I have been inundated lately by articles, poems, and stories about the so-called “Midlife Crisis.” Clearly it is a subject very much on the minds of many, many women.

Mid Life Crisis: What is it? Is it inevitable? Is it even a real phenomenon? Or is it an invention of the media — that is, corporate advertising trying to sell us things we don’t need? (Not only do we not need these cosmetic and quasi-medical accoutrements, they are downright insulting and sometimes even dangerous.)  

The writings that I have been sharing with you cover the gamut of opinions, ideas, and suggestions about coping with a Midlife Crisis, ours or someone else’s. I offer them up to you to for your interest and edification.

As always, I invite you to send me your stories — experiences, advice, and inspiration to share with our community of Midlife Queens.

Midlife Crisis or Midlife Consciousness? You choose!

xxQueen Mama Donna

Dr. Carol Osborn, author and CEO of BoomerInfluence.com says “boomers want to be different than their parents.” She says “boomers are defying the stereotypes.” She says that “when a boomer woman hits her 50s and 60s she starts living for herself.”

As we look at an elongated lifespan, boomers are going to be doing things differently, according to Osborn. “It is inevitable that when you hit 85-90, things will falter,” says Carol. “However, in between 60-80, you will have more vitality than your parents did.”

Here are some other boomer trends:

• Elongated life-span
• Multi-tasking products and services
• Simplicity denotes status, luxury is being redefined
• Connected Technology
• Inward bound
• Entrepreneurship
• Shift from anti-aging to aspirational aging
• Reality tempered by resourcefulness
• Growing awareness of the importance of our influence

She says, “Boomer women are a large and growing population and we will continue to live longer than our male counterparts. Women have found each other online and we have tremendous ability to make our voices known. We have power to make big changes that will be important to our legacy. While we are self-absorbed, we are also concerned about the future not just for ourselves, but for our children and grandchildren.”

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Donna Henes is the author of The Queen of My Self: Stepping into Sovereignty in Midlife. She is the Midlife Midwife™ offering counseling and upbeat, practical and ceremonial guidance for individual women and groups who want to enjoy the fruits of an enriching, influential, purposeful, passionate, and powerful maturity. Consult the MIDLIFE MIDWIFE™

The Queen welcomes questions concerning all issues of interest to women in their mature years. Send your inquiries to thequeenofmyself@aol.com.