4 Ways to Be Successful at Aging

The difficulties related to aging are often ignored in our society. It seems that society values youth and vigor, and when people get to a certain age, they’re often subjected to shocking statements related to their age by those who have not been confronted about their ageist prejudices, presumptions, and behaviors that may exclude and belittle them.

Women and aging

This ignorance may be particularly true of females, who may be made to think that when they are old, they are not essential or worthy due to their age. This may be due, in part, to the messages sent by media that dismiss the elderly and may tend to marginalize their abilities and importance rather than to celebrate them as useful members of society.

Women seem to continually suffer the bombardment of the view that they must physically adhere to the cultural expectations that accompany aging, such as that they are on the road to uselessness and death, which ignores their value in life’s many stages. Aging seems a misunderstood stage to many.

Ethnocentrism

The ethnocentric view of many keeps them from valuing others who are in any way different from themselves. Ethnocentricity says “Only my own experience and cultural experience is valid.” This false belief has created a great deal of prejudice in many areas of life, and aging is no exception.

Many people dread the thought of aging for fear of how much they may lose as an increasingly frail version of themselves. More chronic pain, memory loss, and other issues are indeed associated with how aging affects the body, making it frail and subject to health issues they have never had.

But, instead of just accepting that everyone will have the same issues with their aging selves and just throwing out solutions for the assumed “facts” surrounding the experiences of all people (a prejudice in that stance is noted), a more compassionate and faith-oriented stance is required.

It should include understanding that each person ages differently and each aging person should be treated with the respect and dignity they deserve. In addition, each aging person should tell their own story about themselves, including how they “feel” about the changes they are experiencing.

Theory of development

I still love to use Erik Erikson’s “Eight-Stage Theory of Development” when working with all clients, especially those who are aging. Erikson contrasts what happens with healthy versus non-heathy development outcomes in all stages of life.

The last stage in his model is titled “Old Age” and includes those over the age of sixty-five. The desired outcome he suggests for successful aging he calls “Integrity” and those who somehow fail to thrive in this stage he says fall into developmental “Despair.”

The successful aging process includes an ability to accept aging as a natural part of life with all of the issues that have to be faced before death, such as when bodies become frail and for some, when minds are subject to dementia, stroke, or other mind-robbing mental health diagnoses.

Understanding how to manage those things as a life task and having the ability to accept themselves and others where they are, having an active spiritual life, and experiencing no lingering psychological problems impairing their ability to enjoy the twilight period of their lives reflects integrity for them.

Those who find themselves despairing for their lives and seem to meditate on their failures or harbor unforgiveness, anger, and resentment may have yielded to ill-tempered reactions to circumstances or others – even their health problems – and tend to become self-focused and despairing of life.

Successful aging does not simply involve exercise and diet. Although the body has excellent regenerative properties, when fed correctly, it can help to reverse chronic illness and enjoy a physically healthy life. Here are four ways to be successful at aging and maintaining good health:

Choose healthy habits

The Standard American Diet (SAD) is depleted of many nutrients necessary for vibrant health. This American diet consists of mainly simple carbohydrates and a lot of sugar, which can wreak havoc on our bodies because of the over-processing of those grains and the genetically modified content that is now being generated.

Yet, Americans don’t get the vitamins and minerals they need to feed their bodies and allow them to reach their full potential. So including vitamin supplements can help to maintain strong bodies that can fight disease and add to well-being. Therefore, it is imperative that people who want to be successful at aging take vitamins and minerals their diet may be lacking.

With the physician’s help, determine the types and amounts of vitamins you need for optimal health. For example, zinc and selenium are two vitamins essential to our health, but we often don’t eat any foods rich in them.

For example, Brazil nuts are rich in selenium. However, because of the allergies we have developed today, many people don’t seek Brazil nuts as their source of selenium. Therefore, many of our bodies are depleted of these types of vitamins.

They are also depleted in essential vitamins like A, C, and D. Most people work in sedentary environments behind closed doors. They don’t get out to get enough sunlight to get the amount of vitamin D needed each day for their bodies to have adequate vitamin D in their systems.

One of the causes of depression today is a lack of vitamin D. People must take vitamins to supplement their diets. If a doctor is not helpful in this area, seek the help of books or other research material to discover how many vitamins and minerals you need for your body’s health.

Use exercise in moderation

It is always important to move your body every day. Movement is critical when you’re aging. Sitting in a sedentary position for an extended period can damage the joints and other muscles. Soon, muscles not usable after functional atrophy create stiff joints, producing aches, pains, and more chronic pain during aging. However, exercising and switching up your exercise routine to suit your needs is essential.

For example, if your joints ache from long walks, switch to muscle-building exercises or something more anaerobic like swimming. Swimming is an excellent cardio exercise, but it’s not hard on the joints. Aquarobics is a beautiful exercise for people 50 or older who want to move but have difficulty moving for long periods.

This also helps enable weight loss and keeps the immune system and other muscles like the heart strong. Menopause is also a time for women when, as they lose estrogen, they also lose the vitality in their joints that they once had. Therefore, they must find exercises that will help increase their muscle mass, engage the muscles, and allow their whole bodies to benefit from movement.

Keep a positive attitude and spiritual life

As people age, they may move away from making goals and moving forward in life and toward rest and retirement. They may look forward to being with grandchildren and are free to enjoy them since their childrearing era has been completed. People sixty and older are referred to as being their “golden years” because they are free to enjoy their lives after years of being responsible for their families and find these years to be some of the best years of their lives.

However, as with the discussion of the Erikson Theory of Development, if a person finds himself or herself harboring negativity, and others see them despairing of life it can be difficult to deal with or even be in their elder’s presence.

It is easy to look back on your life during this time and see all that has been lost or all the goals that were not accomplished. A grateful person does his best to keep a positive attitude to be more successful at aging.

Faith in God can help to provide a positive perspective that will produce integrity at this time of life, adding wisdom to a life well-spent, and this wisdom can enrich the lives of those around them. We count on the body to work well. Because the mind, soul, and spirit are all connected, what you feel emotionally can affect your body spiritually and physically.

This may increase chemicals in the brain that can react with negative physical and mental problems that are difficult to manage in old age. Although it is not always easy to look with joy upon every situation, contentment is a virtue that, when practiced, can help an aging person be successful in life. If an elderly person has been spiritual for all or most of their life, they will tend to return to that state, especially as their life nears the end.

Zig Zigler, a famous motivational speaker in the 1960s and beyond, said in a well-known statement, “If you don’t have an attitude of gratitude you better get a check-up from the neck up.” Most of us have to begin to develop an attitude of gratitude fairly early in our lives and some learn to feel grateful with a spiritual awakening later in life, but gratitude is an important virtue to develop and practice throughout our lives.

To add to the statement above, statistics show that people engaged in a church body live longer lives. This is because they have the love and support of the congregation and a place to serve where they have opportunities to develop and use their gifts.

This creates a positive attitude when we serve because we give of ourselves to others instead of looking at ways to gratify ourselves, and that provides a way to lighten our mood and gives our life more purpose. It truly is “more blessed to give than to receive” in the context of our church family.

Take it slow (with everything)

A rushed life almost guarantees that your body will age more rapidly. A person who is stressed out and worries constantly can find they may age more quickly than someone who is more content and takes life slowly. While it is impossible to reduce all stress in life, it is possible to develop the habit of not worrying.

We understand that if we can cast our worries upon the Lord and obey the verse, “Don’t worry about anything, pray about everything” (Philippians 4:6), we can eventually become less and less stressed by doing what God says. We are not capable of carrying the weight of stress. The best remedy for worry is giving it to the Lord, knowing He will take care of the things about which we are worried.

Allowing God to take control of your life is one of the best ways to be successful in aging. A person who gives their life over to God, accepts the trials as they come, rejoices in the triumphs of God, and trusts in His goodness and love toward us is well on their way to successful aging. Pray and ask God to help you see how to be more disciplined about how we can cut down on unnecessary activities.

Even though it may seem difficult for a person’s work schedule to not add to stress and feel that you must rush around Monday through Friday, would it be possible to work more certain days of the week and take more time off? Life is precious, and your time with loved ones can be short. See if you can do what you can to work harder on fewer days so you have more time to enjoy life with loved ones.

As people age, they find life goes faster. Retirement doesn’t always bring a slow pace, but it can often get hectic as people fill their lives with many other activities. Time with children, grandchildren, and other family is essential to a person’s well-being. By rearranging your schedule, you might be able to work less so you can spend more time with the people you love and enjoy life to the fullest.

In some cases, no matter what someone does, the aging process can take its toll. However, by following some of the suggestions above, you can not only have a full life but also embrace aging with grace rather than to try and avoid it at all costs.

Are you finding the journey through aging to be overwhelming or difficult? The therapists at our location would be happy to help you walk through aging successfully. Contact our office today to learn more.