Mid-Life Crisis
Mid-Life
Many marriages seem to fall apart after some years have passed... after the initial excitement of the marriage is over. The trigger that sends a couple to marriage counseling can be one or more activities that make a partner feel they "can't take it anymore." The major problems we often see are:
- Lack of emotional, physical, or sexual intimacy
- Infidelity
- Change of personality and interests
- Boredom or anxiety
- These activities are sometimes judged as "just a mid-life crisis," but for the couple involved they are important enough to break up the marriage.
There is a time (often in the period between the ages of 35 and 50) when many people question the state of their lives. They have worked hard and acquired a family, home, status, and the material possessions that they desired, but then some doubts arise. They question where they are in their life and they may exhibit some behavioral changes that could be symptoms of this so-called mid-life crisis. Some of these behavioral changes are:
- Unusual anger and irritability
- Excessive eating, dieting, exercise, or shopping
- Boredom, exhaustion, or frantic energy
- Sexual affairs
- Dissatisfaction with job
- Drug or alcohol excesses
- Daydreaming, desire for solitude
- Major change in libido
- Hormone changes including menopause
A mid-life crisis can play havoc with a marriage, changing a stable family life into chaos. Unexpected behavioral and mood changes can cause untold damage to all family relationships. Often it is necessary to dig deeper, to an earlier time in the individual's life, to find the contributions for their current path.