MIDLIFE CRISIS

Occurs around the forties, mostly to urban educated middle class upwardly mobile men.

CAUSES or FACTORS:

• Career on plateau – too many fast promotions earlier
• Youngsters know more – technology changing fast
• Insecurity of future, retirement, inflation
• Wrong job move out of desperation, companies collapsing
• Heart attacks & other illnesses – hitting at lower age
• Stamina – cannot do unlimited work as before
• Loss of libido – performance in bed getting poorer
• Cannot play same games, son performs better
• Children do not need you -- for leisure or studies
• Child disobedient, different values, addictions etc.

Emotional factors such as:

• Wife coming out of shell, picking up her career
• Wife gives up trying to make you communicate
• Want self actualization, but feeling direction-less (no proper goals)
• Scared of retirement and inflation – too much responsibility
• No support since parents & childhood friends are away
• You cannot talk out, cry out (too senior)

THIS MAY LEAD TO:

• Loneliness
• Bad family relationships
• Moody and temperamental behavior
• Addictions
• Becoming a workaholic
• Foolish career decisions
• Extra marital affair

Midlife crisis can be overcome, and once the difficult period is over, life can go on smoothly and normally (provided no permanent damage is done to career, relationships etc.) One needs to make the person aware that he is going through this phase, help him to slow down and introspect, and tackle each issue with some amount of patience and rationality.

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