Change of Life: A Psychological Study of Dreams and the Menopause

J.V. Rahilly was an engineering librarian in Ontario.

In this relatively short book, Santa Fe analyst Mankowitz focusses on one menopausal woman’s experience and what she learned about herself by paying close attention to her dreams. Rachel, an Englishwoman living in Dublin at the time, was in analysis for three years, and through her therapist she was able to traverse successfully this demanding time period of her life.

In typical scholarly fashion, Mankowitz reviews menopause through a research survey of the literature. Then she presents the context of Jungian psychology and dreams, relating menopause to the dream state. Next follows her case study, divided into the topics of fear, death of the womb, sex, anger and jealousy, and the search for the road back to creativity and individuation. And, of course, there is a conclusion and summary.