Depression

Midlife depression is a very real and surprisingly common thing among both men and women; but just how common is it? A joint study between America’s Dartmouth College and England’s University of Warwick have released a massive study involving two million people and over 35 years worth of data. Their findings indicate that an overwhelming majority of women reach an extreme low between the ages of 40 and 44. Reasons for depression are varied: external, cultural and social pressures can often make women feel old while the natural changes, brought on by menopause, can create uneven moods that are hard to understand.

Fortunately, this funk doesn’t last for long and by age 50, most people begin to feel noticeably happier from day to day. One theory put forward on this uplifting rebound has to do with acceptance. The thought is that at age 40, people must come to grips with their failures or at the very least, accept their flaws and put to rest hopeless dreams. Usually, by age 50, women have adapted to their strengths and by age 70 the average woman is as happy as she was in her 20’s. Statistics also show that, not surprisingly, people who are generally happy and social have an easier time of it than those who are less so.