…maturity is a choice.
…a person is as young as he/she feels.
…it’s totally irrelevant unless you happen to be a bottle of wine!
…wrong! Age is a word.
These are a few of the memes I found online when I searched the phrase “age is just a number”.
It’s something many of us say, and has become a throw away line, quickly dismissed without giving much thought to what it really means. It doesn’t matter what others say about age–what’s important is the meaning you give to aging.
We all have our own unique perspective on getting older. We all create our own meaning. For some, aging represents wisdom, freedom and connection. For others, age is perceived as an inevitable decline, and a plight that cannot be influenced or changed.
From my perch here on the upper side of 65, I’m very aware the majority of my life is behind me–that’s just a fact. Chances are pretty high I won’t live to see 130, although scientists tell us it’s possible for more people to live well past 100 in this century. Despite this, I feel inspired and enthusiastic about what’s still ahead, because there’s simply no time to waste. There’s still a lot of stuff to do!
Are there days I’d like to wind back the clock and experience the physical body as I did in my 20’s and 30’s? Yes indeed! Are there also days I’m incredibly grateful for having made it to where I am now, and wouldn’t go back there for anything? Yes, these thoughts occur as well.
Aging isn’t a linear experience.
In the survey I conducted over the last few weeks, “age is just a number” showed up several times in the comments. While many of us do our best to relate to our age (the number of years we’ve been occupying the current earth suit) as irrelevant, it seems that’s not necessarily the end of it!
It’s been great to read your comments, and I appreciate you sharing your experience and thoughts on aging–what you struggle with, how you feel about getting older, and where you find aging to have its advantages and disadvantages.
Here’s a brief summary of some of the themes that came up in the comments:
- Socialization with your community, friends and family are important. Kids and grandkids came up quite a lot!
- There’s an awareness that getting older isn’t just about what’s happening in the body. There were quite a few references to mindset, attitude and motivation.
- Many of you expressed concerns about how to remain relevant.
- There were mentions of stiffness, aches and pains, and not being able to do what you used to do, or having to stop doing what you love to do.
- Another theme was around how to avoid getting hurt or falling, and the belief that getting over an injury is difficult.
- There’s a strong desire to stay active and engaged!
- Menopause and perimenopause were mentioned–how do the changes during and after menopause affect women as they age?
You might be wondering what I’m going to do with all the wonderful feedback you provided. Yes, well, I’m wondering that myself!
Here’s what I can tell you so far. Your feedback is supporting the development of the Agile Aging Program, which will be delivered online live and on demand in the early 2022. This program will help you dial in the physical, mental, and emotional strategies you need to thrive in life, no matter your current age or circumstances.
I’ll keep you updated on what to expect over the next few months.
I’m very grateful for your time and thoughtful comments. If you’d like to connect with me directly about Agile Aging or anything else movement related, please send me an email by clicking here.