Abstarct: This study examined how Iraqi secondary-school English teachers reconstructed their professional identities while moving from traditional, teacher-centred instruction toward Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). A qualitative design was employed, and data were collected through semi-structured interviews with six Iraqi EFL teachers representing different levels of teaching experience, class sizes, school contexts, and exposure to CLT. The interviews were analyzed through qualitative content analysis. The findings showed that identity reconstruction was gradual, negotiated, and context-dependent rather than a complete shift from a traditional to a communicative identity. Most participants developed hybrid professional identities in which communicative practices were combined with familiar teacher-centred roles. Examination pressure, large classes, limited instructional time and resources, and students' expectations for explicit explanation constrained communicative teaching and reinforced traditional role expectations. At the same time, the teachers demonstrated professional agency by adapting CLT to local classroom realities through short communicative activities, controlled interaction, pair work, the integration of grammar and communication, and strategic use of the first language. The findings also revealed emotional dimensions of identity change, including uncertainty, tension, and growing confidence as teachers negotiated competing pedagogical and institutional demands. The study concludes that sustainable communicative reform in Iraqi EFL education requires attention to teacher identity, contextual constraints, and professionally viable forms of pedagogical adaptation.