Most of us would rather go through a Midlife Transformation rather than a Midlife Crisis. In fact, I don’t believe we ever need to have a “CRISIS” when we understand the process of change. I have found help for this through a famous psychotherapist who taught several stages to change. Her name is Virginia Satir.
Satir’s model for change basically says:
Stage 1: Late Status Quo
Knowing what to expect, how to react, and how to behave because you have become comfortable with your belief system – even though a great deal of it is unconscious.
Stage 2: Resistance
Your life confronts you with “a foreign element” that requires a new response. It’s important during this stage to be sure
to overcome the reaction to deny, avoid or blame.
Stage 3: Chaos
One of my favorite teachers, Barbara Marx Hubbard, talks about evolutionary change and she always insists that before every major transformation or breakthrough, there is a break-down. I find this comforting when I’m in the breaking down, choas stage of change.
Stage 4: Integration
We discover a transforming idea that shows how the foreign element can be of benefit. In other words, we see the GOOD in the change.
Stage 5: New Status Quo
Life becomes calm again and we are more alert. We often feel a deep sense of accomplishment and possibility. This is an important time to stabilize what has newly entered our lives. It is in this time that we need most encouragement – becuase sure enough, the process will begin again.
Life is continual change. It’s the way Spirit reveals itself through us!
