If you’ve taken 40 to 50 trips around the sun, you may find yourself in the throes of a midlife crisis. Perhaps you aren’t satisfied with where you are in your career or personal life. Maybe you just dread the thought of getting older. No matter the driving force, post-forty blues shouldn’t prevent you from living a happy and meaningful life. Use the following tips to turn your midlife crisis into an enlightening, transformative experience.

Develop Healthy Habits

It’s never too late to improve your lifestyle. Start with small, but impactful changes. Habits that promote physical activity and good nutrition can help keep your body strong and your mind sharp at any age. Some good habits to develop include:

• Taking the stairs instead of an elevator
• Swapping out soda for seltzer
• Putting your phone away one hour before bedtime
• Adding vegetables to at least one meal per day

Recharge Your Career

During a midlife crisis, you may be rethinking everything in your life including your career. If you’re in a dead-end job or your work is simply unfulfilling, take the opportunity to switch professional gears. Tap into your entrepreneurial spirit and launch your own business.

Choose a business structure that offers you the most benefits with the least amount of hassle. A limited liability corporation may be your best option as it reduces your liability, gives greater flexibility, requires less paperwork, and provides multiple tax advantages. Each state sets its own rules regarding LLCs; review your state’s regulations before moving forward. If you’re unsure about how to start an LLC correctly, you can save time and money by hiring a formation service to help you register all the necessary paperwork with the state.

Pursue Your Talents and Interests

It’s easy to fall into a rut when your day consists of mainly work and other obligations. A mid-life crisis can serve as a wake-up call to make more time for the activities you love. Pick up an old hobby or try something new. Whatever you choose, do it purely for enjoyment.

Connect With Nature

You’re probably familiar with vitamins A, B, and C as essential nutrients, but did you know that your body could also use plenty of vitamin N? No, this isn’t a newly discovered nutritional supplement. Vitamin N is a cleverly coined term that refers to time spent in nature. Adequate outdoor time can bolster mood, improve energy levels and increase concentration along with many other benefits. Get your daily dose of vitamin N.

Plan a Peaceful Getaway

Taking a trip to at the first signs of an impending midlife crisis can prevent you from entering full-on crisis mode. Removing yourself from the distractions of work, household responsibilities and social media enable you to contemplate your life with calm and clarity. What better reason to plan a vacation than as a proactive health measure?

Volunteer

Research shows that volunteering provides numerous health benefits from fostering emotional connections to reducing stress. Volunteer work is an activity that promotes eudaimonic well-being, which is the type of contentment that comes from achieving self-fulfillment and finding purpose. Support a worthy cause by giving your time. 

Mid-life crises are common, but you can be the exception. Instead of succumbing to negativity, use this pivotal stage to do some reflection. Refresh your goals and make strides towards a happier, healthier, and wiser you. And for more great articles like this, explore the other content available on Feel Good Easy.