Human development is a lifelong, cumulative process. Midlife, however, is largely overlooked and misunderstood.

When exactly is midlife? The general consensus is that midlife encompasses the years between 40 and 60, give or take. In a 2015 poll, people expressed the belief that midlife begins at age 44 and ends at age 59, however the roles and life circumstances that surround middle adulthood are perhaps more defining of this era than a specific age.

Challenges related to caring for growing children and aging parents, the shrinking social and healthcare safety net, and economic volatility, including inflation, complicate the picture of midlife in modern times. While the narrative of a “midlife crisis” is emphasized, research reveals that only about 10-20% of people actually experience it, though anxiety and depression rates rise during this season of life.

According to Erik Erikson, generativity is the primary task of midlife, which is often accomplished through meaningful work and investing in the next generation (Infurna et al., 2020). While midlife continues to be an under-researched area of the human experience, we can turn to literature to better understand ourselves in the context of these full, complex, but potentially rich middle years.

Poet Kate Baer........

© Psychology Today