In Midlife

Midlife: crisis, anger, change…So pervasive has the general awareness of this phenomenon of midlife crisis and transformation become that as we approach this time of life we almost automatically begin to brace for a psychological emergency. Drawing on analytic experience, dreams, and myths, Murray Stein, a well-known analyst, formulates the three main features of the middle passage. First an erosion of attachments. Then hints of a fresh spirit, renegade and mischievous, that scoffs at routines. This new spirit disrupts life and alarms family and friends. Finally, with luck, a transformation occurs; life begins again.

Murray Stein, former president of the International Association for Analytical Psychology, has written a best-selling, good-humored book, brimming with shrewd counsel and cultural relevance.