aint midlife but a crisis...

was just browsing through my friends' blog... one after the other... clicking on other blog links whose authors are mere strangers to me... until i read the phrase "midlife crisis"... ouch!

is it that? may i blame it as the culprit? am i expriencing one?

i am not so sure...



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wikipedia says...

Midlife crisis is a term used in Western societies to describe a period of dramatic self-doubt that is felt by some individuals in the "middle years" of life, as A RESULT OF SENSING THE PASSING OF YOUTH AND THE IMMINENCE OF OLD AGE. Sometimes, transitions experienced in these years, such as aging in general, menopause, the death of parents, or children leaving home, can trigger such a crisis. The result may be A DESIRE TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE CORE ASPECTS OF DAY TO DAY LIFE OR SITUATION, such as in CAREER, marriage, or ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS.

Academic research since the 1980s rejects the notion of midlife crisis as a phase that most adults go through. In one study, less than 10% of people had psychological crises due to their age or aging. Personality type and a history of psychological crisis are believed to predispose some people to this "traditional" midlife crisis. People going through this suffer a variety of symptoms and exhibit disparate behaviors.

Many middle aged adults experience major life events that can cause a period of psychological stress or depression, such as the death of a loved one, or a career setback. However, those events could have happened earlier or later in life, making them a "crisis," but not necessarily a midlife one. In the same study, 15% of middle-aged adults experienced this type of midlife turmoil.

Researchers have found that midlife is often A TIME FOR REFLECTION AND REASSESSMENT, but this is not always accompanied by the psychological upheaval popularly associated with "midlife crisis".

and the occurence...

For the approximately 10% of middle aged adults who go through an age-related midlife crisis, the condition is most common ranging from the ages of 35-50 (a large study in the 1990S found that the average age at onset of a self-described midlife crisis was 46). Mid life crises last about 3-10 years in men and 2-5 years in women.

A midlife crisis could be caused by aging itself, or aging in combination with changes, problems, or regrets over:

WORK OR CAREER
spousal relationships OR PERHAPS THE ABSENCE OF A SIGNIFICANT OTHER
maturation of children
AGING OR DEATH OF PARENTS
PHYSICAL CHANGES ASSOCIATED WITH AGING

Midlife crises seem to affect men and women differently. Researchers have proposed that the triggers for mid-life crisis differ between men and women, with male mid-life crisis more likely to be caused by work issues.

and the characteristcis...

Individuals experiencing a mid-life crisis have some of these feelings:

SEARCH OF UNDEFINED DREAM OR GOAL
A DEEP SENSE OF REMORSE FOR GOALS NOT ACCOMPLISHED
DESIRE TO ACHIEVE A FEELING OF YOUTHFULNESS
NEED TO SPEND MORE TIME ALONE OR WITH CERTAIN PEERS

They exhibit some of these behaviors:

abuse of alcohol
conspicuous consumption -- acquisition of unusual or expensive items such as clothing, sports cars, jewellery, gadgets, tattoos, motorbikes, etc.
depression HMMMM... IF MINE CAN BE CONSIDERED UNUSUALLY EXPENSIVE, GUILTY THEN...
paying special attention to physical appearance

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huh! i'll have to calm myself then... after all, the age bracket did exclude me from the sampling... i'll have to trust it... but if it's not midlife crisis... what is it then? paranoia?