Field Notes

Midlife rarely arrives as a dramatic crisis. More often, it shows up in small but noticeable ways. You might find yourself feeling restless even when life looks fine from the outside. Getting irritated more easily, or feeling strangely flat. Going through the motions at work or in your relationships without quite knowing when that started. Finding it hard to say what you are actually feeling — or realising, with some surprise, that you don’t know. Feeling distant from your partner despite nothing being obviously wrong. Having moments where you feel unexpectedly alive, and then wondering where that goes.

Somewhere between the ages of 35 and 60, many men begin to notice a subtle shift. On the surface, life may be working. A career has taken shape. Family responsibilities are largely in place. From the outside, things appear stable — even successful. But internally, something has changed.