Transitions — planned or unexpected — are one of the most common triggers for behavioural escalation in NDIS participants. Moving house, changing schools, losing a familiar support worker, or entering supported accommodation can all unsettle people who rely on routine and predictability.

Why Transitions Are So Hard

For many NDIS participants, especially those with autism, intellectual disability, or anxiety, the world makes sense through routines and familiar people. When these change — even positively — the nervous system experiences it as a threat. Behaviours that were well-managed may resurface or intensify.

Common Transitions That Trigger Escalation

• Starting school or changing schools
• Moving from primary to secondary school, or school to post-school
• Moving house or into supported accommodation
• A key support worker or teacher leaving
• Changes in family structure (new sibling, separation, loss)
• Starting or stopping medication

How Behaviour Support Helps

Ideally, behaviour support is engaged before a major transition so strategies can be proactively developed. Where a transition has already occurred, support can help stabilise the situation and build new routines.

A practitioner can develop a transition plan, create visual supports for the new setting, liaise with the new school or provider, coach families and carers, and review the Behaviour Support Plan to reflect the new context.

Contact Brave Mental Health

Himani Arora provides behaviour support for people navigating life transitions across Melbourne and via telehealth. Contact us for a free initial conversation.