Meet Julie

I’m Dr Julie Hannan, a Chartered Counselling Psychologist, psychotherapist and author, specialising in the psychology of midlife and life transition.

I have nearly twenty years of experience working therapeutically with adults. Before retraining in my thirties, I held business roles, including Director and Board member at a multinational organisation.

These experiences have shaped my perspective on change.

I have seen how people can become highly skilled at living lives that no longer suit them. We make choices about careers, relationships, and identity at one stage, then continue following them even after we have changed. However, I know from experience that change is possible, even if it feels daunting, and that building a life aligned with who you are now can be deeply rewarding.

This dynamic increasingly interests me in my midlife work.

Why midlife?

I don’t view a midlife crisis as simply a problem. I see it as a sign that some parts of life are misaligned.

For some, midlife brings considerable distress. Relationships may end, careers can become intolerable, and anxiety or burnout may arise. We may also become more aware of ageing, missed opportunities, and the reality that time is finite.

Yet beneath this turmoil lies a developmental question that greatly interests me: What happens when the person you have become is not the person you wish to be?

Much of my work examines this gap and the transition from an outdated identity to one that reflects current values and experiences. This often involves letting go of old rules, relationships, careers, and behaviours that no longer support the life you want now.

I am interested in why capable people become stuck, why change can feel frightening even when we desire it, why others may resist our growth, and why becoming more authentic sometimes requires letting go of identities, roles, and ambitions that once served us.

I am also interested in what follows: how people regain energy, live differently, feel freer, and reclaim autonomy to build a stronger sense of self.

My work

My approach draws on nearly twenty years of clinical practice, as well as my background in business, psychotherapy, and psychological research.

I hold a Doctorate in Counselling Psychology and Integrative Psychotherapy and a Postgraduate Diploma in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy.

I’m the author of The Midlife Crisis Handbook: Finding Direction in the Second Half of Life and regularly contribute psychological perspectives on midlife, relationships, work, identity and ageing to the media.