While in America the trend started as a reaction to the economic decline—after the mass redundancies caused by downsizing in the late 1 980s—and is still linked to the politics of thrift，in Britain，at least among the middle-class down-shifters of my acquaintance， we have different reasons for seeking to simplify our lives． For the women of my generation who were urged to keep juggling through the 1980s， downshifting in the mid-’90s is not SO much a search for the mythical good life—growing your own organic vegetables，and risking turning into one—as a personal recognition of your limitations．