ABSTRACTWHEN THINGS GET REAL: AN EXPLORATION OF DEVELOPMENT AND LESSONS LEARNED FROM CHALLENGING LIFE EVENTS Diana Durek Caroline L. Watts Prior to 2017, I lived a full life, which included, among other things, marriage, a career, and doctoral studies. Between 2017 and 2019, all of these things fell away through a series of successive, major life events. These challenges have been a powerful teacher, and in this dissertation, I reflect on my experiences and explore what I have learned from them. My approach to this work was as follows: First, I wrote about my experiences from the past seven years. Then, I analyzed and grouped my observations into themes, with each theme being an overarching life lesson. Lastly, through the lens of Kegan’s constructive-developmental theory, I examined the key developmental changes that allowed me to realize each lesson. Kegan’s theory strongly mirrored and illuminated my lived experiences, and three lessons emerged from my observations and self-reflection. Lesson 1 centers on the need for people to embrace their true and whole selves and the consequences of not doing so. Lesson 2 is about how people can see and respond to the world with greater clarity and flexibility by engaging present-moment awareness. Lesson 3 describes a transformative approach that people can use to resolve the root causes of things that keep them from making important changes in their lives. This dissertation provides an example of how constructive-developmental theory can be applied to self-directed growth and change. This dissertation also offers an increased awareness of the utility, power, and hope that come when people see themselves and the world from a constructive-developmental perspective.