This piece is part of our “Act II: Career changes after motherhood” series, where we dive into the personal stories of locals who shifted careers (and often reinvented themselves) after parenthood. Read the full feature here, including other stories of Seattleites who made a post-child career move, and tips from experts on how to make a successful post-parenthood career shift.Ā
Fourteen years ago, Nick Nordbergās circumstances would have been the makings of a mid-life crisis.
His then-wife had given birth to twins at 24 weeks, one of whom had spina bifida and required extensive in-home care. Shortly after, the couple filed for divorce, making Nordberg a single parent. Instead of letting his situation weigh him down, Nordberg, a Puyallup resident, turned his circumstances into a mid-life opportunity.
At the time, he was a business analyst, but found himself struggling to stay invested in his work. āIām trying to manage projects and build systems and make processes better for people, and at home Iām dealing with a lot more difficulty,ā Nordberg says of that experience.
He was also undergoing counseling and realized, as a client, that he was drawn to the mental health profession. He thought: āIād like to do something with this ā not just get help for myself, but turn that around and help people, whether itās in a similar situation or something different, to be able to draw upon my own trauma, make sense of it, and help other people.ā
In 2014, Norberg quit his job at T-Mobile and enrolled full-time at the Seattle School of Theology and Psychology to become a therapist. He described the experience as an intense but healing āboot campā of unpacking his personal origin story to understand how to do therapy. While attending school, he relied on savings and student loans, but also worked as a Starbucks barista to supplement his income.
ā[Switching careers] was a bit of an impetuous decision in some regards,ā Nordberg says. He found himself repeatedly engaging in conversations that highlighted his passion for the mental health profession, viewing them as signs to make a drastic change. He told himself, āI have to find out if this is going to work, otherwise itās going to drive me crazy not knowing what could have been.ā
After graduating in 2018, he became a full-time therapist for various mental healthcare providers, finding a niche with clients ā men, in particular ā facing mid-career changes or significant life transitions, as well as late teens and young adults. That same year, his son passed away. That personal loss and his experience in the tech field and corporate world has allowed a stronger connection with clients with similar backgrounds.
In early December 2024, he started a new job as a therapist for students at Walker High School in Puyallup, while still seeing private clients on the side. He says his work also touches his 14-year-old daughterās school experience. Born with Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), she is legally blind.
āWhile she navigates her world well, it is a loss that she feels and she knows it makes her experience in the world different from other children,ā Norberg says. āBeing a therapist has helped me to sit with her in that grief and helped her to advocate for herself.ā
Nordberg acknowledged that he would be much further along professionally had he pursued being a therapist from the start, but he doesnāt have regrets. Today he and his daughter are creating a blended family with Norbergās girlfriend and her two children.
āI think of how your life is like a tapestry; there are different threads, and you canāt really pull one of them because theyāre all part of what shaped you,ā Nordberg says. āTheyāre all part of what got you to where you are today.ā
In grad school, Nordberg read a quote by psychologist Carl Jung that he often shares with clients, both parents and teens: āThe greatest burden a child must bear is the unlived life of the parents.ā
āFor me, I think this encapsulates how becoming a parent changed my career trajectory,ā Nordberg says, adding that his work as a therapist gives him more flexibility to accommodate his daughterās school schedule and navigate her changing needs.
āIt has given me insight into child development and understanding how our family story has impacted my own child,ā Norberg says. āIf I want to raise children that fulfill their potential, I have to first model that for them.
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