Toby Young: Am I in denial about turning 50?

By the time you read this I’ll be 50. A couple of years ago, when President Obama passed this milestone, I wrote a piece for the Telegraph about how much I was dreading it. But now it’s finally happening, I can’t think what all the fuss was about. Turns out it’s a bit like being mugged: more terrifying in the imagination than reality.

It’s possible that I’m in denial. According to a study carried out by Warwick University and Dartmouth College, involving more than two million people, turning 50 is a low point. ‘One in five women and one in six men in this country suffer from depression at this time,’ says Dr Andrew McCulloch, the ex-chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation. ‘And the only reason there are fewer men is that men are less likely to admit there’s a problem and seek diagnosis.’

The reason for all this gloom and doom, apparently, is because 50 is the age it finally dawns on you that you’re not going to achieve your dreams.