From anxiety to assurance: Clinical psychologist explains why emotional wellbeing peaks later in life

Emotional well-being often improves from midlife onward, as people gain perspective and regulate their emotions more effectively, says clinical psychologist Dr Khosi Jiyane.

Jiyane explains that while youth is often romanticised, it is also a period marked by anxiety, identity formation and pressure to achieve, while later years offer greater emotional regulation, perspective and self-assurance.

She emphasises that ageing is not free of hardship, and that economic instability or missed opportunities can complicate the picture. 

However, Jiyane explains that many people find their 40s to 70s to be the most emotionally balanced period of life, as priorities shift from achievement to meaning, gratitude and quality of life.

"I'm thinking about that sentiment that says, crush me like grapes until I turn into fine wine. That idea of the maturity, the richness of life. It's moving from intelligence to wisdom. When we take that intelligence and translate it into wisdom that has depth and richness, whereas the younger years are characterised by the exuberance, the hype of happiness. And then we're talking later on when that translates into the quiet assurance of maturity and the metaphor also of the waves translating into the calm of the ocean."

To listen to Jiyane in conversation with 702's Gugs Mhlungu, click below: