Today is the day. it’s a beautiful day. The air is crisp with excitement. All the chairs are lined up nicely facing the stage. Everything is quiet except for the ongoing call of names into the air, one by one. You sit and wait anxiously as they, alphabetically, are nearing your last name. You are watching intently as your eyes are welling up in tears. A rush of so many memories and emotions!
What if all of a sudden you found yourself in this position? You are a woman in your late 40s. For the past 18-20 years you’ve put all your time and energy into raising your kids and keeping a lovely home. All the years of baseball practices and dance lessons. All the struggles over homework and attempts to clean rooms.
In one screeching moment, they are all over! Your youngest child’s name is called and you stand to clap and cheer with everything you can muster. You are thrilled and terrified all at once. And, it’s not just over the future of your child!
Not only is your child in transition, but you, yourself, have finally come to THE crossroads.
Yes, these are the crossroads you’ve been wishing for and dreading. Your identity as a mom with kids at home is what you’ve known for 20 years and now this is coming to a close. You’ve dreamed about all the amazing things you could do with your time once this day arrived, but now you are here and you feel like a deer in headlights.
Many of us feel lost when our kids start to get older and don’t need us so much anymore. It can be a big hit to our self esteem and our identity. We feel less needed. We may feel useless. We feel older. For some of us, the thought of continuing in the same line of work we’ve been in or even entering back into the work force all together just doesn’t resonate. We know we still have a lot to give and offer, but we just feel lost.
But, all is not lost. The 40s and 50s for women are a time of transition, whether you have had kids or not. Our bodies begin to change, our priorities change, our perspectives change. But, doesn’t have to be a time of confusion and mourning the past.
Nearing the end of our child-rearing years should be a time of exploration and celebration. If you are in the midst of this transitional time of life, I would like for you to give a few things some thought.
- You should be so incredibly proud of where and how far you have come. There is no way to get to our 40s and 50s without having had lots of experiences and you’ve certainly lived some life! You now have a great deal of wisdom and knowledge that can benefit the world.
- No matter what you have been through, you have proven yourself to be resilient. This is a trait that has served you well and one you will need to continue to lean on.
- Our 40s and 50s are a huge time for GROWTH! It can be a time of awakening and getting stronger.
- Our 40s and 50s are a time to assess what we did right earlier in life and what we could work on moving forward.
- Our 40s and 50s should be a time to explore more of what we love and what we are good at. We will want to utilize these even more in the future!
- Our 40s and 50s are a time for gaining clarity. This time, if we are purposeful about it, can be transformational if we go within. It is a great time to work on becoming clear on what we are truly here on this earth to do outside of raising children and who we are here to serve.
Your youngest child is now graduated. Rejoice in all your accomplishments for you are experiencing a graduation of sorts yourself. Your 20s and 30s served their own purpose and the raising of your children is feat beyond measure. Start to take this time to look inward. Start to take this time to be more creative and to be more adventurous.
If you are a woman 40+ and you are ready to start stepping into that courageous, adventurous, splendid version of YOU you’ve always wanted to be, just know YOU GOT THIS!!!
I’d love to support you. Feel free to email me at:
thefeelingoodmama@gmail.com
Or
Check out our groups:
WE GOT THIS, Y’ALL!
Feelin Good with Kelly Anderson for Men and Women:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/143419548796072/?ref=share_group_link
The Feelin Good Mama for Women wanting to support one another in health, confidence and business:
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Kelly Anderson - The Feelin Good Mama 