Many of us have heard the saying- Life begins at 40 or is it 50? Recently I heard it said that the original quote was Life begins at 80. Well I think it is pretty clear that the age is not the relevant part of this statement. I prefer Life Begins when you decide to live it.

Many of us when we approach the ages between 40-50 realize that things start changing. We have put a lot of our energies into achieving the perfect career and creating the ideal family. We labored under the illusion that when we have achieved certain goals then life will be perfect. Paradoxically this is the time when we realize we do not have the time or the energy (or sometimes both) to enjoy what we spent so much time creating. Fatigue sets in. He is very closely followed by brain fog who then decides to ask low libido and anhedonia to join in. What then follows is the ability for us to derive pleasure from our daily activities is decreased; our ability to stay focus and concentrate becomes affected, our ability to multi-task effectively goes down. The inevitable result is that our home life and/or career begin to feel extremely stressful.

Something must be wrong, so we visit our physician. He or she dutifully runs laboratory evaluation and updates us on the current screenings such as mammograms, PAPS, PSA, etc. You are then given a clean bill of health. You are left with the feeling that it must be “all in your head.” Let me be one of the first people to confirm that a good portion of it may very well be in your head. No, you are not crazy, but there is the possibility that you have spent so much time nurturing your career, spouse, children, etc. that your brain (and body for that matter) was neglected.

Science is now able to offer not only hormonal evaluation for these of us who need it but also urine neurotransmitter evaluation, adrenal function testing and nutritional testing. What this allows us to do is get a sneak peak at the early stages of fatigue at a point before the bucket drops out from under us and at a time perhaps before traditional testing reveals any disease processes. In my opinion, it allows us to see the effects that years of stress have taken on our brain chemistry and adrenal function. If there is any doubt that the neurotransmitters affect the way we feel, I point to the Time Magazine Article (July 2007) regarding Dopamine (pleasure neurotransmitter) and its role in addiction. Better yet, look at the plethora of pharmaceuticals targeted at brain chemistry and pain (Prozac, Cymbalta to name a few). This must tell us something about the amount of people suffering brain chemistry disorders.

I am not suggesting that balancing the body is going to help you find your purpose in life or answer the question “what else is there?” What it will do is provide you with the clarity, focus and vitality to get involved in your life again.

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