Middle Adulthood Case Study

Middle Adulthood- Linda Smith (pseudonym)
Physical Changes Linda said she experienced the most physical changes throughout middle adulthood. She noticed her skin lost elasticity, increase amount of wrinkles in the face, and age spots began to appear on the face. Hair became brittle and if it wasn’t for coloring her hair she would be completely grey. Her skin has lost her youth and in her words “everything sags”. She also has noticed she bruises more easily than when she was younger. Linda was diagnosed with arthritis and noticed more aches and pains with middle adulthood. At age 46, she was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroid disease which prevents her from having gluten, corn, and dairy. The food she used to be able to eat when she was younger she is unable to. Due to the lifestyle change
At her work she established a friendship with another woman over the past eight years. They go shopping, antiquing, out to lunch, and to fun activities in their town. She enjoys the friendship because the mutually give each other feedback and positive support. Also, she has grown close to a few women who attend her church. With her job she recently received more funding because of her increase in clients which gave her a raise too. The positive feedback from her boss has helped her with her works roles. Her family, marriage, new friendship, work, and an increase in income have given her life satisfaction. According to Sieber and others (1999), as one ages their role identity changes as new friendships are made. Being married and have a higher income also resulted in a positive life satisfaction both of which the person interviewed had (Siebert et al., 1999). The article talked about how women are more satisfied with their friendships, have more support systems, and provide/receive support both of which she expressed (Siebert at al.,