I’m heading to New York this week to do a segment on NBC’s Today Show (Thursday, the 28^th in the 10 o’clock hour).  I’ll be talking about the gifts and challenges of midlife and to prepare, I asked my social media community to tell me about the joys, frustrations, and desires they experience at midlife.

One result, in particular, stood out to me.  Eighty-five percent of women who responded said they feel more confident and empowered at midlife.  They no longer make apologies for who they are and what they want.  They feel less guilty when they do things to take care of themselves.  And most agreed that the wisdom they’ve gained from age and experience has served them well.

How we think about midlife and aging has such a powerful impact on our quality of life.  I was blessed with a good friend who, as she aged, raved about getting older. “It only gets better, kid!” she used to tell me as each year passed.  And when she arrived at her menopausal years, she announced, “Now this is when the real fun begins!”

My friend helped me to create new, positive beliefs about aging and those beliefs, repeated over and over again, turned into bright neural pathways that serve me well year after year.

As I accept and embrace aging I, too, feel more empowered.  I trust myself to handle life.  Losing my dad and our cat, Poupon, for instance, has shown me that I can survive heartbreak and loss and find meaning in something so unbearable.  I’ve also learned to lean on my intuition more than my intellect.  And while I care even more about people, I care less about what they think.

So, as I get ready to teach a daylong workshop today about the magic of midlife, I thought I’d do my part in helping you to create new neural pathways that lead to a positive experience at midlife and beyond.

Here are some of my favorite affirmations.  You can adopt them or adjust them to your liking and use them repeatedly throughout the day.  Let’s make new neural grooves!

I celebrate my life at every stage of this adventure.

My body is healthy, fit, and strong.

I love learning from life and I grow wiser every year.

The older I get, the more adventurous I become.

Each passing year brings new opportunities to know and love myself more.

Whether you believe these affirmations or not at first, doesn’t matter.  Whether or not you use them, does.

I’ll be sure to wave from the big apple .

xo Cheryl

PS – If you need a time out, loving support, and a relaxing, introspective weekend, join us for the next “Self Care by the Sea” scheduled the weekend of April 12^th-14^th.  You can learn more and register, here.

PPS – There will be no Facebook Live this week. You can watch past sessions on my YouTube channel at CherylRichardsonTV here.

Need a little Divine Direction? Use the “Touch of Grace” button on our homepage here.