Compassionate Life Transition Services | Trusted in Santa Monica for Decades
Maybe the change was something you wanted, and you still feel lost somewhere inside it. Dr. Sally Hackman gives you a steady place to find your footing when the life you knew no longer fits. Reach out today, and she responds to every message within 24 hours.
First visit is free if you choose not to continue.
#1 | Trusted Santa Monica Practice for Life Transitions
We Help You Find Your Footing When The Ground Has Shifted
There is a particular kind of quiet that arrives after a major life change. The decision is made, the new chapter has started, and yet something inside you has not quite caught up. You go through the motions of a life that looks right from the outside while feeling like a stranger inside it. Every adult moves through these moments, yet almost no one is taught how to grieve the version of themselves left behind.
Across decades of work with Santa Monica adults, Dr. Sally Hackman has sat with people standing between who they used to be and who they are becoming. She understands that the hardest part is rarely the change itself. It is the identity it quietly takes with it.
Drawing on her psychoanalytic training, she helps you understand why this particular shift hit so deeply. Her life transitions support is never one method or one timeline, because no two people lose and rebuild themselves the same way. Real healing here means waking up one morning and recognizing the person you have become.
Complete Support for Every Kind of Life Change
Whatever change you are sitting with, there is space here to work out what it means for you.
Becoming a Parent
The joy is real, and so is the disappearing sense of who you were before. Dr. Sally helps new parents hold both at once, so the change feels less like losing yourself and more like growing into someone new.
Marriage and Moving In Together
Sharing a life sounds simple until the daily reality reshapes your independence and your routines. Here, you have space to adjust to closeness without feeling like you are vanishing into someone else’s world.
Returning to Work or Stepping Away from It
Going back after years at home, or leaving the workforce to be present at home, can shake your sense of purpose. The work in therapy is rebuilding your identity around what this phase actually asks of you.
The Empty Home
The house gets quiet, and a role that defined you for decades suddenly has nowhere to go. You are given room to grieve that quietly, then rediscover the parts of yourself that waited patiently in the background.
Retirement
Stopping work can feel less like freedom and more like losing your place in the world. Dr. Sally helps you build a sense of meaning that does not depend on a title or a calendar full of obligations.
Divorce and Starting Over
The end of a marriage rewrites your future, your finances, and your idea of who you are. Therapy here gives you a steady presence beside you as you process the loss and slowly imagine a life that feels like yours again.
Dr. Sally also supports teens and children through the transitions that unsettle them, from a parent’s divorce to the leap from school into the wider world.
One Honest Conversation Can Shift How You Feel
Reaching out takes only a moment, and Dr. Sally personally responds to every message within 24 hours.
What Life Can Feel Like on the Other Side
- You stop feeling guilty for grieving a life that looked good from the outside.
- The constant low hum of uncertainty slowly begins to quiet down.
- You reconnect with a sense of who you are, apart from the role you just left.
- Decisions about the future feel less paralyzing and more like yours to make.
- The relationships around you steady as you find your own footing again.
- You sleep more easily because your mind stops running the same loop at night.
- You begin to see this change as a beginning rather than only a loss.
- Mornings feel lighter, and the day ahead stops being something you have to brace against.
What To Expect When You Reach Out
Step 1: Reach Out
Send a message or call the office, and Dr. Sally responds within 24 hours. There is no pressure and no script. You simply say what is going on in your own words.
Step 2: Your First Session
You meet in a calm, private space where she listens far more than she speaks. If you decide this is not the right fit and choose not to return, that first visit costs you nothing.
Step 3: Your Personalized Plan
Together, you map out what this transition has touched and what you want to feel again. She draws on psychoanalytic insight, attachment theory, CBT, and relational work, all shaped around you.
Step 4: Ongoing Sessions
Lasting change unfolds at its own pace, one session at a time. You can meet in person or over Zoom, Monday through Friday, between 9 AM and 7:30 PM.
Words From People Who Have Been Where You Are
I lived with social anxiety for more than 10 years. It was absolute hell. I was terrified of what people thought of me, and it controlled every decision I made. Thanks to Dr. Sally Hackman and her methods, I finally learned to stop being afraid. She gave me my confidence back.
After almost twenty years of marriage, I didn’t think my relationship with my wife could recover. Everything I said felt like an insult to her. With last hopes, we visited Dr. Sally Hackman. She helped us realize we can only be happy when we’re truly together. She saved our marriage.
When I lost my mom, I didn’t know how to function. I smiled at work and cried alone at night. Dr. Sally Hackman gave me a safe space to grieve without judgment. She helped me understand that healing doesn’t mean forgetting. I finally feel like I can breathe again.
Grief hit me harder than I ever expected. I couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, couldn’t see a future. Dr. Sally Hackman never rushed me. She walked beside me at my own pace and helped me find meaning again. I’m not the same person I was. I’m stronger.
Why Santa Monica Adults Choose Dr. Sally Hackman
Choosing a therapist means choosing someone who will truly sit with you in the uncertainty, not rush you past it.
- PhD in Clinical Child Psychology
- Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (License #MFC29541)
- Certificate in Adult Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy
- Assistant Clinical Professor at UCLA Medical School
- More than 40 years in practice, serving Santa Monica since 1986
- A personalized approach drawn from several therapeutic methods
- Sessions available in person and via Zoom
- Confidential, individualized care for every adult who reaches out
The Steadiness You Are Looking For Is Already Within Reach
When you are ready for life transition services that meet you exactly where you are, Dr. Sally is here.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is therapy for life transitions different from general talk therapy?
General talk therapy often focuses on managing symptoms. Dr. Sally looks deeper at the identity shift underneath the change and why this moment hit you so hard. That understanding is what allows the unease to truly lift rather than linger.
When is the right time to see a therapist about a major life change?
There is no threshold you need to reach first. If a change has left you feeling stuck, anxious, or unlike yourself, that is reason enough. Many people come in simply because their life no longer matches the person they feel they are.
Can therapy help if I do not even know what I am feeling yet?
Yes. Part of the work is putting words to feelings that have stayed vague and heavy. Dr. Sally gives you a calm space to sort through the confusion without rushing toward answers before you are ready.
How long does it take to feel like myself again?
Everyone moves at a different pace, so there is no fixed timeline. Some people feel steadier within a few sessions, while deeper shifts take longer. Dr. Sally adjusts to where you are instead of pushing you toward a finish line.
Is what I share kept private?
Completely. Every conversation stays strictly confidential, and the only exception is a concern about immediate safety, which she will always discuss with you directly.
What if I am not sure therapy is right for me?
That uncertainty is welcome, and you do not have to decide everything up front. Your first visit is free if you come in and choose not to continue. It gives you a no-risk way to see how it feels to be understood.