Senior to Senior: The Reality of Getting Old

You spend the first twenty years of your life looking forward to getting older. The second twenty years , for the most part, are really good, although you may not appreciate them at the time. Then, all too soon the inevitable happens; you start to get old. You are not alone if the pandemic has speeded up your thought processes about all this. The years when you felt invincible have come and gone, and you have gotten older despite your efforts. Eighty is not the new 60. Like it or not, you are now one of the “vulnerable elderly” that other people talk about. Researchers who have studied aging had made some good points, but even if you followed all of the guidelines, “it” is still going to happen. Whether or not you are prepared for “it” is up to you. The years between 60 and 90 may be filled with exciting possibilities, but they can be fraught with physical and mental frailties. Deal with it: • Society could care less about you. No matter how successful you “were,” as you age you are just another “old” man or “old” woman. • You have to learn to live with a variety of ailments. Being healthy becomes a full-time job. • You will be paying for past indiscretions. Researchers talk a lot about “successful aging,” but the facts are in; the older you get, the more difficult life becomes. • The key is to learn how to cope with the changes that occur, while striving to remain the same person you have always been. • Leave nothing for later. Do everything you can, right now. • The best moments, the best experiences, the best friends, the best family, the best day, are today. • Stop whining, stop complaining, and do whatever it takes to make your life better. You have to experience aging to truly understand it; the only way you can avoid “getting old” is by checking out before you get there. Cosmetic surgery, tons of exercise, and a Mediterranean diet will make you look and feel better longer, but aging and other “natural disasters” are here to stay.