brief time or even a bit longer, but developing your coping strategies and skills will help you function more effectively during this time.

©Copyright 2007 by Kathleen A. Bowersox, M.Ed., LPC, LPBC, Quantum Leap Success Coaching - Additional information: kasox@comcast.net.  Reprint permission granted in part or whole when the following credit appears in full:  Copyright 2007 by Kathleen A. Bowersox, M.Ed., LPC, LPBC.  All rights reserved.