Supportive group therapy help to alleviate these fears and not feel so alone. Most men work until their middle 60s. Women who have had the responsibilities of homemaking and child rearing find that these roles end before their mid-50s. A woman's concept of her importance may change when her children leave home to pursue their own lives. They sense a loss of worth in their marriages.
Many women face an identity crisis.
The difficulties of facing a changing family role may mean a period of close self-examination. Some become too focused on self or overly concerned with their health. Some women may become sexually assertive for the first time. Their partners may either welcome the change or feel threatened by it. It is not easy to develop a new identity, and partners need to be supportive of and to share in the decisions a woman may make in pursuit of that goal.