Men in Midlife Crisis

Before reading this book I honestly thought I was losing my mind and there was something wrong with me. As I read this book I kept thinking "That's me!". The things men go through and why they suffer from this problem are described perfectly in this book, and I no longer feel like a freak or so alone after reading this book. So many people joke about a man's mid-life crisis and think it means things like buying a convertible or finding some young woman to cheat with, but it is far from a joke and it's a devastating experience. I went into a deep depression which I'm still trying to crawl out of. I highly recommend this book for any man suffering through this, or anyone who cares about a man who is suffering with this so they can understand the things he is going through.

This book surpasses my expectations in every way, very impressive. I loved this book so much that I bought 3 additional copies to give to my buddies. I have seen many of these behaviors in myself and my friends. The two main things that I love about this book is 1) it validates and describes a lot of what I have felt for quite a few years. I've always had these thought but couldn't articulate them. This book does that for me. 2) this book gives practical ways to handle the situation more effectively. It has constructive advise that I think is applicable in many ways. So far, two of my buddies have talked to me and have expressed the same opinion as me.

I read this book within a couple of days. Shows incredible wisdom and thought. However, the book is dated to a person living in 2019. Having said, it is consolation to see that I am not the only person thinking these thoughts. If you are an evangelical Christian, I recommend the book. It beautifully ends each chapter by a verse. The author shows commitment and excellence scholarship when he quotes all the secular works such as Erickson and others.

At the outset I must declare that I am an over 50 year old male who has never had the slightest desire to own a Corvette, red or otherwise and who has been fortunate, thus far not to do any of the things normally considered to be aspects of a mid life crisis.Being British, however, one is just supposed to bite the upper lip and proceed through life like one of the majestic ships in Her Majesty's Royal Navy regardless of what is thrown at you. In plain English, we are not taught about such things, we are ignorant and some things are better that way.Having said that I have been going through some changes in my life and the fact that I grew my hair long again, for the first time in a decade and a half brought forth a slew of comments about me going through a mid-life crisis with the result that research was needed so I turned to my tried and true stalwart friend, amazon.com for material.Jim Conway's book came first and one of the things that became very clear was that some of the things that I was experiencing certainly fitted the template of mid-life crisis but also could be explained by depression or even simply burn out. As I proceeded to work through the book I was struck by the honesty of the author and his faith in his religion. The use of real life examples certainly illuminated the things he was saying and I could see the sense of his view. It was also clear to me that he has a tendency to be repetitive and reiterated the same things in slightly different contexts when a shorter book would have been preferred.Also it became increasingly clear that from a personal perspective I was NOT undergoing a mid-lifer but was more frustrated at a lack of progress and development in the large corporate organisation that I currently work for. Similarly as a relatively highly educated individual my skills and talents are being unrecognised and wasted in the face of the requirement for unquestioned obedience.I continued with the book until the end but it was superfluous by that stage.In summary I would say that there is a need for books of this ilk. I would think that many people around forty will face questions that they had not encountered before or in a long time. Those people need answers which they will not get from their best friends or families and these books can help. I learned however, that there is a greater need to understand what is euphemistically called 'adult development' and that there are things that we should all do to help ourselves - the same old hoary chestnuts, eat right, exercise and maintain a good social network being the main ones.This book ertainly helped me. It helped me to reassure myself that I was not having a belated mid-life crisis. It helped me to seek out other sorts of information. It helped me be grateful that I am the person I am and able to contribute in the small ways that I do and it helped me to see that while having some sort of religious belief is not essential to get through life, some sort of principles are.

I found this book amazing. My husband has been going through everything described in this book. I especially found the info for wives extremely helpful, especially the part where the author describes the experience as being on a rollercoaster upside down with someone vomiting on you! That's exactly my experience. He has taught me to hang on in there and not to give up even though I have felt like doing so many times. I also found the fact that it is a process that can take from 3 to 10 years informative and it has given me the courage to stick it through. Thank you Jim Conway.

I was amazed at how this writer was able to describe me so well. There was so much that I could identify with. Even though the book was written some time ago, the information still seems very accurate and relevant today. Jim Conway writes from a perspective heavy on religion, and I don't believe that "God is the answer," but I was not bothered by the religious references. In fact, stories from the Bible were useful in reinforcing some of his points. I continue to re-read this book.

This book was a gift to my husband, who seemed to be needing this type of reading. I’m still married :-)

Yep was very helpful - if u r reading this subject then chances r u will need all the help u can get!! Pretty simple read - mentions religion but again, u will need all the help u can get!!

Got for my husband as a joke...not sure if he ever read it ...LOL

Reading through this at present and I'll update the review in due course.My initial impression is that it isn't as psychologically minded as I was hoping it would be. It's more like listening to a wise and very clever uncle. This isn't a bad thing necessarily but some of the advice, I think, is too traditional and too conservative in its emphasis upon marriage and family.Then again as the author states, the big risk of a crisis in mid-life (unlike a crisis in adolescence he says) is that in mid-life you can end up making silly and irreversible decisions that have a real and enduring impact on other people. Recovering from these decisions - and their consequences - can also be a bit different when you have the majority of your time measured years behind you rather than in front of you.I do think though that he is idealising the reality of the model healthy relationships he's discussing. Some of the models of marriage could have come pretty much from Good Housekeeping magazine. Even healthy relationships and a healthy acceptance of ageing can be more messy, for most guys, than Jim Conway suggests.The book also doesn't, unfortunately, address itself to a wider audience of men beyond the straight guy who is going/has gone off the rails in mid life (gay men, single men and disabled men for example). This is a shame because although I haven't finished reading it yet I think the reference in the title to "Men in Midlife Crisis" is not as inclusive as it claims to be.Whilst he doesn't push his religious perspective, it is clearly present in the choice of language and references to "healing" and some biblical quotations. I have no problem with this at all (chances are you're really going to need all the help you can get) but I think it's important to understand the author's perspective.That said I would buy the book again. It's written with a genuine empathy for men in crisis. It also has a good balance between accepting the powerlessness of the crisis and the responsibility, I guess, to make sane decisions that are not just selfish.

Thought provoking and pretty applicable to high powered women as well. Need to be in crisis to be motivated to read it, but better to read it before being in crisis - the paradox!