3 Sad Ways The Millennial Midlife Crisis Differs Drastically From Gen X’s
As millennials enter their mid-life, the generational differences become strikingly clear.
Ashwin Vaswani | Unsplash Millennials, born between 1981 and 1996, are entering middle age, and you know what that means — mid-life crises! Faced with uncertainty and anxiety about life, people between the ages of 40 and 60 act impulsively, often altering their appearance or making major life decisions. However, millennials' crises look drastically different than those of generations prior.
Here are three sad ways the millennial midlife crisis differs drastically from Gen X’s:
1. Millennials don't have the money to spend on lavish purchases.
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When you imagine the quintessential midlife crisis, you likely picture someone in their 50s dropping thousands of dollars on a fancy sports car, getting an unexpected tattoo, and maybe even quitting their job. Yet most Millennials can't afford extravagant purchases, and they certainly can't afford to lose their paycheck on a whim.
According to a survey of 1,000 millennials conducted by Thriving Center of Psychology, 81% of millennials say they can’t afford to have a midlife crisis at all. Sixty-three percent do not feel financially stable. As such, many millennials are unwilling to disrupt their finances further with unnecessary and extravagant purchases.
2. Millennials feel stuck, while Gen X felt trapped.
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In the past, many people who experienced mid-life crises did so out of a feeling of complacency. Perhaps they were married, owned a house, had a family, and felt trapped. Maybe they dedicated the last decade to their job only to discover that they were still unsatisfied.
Many millennials, on the other hand, have not yet achieved stability, financial or otherwise. They feel stuck, and maybe even left behind, unable to reach significant life milestones, like buying a house or starting a family.
"In the movies and TV I grew up watching, a midlife crisis was born out of a complacent sense of security; life was maybe going too well, and people just wanted a chance to flex their youth one more time," Cut columnist Amil Niazi wrote. "For most millennials, the old material markers of midlife, like owning a home or spending 20-plus years at one job, are a nostalgic fantasy. Something we miss but never had."
3. Instead of addressing existential questions, millennials are worried about the future.
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Many past mid-life crises were born out of existential dread and a fear of their mortality. But people who are struggling to afford rent, keep a job, and pay off student loan debt do not have time to question the meaning of life or their purpose on earth.
"My dad was trying to escape the doldrums of midlife with blond hair; meanwhile, I have friends who can’t even escape a bad marriage because they can’t afford the rent in a new place by themselves, especially if they want to keep their kids in the same school," Niazi said. "For as long as there have been 'trend stories' about millennials loving pricey avocado toast, there have been actual millennials sounding the alarm bell about how crippling student-loan debt, a punishing job market, and rapidly rising housing costs have diminished our ability to get a secure footing in our lives and actually start to plan for our futures."
"Now, we’re not exactly staring out the window of our country house fondly remembering our salad days," she continued. "We’re still grinding it out, perennially worried about losing it all."
Sylvia Ojeda is an author with a decade of experience writing novels and screenplays. She covers self-help, relationships, culture, and human interest topics.
