Life Is Not a Waiting Room is the third studio album by American post-hardcore band Senses Fail, released on October 7, 2008 through Vagrant Records.

In early 2008, they were demoing new songs, and by April 2008, they had recorded their next album at Salad Days Studios in Fells Point, Maryland with producer Brian McTernan.

Life Is Not a Waiting Room is a post-hardcore and metalcore album about the end of frontman Buddy Nielsen's relationship and dealing with his alcoholism and depression.

Life Is Not a Waiting Room received generally favorable reviews from critics, some of whom praised the musicianship, while others commented on Nielsen's lyricism.

"Family Tradition" was released as the album's lead single in August 2008; the band went on a headlining tour of the United States to close out the year.

[6] Throughout January and February 2008, the band wrote material in guitarist Garrett Zablocki's basement; during this period, they started demoing what they had.

[9] Guitarist Heath Saraceno had previously met Black at the 2002 Warped Tour; he said Hot Water Music was one of his favorite bands.

[4] After a week's break following writing in the basement, they decided to visit McTernan to show him what they had up to this point, namely, "Wolves at the Door", "Garden State" and "Chandelier".

[4] On April 1, 2008, the band went to Salad Days Studios in Fells Point, Maryland, where they would do further refining and wrote around ten more songs.

[14] While the making-of Still Searching saw McTernan offer little input, as the songs were largely done in Zablocki's basement, he was present throughout the writing sessions for Life Is Not a Waiting Room.

A terminally ill fan of Nielsen named Marcel helped him get through his depression and also "opened his eyes to some hard truths about the reality of the human condition.

[26][27] In addition, it was also released as an EP on iTunes bundled with "Wolves at the Door", "Life Is Not a Waiting Room" and clips of every song on the album.

[28] On September 15, when fans bought any item of Atticus Clothing, they were given a free download of "Wolves at the Door", which was then posted on the band's Myspace the following day.

Saraceno said in contrast to the band's previous albums, they wanted something "slightly more organic" as the concept of a "singular, striking matte image proved more appealing".

[43] Three songs off of this album—"Family Tradition", "Lungs Like Gallows", and "Wolves at the Door"—are featured on the band's greatest hits album Follow Your Bliss: The Best of Senses Fail.

The second pressing of the record featured silver, sky blue/white splatter, orange, and silver/blue/purple variants, following a 15th anniversary tour for the album where it was played in full alongside a greatest hits setlist.

AbsolutePunk staff member Drew Beringer said the band "does little tinkering with their successful formula" of their past release, as McTernan helped to mesh the twelve tracks into a seamless journey".

[14] PopMatters contributor Bill Stewart said from a "purely musical standpoint, the album, while still not exactly interesting, fares better" than the lyrics, as it displays a band at their "most powerful when they drop the weepy soul-searching and allow their visceral, metal-influenced hardcore to take center stage".

[46] Rock Hard writer Buffo Schnädelbach said amongst several of the album's tracks, the band "will not only score big in the under 20 age group," but also envisioned success for them at radio and MTV.

He went on call the lyrics "lazy, stock images", offered with a "coupling of self-important gravitas and a complete lack of all but the most rudimentary poetic grace".

[46] Beringer, meanwhile, felt that Nielson had "made incredible strides in both his writing and delivery" as his words had "become his own form of self-medication of anxiety and depression".