Does rehabilitative alimony just stop on its own?

It may, upon the termination of the period fixed by the court, but it is more likely that the court will set a date for an additional hearing at the end of the time period to review the situation. The court at that hearing, will look at the facts and determine whether or not additional alimony is necessary, whether the alimony should be ended, or whether the alimony should be extended, and if the alimony payments should be increased or decreased.

For example: if the wife is hesitant to find a job or decides to prolong the job hunt process intentionally, it would ultimately be up to the husband to prove this act of intentional procrastination at the review hearing. This is very common, because the receiving spouse, who has not been working, typically finds it as a very rude awakening to have to find a job and support him or herself. Also keep in mind that this sort of procrastination is often used as a way to get revenge, which ultimately backfires when becoming obvious to the court.