To ask if your life changed in an exciting or good way after 45?

Restitutiongranted

Yes, you can easily get a 4 bed even in Central for under a million Even on the Strand !

I live in Greenwich near the park, borders of Zone 2/3 so a completely different life but still get into town a lot in under 20 minutes. I've a big flat (1600 feet) with a garden which I bought for under £500k 8 years ago.

The other thing to consider is how much better healthcare is because you're so close to hospitals for when you get older. My nearest hospital is 5 minutes away.

Added to which buses are really cheap and of course you get the freedom pass at 60.

I do not miss the big garden (and the huge allotment) I had at all. I thought I would but I don't.

I find it much cheaper to live in London, council tax is much cheaper, public transport is much cheaper, I barely need a car, and obviously there's so much free to do you don't need to be paying out loads for activities.

I’d love to do this but DH is less keen.

Concerns are:
one DC in particular adores family home (might even want to live in it one day) and would be devastated if it went

house worth just over a mil but what would this convert to in a nice part of London ie would it be enough to get a place where all 4 of us could still stay - probably not. So DH and I potentially continue to work until we are in our 70s.

But gosh the pluses. We live on a hill that I worry will get inaccessible as we age. It’s a small village with virtually no public transport. I’d love to be able to walk out the door to shops, urban mooching, theatres, museums, restaurants etc. Plus I really miss the multiculturalism of London - both DH and I lived in London pre DC. I can see that both DC would love a London crash pad.

How has it worked for you?

Happy Birthday for yesterday 🥳 It was mine as well and I turned 41. Was stuck in exams for it lol I hope life gets easier as we get older 🙂

Statistically 46 is the low point for life satisfaction which then goes up until age 74.

Having teenage kids is a bit of a challenge. Having more time to yourself though is great, as is giving less f*cks in life.

I went back to college at 43, gained my qualification a year later and now work in a new job which I love….well most of the time. new job in 2022 and I work 30 hrs a week earning way more than what I used to for 45 hours a week.

im much more content with life, life is good just now.

Have you actually read what women are saying on this thread?

This is a tricky one because as much as this decade has brought me more self confidence- it's also brought me a lot of blows. Peri menopause has been brutal, parents becoming increasingly more dependent on me, career rut, supporting dear friends through cancer treatments.

Most threads on MN are filled with posters who are in peri at age 38 and then all downhill from there etc. This is the first thread I have seen in a long while which is positive about reaching 40 and beyond.

I am nervous about the risk factors of cancer and serious illnesses going up. Something IS likely to be more sinister now than when I was in my 20's and 30's as I am no longer a young woman.

I'm 58 and I've only had to deal with that about 6 years ago.

Enjoy this 10 years - absolutely embrace being gorgeous.

I am 40 next year and dreading it. It just sounds so old.
Not ready to embrace the greys, deal with peri and then menopause and be more at risk of health issues.

Early/ mid 40s were the hardest. I feel like it's getting better. It was a rollercoaster for a while with young kids and midlife crisis etc but have definitely learned lessons on how to live in a way that minimises drama and exhaustion now, and find space for my interests. Hang in there. X

Hi OP, turning 44 next week. I'm poor as heck and my employment while freeing is wildly disparate month to month. I have two primary age children and dogs, cats and friendly coparent!

What I have found makes me happy is that I am not chasing a relationship. I am so so much happier without having to consider or worry about someone else and whether they love me properly or not.

I envisage life when my children are grown up as, having a house, working for myself and going to Italy in any spare moments. And having a lovely collie. And I'm content thinking that.

Write yourself a list of what you think, outside of other people, relying solely on yourself, would make you content?

I married the love of my life when I was 45, we celebrate our silver wedding next year. My best career years started about then too.

53 and loving life. Made a big change five years ago, and while in one way my life has gone backwards, in every other way it's better.

Yes. More time and energy to invest in career: more job satisfaction; improved self-esteem; more money.

Oh this is just so wonderful to read! Huge congratulations!

Six months into hrt

47 here I am just coming out of a huge dip - of feeling useless, spent, putting weight on, losing energy, depression, anxiety, feeling like Life was over. Losing muscle mass and general wellbeing. Very much linked to perimenopause. I'm now six months into her and started mounjaro... and I feel like I am coming back to life.

Thank GOD I don't have to spend the rest of my life feeling the way I did over the last two years! I'm hopeful I'm going to find myself in a fun new chapter. 😊

I’m 46 and very happy at the moment. Since 44 I’ve picked up ice skating and found it to be the first exercise I’ve ever enjoyed, I’ve got closer to lots of my friends, I had a new and exciting relationship, and I would give my job 10/10. As others have said, there’s also something nice about the kids being a bit older and being able to reclaim some independence. Wishing you a happy birthday 🥳

I hope so 🙏🏾.

I've just turned 43 and everything is heading in the direction I want it to for 45, when my daughter leaves for uni. I have plans 😊.

I changed job in my 50s, bought my first horse at 45 and at 65 continue to have some really adventurous holidays. Recently I've taken up volunteering with the local Wildlife Trust and am planning a long distance walk.

This thread is fabulous....some great stories on here!!!

Oooh! Yes! (NC for this) I’m 45 and this year I;

• quit my job after 6 months of unwanted sexual attention from

• Became self-employed, doing something I love, working from home , earning 3 times as much and halving my hours, no commute
• taken on a selection of lovers who treat me deliciously well
• trained in something I’ve been wanting to do for an age.

When I was 46, my DC both left home, I downsized to a 3 bed house in a completely different area and became mortgage free, made masses of new friends, started volunteering and new hobbies.

I love this thread. My 30s were great - lovely dc, dh and job. The job part crumbled at 41 - sudden toxic environment that’s better but I’m still scared - I’m now doing a job but bored and not appreciated. Worried my best part of my career is over so reading this gives me hope.