From the editor

I think someone needs to rebrand the midlife crisis. It has quite poor ’’brand awareness’’. Although first posited in the 60s by a Canadian psychologist, scientists are still not in agreement as to whether it’s a real thing, and if you Google the term, you can detect widespread confusion in article headlines like ‘‘What are the signs of a midlife crisis?’’ and ‘‘Women go through midlife crises too’’. It seems other people’s midlife crises are easier to detect than our own.

It’s also not very ‘‘aspirational’’. It’s associated with harmful behaviours like wildly irresponsible spending, adultery and, for men, growing a ponytail.

I’d start by ditching the word ‘‘crisis’’. The connotations are not good, nor does it capture any of the good points about this time of transition.

The introspection of a midlife crisis, to me, implies a certain level of control that’s really positive. Surely, if you reach a stage of your life where you finally have it together enough to be able to think deeply about where it’s all going and what it all means, isn’t that a good thing? Yes, there are some trembly feelings that go hand in hand with thinking about your own mortality. But fear is usually part and parcel of anything new and good.

Today’s cover story, which examines the appeal of endurance sports for us over 40s, made me want to reclaim the midlife crisis. Make it into something people can boast about. It’s the story of people who might be getting older, but who are still growing and changing, still discovering new things about themselves of which they can be proud.