As someone who reached quite a high rung on the ladder (from outward appearances anyway) in a different career path prior to development, I think it's really he

As someone who reached quite a high rung on the ladder (from outward appearances anyway) in a different career path prior to development, I think it's really healthy to see it as a demotion or step down. If you stay in denial and hang on to your old title or status, you will struggle coming to terms. Having relatively little influence over strategic decisions is super difficult as one example. Also no one really respects you for expertise you bring from a prior career either since they don't really know how to judge your "stature" in that field. Not to mention that if you mention it much at all, it can raise questions in colleagues minds about your dedication to the new field. All that being said, I couldn't be happier with my change and am so much happier as a person.