Midlife Anxiety

A 2014 study by the British government found that while most people of all age levels are generally content with their lives, those in the middle age years – between the ages of 45 and 59 – are the least happy. These respondents reported low ratings of overall happiness and life satisfaction and a sharp increase in midlife anxiety. Interestingly, even adults aged 90 and older reported being happier and more satisfied than the middle aged group.

Midlife Anxiety

When someone goes through dissatisfaction with their job or marriage and they are in their forties or fifties, the first thing everyone says is that they must be having a midlife crisis. We hear about this phase of life as people transition from young adult to middle age so often that it almost feels like a crisis is a “given”. And, on some level, it may be. As people go from being the young, carefree person of their twenties who is just getting established in a career or marriage, to the responsible person who is expected to have gotten their lives together by the time they reach their forties, it is inevitable that people will look back and second guess decisions or wonder “what if.” For many people, this emotional jolt can bring on midlife anxiety.