Have you ever heard the words “midlife crisis”? If you are someone nearing your forties, I’m sure you have! I am a little curious though if you ever wondered if what you know about midlife crisis is true or correct.
Here’s the thing: so much has been written and said about this particular stage in a person’s life and what happens during this time. But really, what is midlife crisis and why is it a subject of interest to many people?
What Is This Thing Called Midlife Crisis?
It is a common joke among adults that when someone who is in his or her forties does something absurd, outrageous, or out of the ordinary, then that person is going through midlife crisis. Oftentimes, these absurd, out of the ordinary, or outrageous decisions or actions may mean any one or all of the following: getting into extra marital affairs with younger men or younger women, going into strange relationships with older individuals, buying things that are very expensive, traveling abroad on a spur-of-the-moment decision, quitting a job, or starting a new business venture.
Now you might be wondering: do all people go through this stage called midlife crisis?
According to Experts
Here’s the thing: according to health experts, midlife crisis was never a formal diagnostic category and is still being studied until today. Moreover, as to when a person experiences midlife crisis differ from person to person. Health experts suggest that factors such as gender and social status play a role on midlife crisis. It is recognized by health experts however, that midlife crisis may be experienced by anyone, male or female, between the ages 37 to 50 years old.
If before the stage is defined as a “crisis”, today many health experts believe that it is more of a “transition” stage than a “crisis”. Transition because more often than not, studies have shown that midlife crisis occurs when a life changing situation happens to people between the ages of 37 to 50. One of these life changing situation or major life event may be the youngest child’s graduation from college. This event can trigger an avalanche of changes in a family. A parent (or both parents) may now feel free to do anything he or she wants. The newfound freedom from having been tied down to paying expensive school fees may prompt someone to decide on buying a new car, or go on an expensive vacation, or get a facelift or a liposuction.
Transition or crisis, this stage brings with it emotional changes which needs to be dealt with caution. In a recent study done in Great Britain, it was found that 1 out of 5 people between the ages 35 to 44 feel lonely and have suffered depression. 5.1% of the 2,004 respondents said they did not have friends. 1 out of 3 respondents said that spending more time with their family would improve family relationships, and this will only happen if they have shorter working hours. The respondents also said that communication is the biggest problem. Here’s an interesting thing about the study: 14.2% of people between the ages 35 to 44 described their sex life as boring or unsatisfactory.
So, is it a crisis or a period of transition? Well, whatever it is, one thing is sure: it has to be understood so that one can deal with it properly when the time comes.
This article is written by Siena Lombardi who is a senior writer for AccessRx.com. Find out more about this site by visiting Accessrx.com research.