Recognizing Midlife Challenges: Ladies, you’re not alone!
Fashion After 50, A Fashion Week MN Event. Photo credit: G. Marie Images
“Right after your breakdown is your breakthrough.” – Trent Shelton
Do any of the following midlife challenges sound familiar? Weight changes, including changes in your physical body shape, loss of strength and balance, or changes in your metabolism.
We’ve been surveying women since 2021; those were the most common challenges they shared experience in midlife.
Women also told us about feeling achy, having pain, and experiencing a lack of stamina or fatigue. All of which interfered with achieving their exercise and fitness goals. Eating healthfully and getting adequate sleep were also on the list.
They also shared difficulties staying connected and engaged with friends (or the loss of friends) and family due to life transitions. The lack of connection was often described as feelings of loneliness.
Women also felt torn between managing grown children, aging parents, and not having enough personal time to care for themselves.
Financial stress and feeling prepared for retirement were also reported as challenges.
The list challenge list continued, although not as many women reported the following:
Feeling stressed
Getting healthcare professionals to listen
Being self-compassionate
Enjoying life without guilt
Feeling invisible
Experiencing ageism at work
Having anxiety
Dressing for age
Increasing disease risks
Finding purpose
How do you feel when you hear the challenges and struggles of other midlife women? Do they resonate with you?
Sharing this list is not to overwhelm you with midlife challenges you may or may not be experiencing but to help you see YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Midlife is a time of transition, and with transition and changes come challenges. Our bodies are changing. Our kids are leaving home. Our parents are aging. Our friendship groups are changing and evolving. We may be reassessing what we want during this phase of our careers. Many women ask themselves, ”What is my purpose, and what should my life look like for the next decades?”
Experiencing these challenges that come with midlife are common than most women believe them to be. And the difficulties faced during this time are natural too. It’s time to normalize, talk, and share the realities of midlife and lean on each other as we learn to position ourselves to live vibrantly. We can and should flourish through our 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and beyond!
The good news is that we can overcome the new challenges of midlife! With the right tips, tools, and techniques, you can tackle these challenges and live your best life!
Here’s what you can do to overcome your midlife challenges:
Write down the challenges you face in midlife. Be very specific. It is not an exercise about wallowing in our challenges but recognizing them to address them.
Keep your list visible. Add to the list throughout the week.
Sign-up to receive our bi-weekly email newsletter. In each email, we provide tips, tools, and techniques for overcoming challenges and creating lasting change in your life.
Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, where we provide additional tips and talk about living vibrantly together.
Review your list frequently. Develop a plan to tackle one or two of the most pressing challenges you are experiencing.
Take small steps every day to address your challenges.
Most importantly, you’re not alone. We’re on this journey together, and at Rumblings, we believe women can and should flourish after 50!