This broad-ranging, solidly researched new work examines the transformation of women's experience at midlife, illuminating the journey for women who want to create intentional, spirited lives.
The subject of midlife has been dominated by the woes of aging—menopause, divorce, hormone replacement therapies, aging parents, and fleeing children. Now a broad-ranging new work by clinical psychologist Linda N. Edelstein, Ph.D., The Art of Midlife, describes the freedom and authenticity that can be made a cornerstone of the middle years. She describes three healthy and predictable phases. First, women relinquish old ways, untying themselves from the past and mourning the losses of youth and its illusions. By placing less emphasis on the needs of others, women can live more creatively and enjoy the present. The women Dr. Edelstein studied have been able to move to the next step, in which they reconnect to themselves. They regain their authentic voices, simplify life, and allow long buried aspects of themselves to emerge. Finally, women refocus their futures. With courage, they embrace new people, ideas, activities, and work—and pursue adult dreams regardless of external rewards.
Relinquish the Old
"Freedom Is Daily, Prose-Bound, Routine Remembering": An Overview of Midlife Creativity
"The Terrible Weight of All This Unused Life": Relinquish the Old
"Glowing Coals under Grey Ashes": Midlife
"First It Was in Black and White and Then It Was in Color": Creativity and Insight
Reconnect to the Self
"She Must Braid Us All Together": The Psychology of Women
"I Am Her Only Novel": Relationships with Parents and Their Dreams for Us
"There's Still So Much I'd Like to See": How We Are Formed by Social Forces
"Once You Are Real You Can't Be Ugly": Authenticity
"Finding a Fortune in the Lining of an Old Coat": Aggression and Creativity
"The Long Meandering Fingers of Ice Will Thicken": Problems in Creative Living
Refocus the Future
"Life Shrinks or Expands in Proportion to One's Courage": Finding Courage
"Don't Dream It, Be It": Turning Points
"I Have a Brain and a Uterus and I Use Both": Women and Work
"Let the Beauty You Love Be What You Do": Achievements and Dreams
Bibliography
Index
Endorsements
This book offers readers a practical blend of science and common sense for building a middle stage of life that exceeds expectations. Edelstein debunks the myths that have plagued women, and offers in their place solid data and real-world, useable solutions for embracing mid-life with joy and creativity.—Laura S. Brown, Ph.D., ABPP^LPast President, Division of Psychology of Women, APA
