A lot of importance is put on age. When you’re younger, you have to reach a certain age-related milestone before you’re able to drive, vote or drink. As you get older, age becomes a factor as to when you need certain medical tests and when you’re able to collect benefits so you can retire.
However, to a lot of people, age is something that signifies so much more. It is a stark reminder of dreams left unmet and goals left unaccomplished. It is a marker in the race of life, one in which the finish line can scare the absolute hell out of you.
How do you move beyond this fear of the number of years you’ve been alive and actually start to enjoy life? When you start to stress out about how many candles are going to be on your cake, just remember these three things:
#1 – You are only as old as you let yourself be
We all know people who are twenty yet act eighty and, conversely, those that are eighty and act twenty. So, what is age? A factual representation of the amount of time you’ve existed as a human being – nothing more and nothing less.
We are only as old and as young as we let ourselves be. Instead of thinking about what you “should” or “shouldn’t” do because of the date of your birth, think about what you want to do with your life. What excites you and gets your blood pumping?
If you want to try swing dancing, then sign up for a class. If sky diving is on your bucket list, make arrangements to do it so that you can finally cross it off.
Don’t let age be an excuse to not live your life. Choose to be the person that goes where others fear to go. Let yourself live how you want to live and don’t allow yourself to get caught up in the societal norms of what they feel your age represents.
#2 – Worrying will do absolutely nothing to stop the aging process
Is worrying going to make the clock stop? Will it keep you the age you are now from today until eternity? Sorry, but it’s not likely.
Besides, there is no way that worrying is going to stop any major future event that could cause you sadness, discomfort or pain. It isn’t going to prevent anything, change anything or fix anything.
In fact, worrying may actually speed up the aging process. It increases your stress levels, which opens your body and mind up to a whole world of health ailments. It causes you to sit on the sidelines and watch life pass you by as opposed to jumping into the game and scoring the winning touchdown.
So, the next time you find yourself concerned to the point where it’s bothersome, remind your inner worrywart that you are essentially wasting your time and energy on things you have no control over. The most you can do is plan to the best of your ability and then let the cards fall where they may.
#3 – Aging isn’t always a bad thing
While some people view growing older with fear and disdain, others actually look forward to getting some time in this world under their belt. It may be hard to believe, but it’s true.
A lot of people realize that the more life experiences you have, the wiser you become. You figure out how to get where you desire to be and acquire the tricks and knowledge to get you there.
This process requires advancing in age. It involves spending hours, days, weeks, months and years perfecting your skills and honing your strengths. It entails taking the time to learn your weaknesses and find ways to work around them.
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of aging is learning who you are and what you want out of life. You gain self-confidence as you begin to finally realize that no one determines your destiny but you. You spend less time worrying about what others think and more time improving what you think of yourself.
With each day that passes, we all get one more day older. That’s a fact. But, there are things you can do to minimize the damage that comes with having “excessive birthdays”. Here are just a few of them:
- Get in regular physical exercise. Aim to engage in some form of cardiovascular activity for 30-60 minutes most days of the week. This will keep your body strong, your immune system running efficiently and your stress levels in check. It also increases the odds that you’ll maintain a healthy weight which will reduce your risk of major diseases that may either shorten your time on earth or, at a minimum, threaten your quality of life.
- Eat nutritiously. Just as proper exercise can keep you in shape, so too can eating foods that are good for your body. The key is to choose foods that are more natural and less processed. Choose fruits, veggies, lean protein and complex carbs over sugary and highly manufactured foods as they aren’t good for you at all. These types of foods can inflame your cells, which opens them up to disease and illness. They also reduce the effectiveness of your immune system, making it harder to fight off whatever bug or virus may be going around.
- Manage your stress. The more you’re able to go with the flow and just let life happen without constantly obsessing over it, the longer you’ll likely live. One study found that people who suffered higher stress lived, on average, seven years less than people who managed their stress levels. When you feel like you’ve had enough with all that life has thrown at you, find a way to let the frustration, anxiety and worry out. Take a walk, meditate, chat with a friend or find a therapist that can give you ideas on how to cope.
- Challenge your mind. One of the biggest concerns of the aging process can be retaining the sharpness of your mind. You may worry that you’re going to get forgetful or that you’re going to lose your mental acuity. One way to limit any age related brain activity issues is to constantly challenge your mind. Learn new things to keep it engaged and working properly. Play games that require strategy so that you are constantly advancing mentally.
Aging is inevitable, but growing old is optional. Be young and full of live or be old and ready to die. The choice is yours.
[ Read: How to Get Better With Age]
great article. ‘Age is just a factual representatio of the number of years you have existed as a human being!’ love that.