It's not a scandal; it's NORMAL! Learn how the psychosocial navigation of midlife is just a life passage affecting every single one of us. According to Erik Erickson, it occurs between the ages of 34 and 60 and includes four objectives Beth covers as we navigate the polarities of Generativity and Stagnation. Learn how central personality questions help to complicate the process and how they can be a key to helping you decide between RED flags (or deal-breakers) and PINK flags (your internal signals that are just invitations for growth!) You are already engaging the area of EVALUATION in relationship! Now get smart about it and make the distinction between reasons to break-up and reasons to regenerate in midlife and grow! Burning Question from Lydia, a 58-year old grandmother of two and in a relationship for the pat year and a half with an old beau. She's torn between her newish/old man and the pull toward her grandchildren and children. She wants to know how to evaluate fairly the connection with this great guy. Erik Erickson says the psychosocial crisis is decided AS people interact with their environment and engage their creativity. People in this life stage have these objectives: Managing a career. Can include evaluating the meaning of it, making a difference, midlife career change, starting to contribute more to others than just making an identity or making a living. Nurturing an intimate relationship. If you're in a long-term marriage it may mean fueling the passion. If you haven't had a successful, long-term relationship you probably want more than ever to get it right! Expanding care relationships. This includes caring for aging parents and taking care of children. As longevity increases it also means we are expanding care to grandchildren at the same time! Managing a household. Part of evaluating a connection (and your life) fairly is to know yourself well. It can help you distinguish between Red flags and Pink flags. Ask yourself if these are your DRIVING NEEDS. You want to be good, to have integrity, to act according to your conscnience. You're serious about improving and fixing the lives of others. You want to be loved unconditionally. Because it's so important, you love others and do for them and that helps you reinforce your image of yourself and good feelings about yourself. You want to feel valuabela dn worthwhile, to do what it takes and be the best you can be, to do what it takes to achieve or please other people. You want to find yourself, to solidify a significant identity and prolong selected feelings while moving away from the others. You want to be capable and confident, to be competent and master something that proves it. You may want to retreat into study or research or practice before you emerge into the world. (Trouble is, you may rarely consider yourself ready to move out into the world.) Do you want to find security and support, to belong, and have solid loyalty from friends? You create social alliances and structures, even frameworks of belief that help you feel solid. Maybe you want primarily to be satisfied, to be content, to have your needs met, to be stimulated and avoid boredom. You may spend your time doing those things that support your self-satisfaction. Sacrifice might not fit in your vocabulary. You want to protect yourself, to control your life, to be master of your own destiny and to prove your strength in action and achievement. You like winning and all of life seems appropriate as a contest. You want to experience inner peace and stability. Others see you as the calm in the midst of storm, a stabilizing force. Trouble is, they can't see how much energy it takes to be the peacemaker and the avoid conflict. Recognize yourself? Have you asked yourself what that driving need gets you? Here's the advice: Be kind to yourself and to the other person. Gentle it up! Take a deep bre