Mid-Life Blues
Making It Right

You may have missed the news about the "mid-life slump" which has now been verified by researchers in Great Britain and the U.S. Data was collected on measures such as depression, anxiety, mental well-being, happiness and life-satisfaction spanning more than 35 years.

I'm dating myself, but 35 years ago, I was in a "puberty slump." As I recall in 1973, I was depressed, anxious, unhappy and dissatisfied with school, family, work and boys.

Fast forward to 2008 and if you're depresesd, anxious, unhappy and dissatisfied with family, work and boys/men, (Thank god we're no longer in school!) then I suggest you're not experiencing a mid-life crisis. May I tenderly suggest that you are living a self-absorbed, self-contained, shallow life.

At 15 this is acceptable. At 45, it is not.

Mid-lifers Can Make It Right

My personal antidote to depression and self-absorption is to get outside of myself. I find that when I give to others, even if it's a simple phone call to my mother, I feel better. If you're feeling down and troubled and you need a helping hand . . . (Oh wait. That's Carol King.) Sorry. Midlife moment.

I recommend a "giving hand" to help you out of your midlife (or otherwise) slump.

Make It Right

The ravages Hurricane Katrina wrought are still with us. Ellen Degeneres, a native of New Orleans, brought the point home on a recent show. Her efforts to help the displaced people of her home town have raised over $10 million.

Brad Pitt convened a group of experts in New Orleans to brainstorm about building green affordable housing on a large scale to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. Having spent time with community leaders and displaced residents determined to return home, Pitt realized that an opportunity existed to build houses that were not only stronger and healthier, but that had less impact on the environment.

Visit Make It Right 9 and Adopt a House.

And say so long to midlife malaise.