Nov 2nd, 2008
The Roadblocks of Age
Through the years, you’ve formed a sense of self, a way of identifying the person you are. Your work, your relationships, your family, your faith, your health—these are all parts of that mental self-portrait that you have labeled Me. But as the years pass, life can become less about stability and more about transition. Loved ones and friends pass away. You retire from a long career. Kids move out. You leave the home where you have lived for decades.
These changes can shake your sense of identity and leave you feeling rudderless, out of control. The finely tuned integration of your thoughts, emotions, and actions can fall away. Your thinking becomes muddled and outbursts of anger or periods of depression become more common. As you realize that some of the jarring transitions you’re experiencing arc permanent, it is tempting to think that your identity is lost. If you are not your work, your marriage, your healthy body, or your home, who are you?
This can be a difficult, challenging time of life. It is understandable to be frightened when we are faced with the dissolution of all that we think makes us who we are. But if you choose to adopt a BEST perspective, this can also be a time of tremendous potential for the future.