We throw the term midlife crisis around quite a bit to describe people who seem to have an abrupt change in the course of their lives. There is a negative connotation to this phrase. It is as if the person is losing their mind or has lost their way in life. The word crisis has all kinds of yucky feelings associated with it. I can say that in my own life I thought this is what was going on with me.
About 2 years ago I started to feel uneasy. I felt like something was missing. I felt trapped in my job. I was empty and confused on the inside. I had no clue what it was, but I knew that something was going to have to change. While I realized this to be the case, I was also terrified to really talk to anyone about it. I didn’t want to be one of those people who find themselves in crisis at the age of 40. So I kept plugging along. I was smiling on the outside. I was successful in my career and my family life was good. Everyone would tell me how lucky I was to have such a perfect life. I felt like I was living a lie. I was not really happy. There was this tugging in my soul telling me that something was not right. I was able to ignore it for some time, but eventually the discomfort got to a point where I had to do something, but I had no idea what. For me it became all about being unhappy in my job. That was certainly easier than digging deep into myself to find answers. Eventually, after reading books, blogs and doing lots of personal discovery, I came to understand that it was not just about my job. My mid-life crisis was really my soul, my heart, screaming at me to wake up and pay attention. Pay attention to what I was feeling, how I was treating my body and more importantly to realize that I had lost my connection with my higher power. Once I had this realization, I knew that this was not really a crisis, but a blessing. It was a miracle in the making. I woke up to a whole new perspective on life and spirituality. In this, I have learned to love myself, to care for myself and cherish the time I have here. Through taking radical action to care for myself and nurture the connection with my higher power, I have experienced radical transformation in my life. It is a miracle really. When I see pictures of myself from a few years ago, I look empty. I am smiling, but there is something missing in my eyes. They are painful to look at. When I see pictures of me now, I love them. I can see how full I am. I can see how truly happy I am deep in my soul. It feels amazing. My light is shining.
I have observed many people go through this. Thinking they are crazy. They feel silly because they are having a so-called mid-life crisis. To that I say, maybe it is not a crisis; maybe it is a miracle in the making. Wouldn’t that be so much more joyful and amazing? Maybe your heart is trying to get your attention. It has things it wants to do, needs that are not being met. Maybe it is time to turn inward and connect with yourself and your higher power, whatever that means to you. I promise you that if you care for yourself first you will have more to give to others.
“Nurture your body and soul each and every day. If you don’t, who will? When you fill yourself up, you have more to give.”
Have you been feeling this way? If so, what do you think it is about? How do you intend on handling it? Can you be gentle and patient with yourself and listen for what might really be going on? Or will you continue to plug along ignoring what is going on inside? I would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave them in the comments below.
Much love- Angie