I personally say NO! Here is part one of a great article we should all read if we are over 30. Leave me a comment regarding your thoughts on this matter. My comments are in red.
8 Great Secrets for Growing Young
After you hit 30, it’s all downhill, right? Not true. Your physical health and your mental well-being determine your real age, not the date on your birth certificate. In acknowledgement of Healthy Aging Month, here are eight tips for feeling young no matter what your age. Plus, are you doing everything you can to boost your life expectancy?
Getting older is inevitable. But aging is not. Here are my tips for staying young at any age.
1. Forget your chronologic age.
It’s a fairly meaningless number after the age of 30. It’s your biologic age that counts. People who understand how life energy works in the body often have biologic ages 20 or more years younger than their chronologic ages.
My 80-year-old mother is a good example. A few years ago she climbed four unmarked peaks (no trails on them) in the Adirondacks – jumping over boulders and downed trees like a mountain goat. She takes no medications whatsoever. She does, however, use a wide variety of supplements daily. It’s clear my mother’s biologic age is far younger than her chronologic age. I want to be like her!
The opposite is also true. I routinely see 35-year-olds who look, act and talk like people far older. I have seen this too. Very sad. They tend to hang out with friends and family members who talk the same talk and walk the same slow walk. When I meet such a person, I know I’m seeing the aging process happening right before my eyes. Their words, thoughts and actions are all about deterioration.......
2. Getting older is inevitable.
Aging is not. The process of getting older actually begins the moment our life begins in the womb! We can’t stop it. But we can certainly influence it dramatically. Though we really don’t understand what aging is, I have some theories that have stood the test of time.
Until age 30 or so, the “springtime” energy within each of us is so strong that our bodies are very forgiving. In other words, the average 18-year-old will be able to maintain a healthy weight and have lots of energy, even if he or she eats mostly junk food, doesn’t exercise, doesn’t take nutritional supplements, smokes, drinks alcohol, and is chronically pessimistic. But the natural forgiveness that nature gifts to the young doesn’t last forever. I am pretty sad about that. Why can't it last forever???
By about age 30, our lifestyles, including our thoughts and beliefs, catch up with us. Your body will be far less forgiving than it used to be. You won’t be able to stay up all night at parties drinking alcohol, then fuel yourself with several cups of coffee the next morning and still arrive at work the next day feeling alert. You won’t be able to live on caffeine and cigarettes and still have your complexion look radiant. You won’t be able to keep working at a job you hate while having no plans for change in the future without this taking a toll on your body.
When health-robbing habits catch up with people at about the age of 30 or so, they say, “You see? It’s my age. That’s why this stuff is happening to me. It’s natural.” Nothing could be further from the truth. When we don’t take care of our bodies (including our minds, emotions and spirits) our bodies are forced to send us louder and louder signals to get our attention.
Headaches, low energy, dull skin, joint aches and pains are just a few of the many different messages our body sends us when it needs better care. Our symptoms are not signs that our bodies are somehow “turning on us.” Our bodies are actually created from our consciousness and the behavior that flows from this. This may be starting to sound a bit new agey but I think this is true in another sense. I DO believe that our words are powerful and our thoughts help shape us. These are Biblical truths. I think that is why it is SO important that we watch our words because we will eventually believe what we hear ourselves say. That’s why it’s possible to remain vital and healthy, and keep improving in many areas throughout our lives!
3. Get conscious about ageism.
We live in a culture that is drenched with ageism. We automatically assume that someone is going to deteriorate as they get older. Recently, my massage therapist told me a woman called and described herself as “old and fat.” She was only 55! This is insane – and also dangerous to our health and well-being. I agree! Saying you are OLD at 55 is not right. I don't want to hear anyone say I am old, ever. OK, well maybe when I am 75 or so. Then I won't be offended...maybe.
It’s important to catch yourself engaging in ageism. I don't call it ageism but I do call it a negative confession. I don't want to make confessions that I will eventually believe. Do you ever say that you’ve just had a “senior” moment when you forget a name or a face? If you do, stop it. NOW. I’ve forgotten occasional names for my whole life. I’ll bet you have, too. We all forget things. This needn’t increase with age. I think I have been doing stuff like that since I was in my 20's and I certainly was not old then. Then again, I can't remember when that was....just kidding.
Many women, especially during perimenopause, complain of having a “cotton head.” They can’t seem to balance their checkbook. They’re certain that they are experiencing the first stages of Alzheimer’s. This simply isn’t true. Most of the “fuzzy head” that women talk about at perimenopause isn’t aging at all. It’s your inner wisdom telling you it’s time for you to tune in to yourself more consistently. It may also be time to make sure your hormones are in the correct balance. Check out my blog Happy Girls Use Happy Cream to see if this may be something you need.
Catch yourself in the act of using your age as an excuse for not trying something. For example, “I think I’m doing pretty well, for my age.” What does that mean? Though it’s true that most 65-year-old men and women don’t engage in as much risk-taking or thrill-seeking behavior as they did when they were younger (like driving too fast with a high blood alcohol level), this is because of a wonderful quality that comes with age: wisdom. I like this quality. It is a good one.
8 Great Secrets for Growing Young
After you hit 30, it’s all downhill, right? Not true. Your physical health and your mental well-being determine your real age, not the date on your birth certificate. In acknowledgement of Healthy Aging Month, here are eight tips for feeling young no matter what your age. Plus, are you doing everything you can to boost your life expectancy?
Getting older is inevitable. But aging is not. Here are my tips for staying young at any age.
1. Forget your chronologic age.
It’s a fairly meaningless number after the age of 30. It’s your biologic age that counts. People who understand how life energy works in the body often have biologic ages 20 or more years younger than their chronologic ages.
My 80-year-old mother is a good example. A few years ago she climbed four unmarked peaks (no trails on them) in the Adirondacks – jumping over boulders and downed trees like a mountain goat. She takes no medications whatsoever. She does, however, use a wide variety of supplements daily. It’s clear my mother’s biologic age is far younger than her chronologic age. I want to be like her!
The opposite is also true. I routinely see 35-year-olds who look, act and talk like people far older. I have seen this too. Very sad. They tend to hang out with friends and family members who talk the same talk and walk the same slow walk. When I meet such a person, I know I’m seeing the aging process happening right before my eyes. Their words, thoughts and actions are all about deterioration.......
2. Getting older is inevitable.
Aging is not. The process of getting older actually begins the moment our life begins in the womb! We can’t stop it. But we can certainly influence it dramatically. Though we really don’t understand what aging is, I have some theories that have stood the test of time.
Until age 30 or so, the “springtime” energy within each of us is so strong that our bodies are very forgiving. In other words, the average 18-year-old will be able to maintain a healthy weight and have lots of energy, even if he or she eats mostly junk food, doesn’t exercise, doesn’t take nutritional supplements, smokes, drinks alcohol, and is chronically pessimistic. But the natural forgiveness that nature gifts to the young doesn’t last forever. I am pretty sad about that. Why can't it last forever???
By about age 30, our lifestyles, including our thoughts and beliefs, catch up with us. Your body will be far less forgiving than it used to be. You won’t be able to stay up all night at parties drinking alcohol, then fuel yourself with several cups of coffee the next morning and still arrive at work the next day feeling alert. You won’t be able to live on caffeine and cigarettes and still have your complexion look radiant. You won’t be able to keep working at a job you hate while having no plans for change in the future without this taking a toll on your body.
When health-robbing habits catch up with people at about the age of 30 or so, they say, “You see? It’s my age. That’s why this stuff is happening to me. It’s natural.” Nothing could be further from the truth. When we don’t take care of our bodies (including our minds, emotions and spirits) our bodies are forced to send us louder and louder signals to get our attention.
Headaches, low energy, dull skin, joint aches and pains are just a few of the many different messages our body sends us when it needs better care. Our symptoms are not signs that our bodies are somehow “turning on us.” Our bodies are actually created from our consciousness and the behavior that flows from this. This may be starting to sound a bit new agey but I think this is true in another sense. I DO believe that our words are powerful and our thoughts help shape us. These are Biblical truths. I think that is why it is SO important that we watch our words because we will eventually believe what we hear ourselves say. That’s why it’s possible to remain vital and healthy, and keep improving in many areas throughout our lives!
3. Get conscious about ageism.
We live in a culture that is drenched with ageism. We automatically assume that someone is going to deteriorate as they get older. Recently, my massage therapist told me a woman called and described herself as “old and fat.” She was only 55! This is insane – and also dangerous to our health and well-being. I agree! Saying you are OLD at 55 is not right. I don't want to hear anyone say I am old, ever. OK, well maybe when I am 75 or so. Then I won't be offended...maybe.
It’s important to catch yourself engaging in ageism. I don't call it ageism but I do call it a negative confession. I don't want to make confessions that I will eventually believe. Do you ever say that you’ve just had a “senior” moment when you forget a name or a face? If you do, stop it. NOW. I’ve forgotten occasional names for my whole life. I’ll bet you have, too. We all forget things. This needn’t increase with age. I think I have been doing stuff like that since I was in my 20's and I certainly was not old then. Then again, I can't remember when that was....just kidding.
Many women, especially during perimenopause, complain of having a “cotton head.” They can’t seem to balance their checkbook. They’re certain that they are experiencing the first stages of Alzheimer’s. This simply isn’t true. Most of the “fuzzy head” that women talk about at perimenopause isn’t aging at all. It’s your inner wisdom telling you it’s time for you to tune in to yourself more consistently. It may also be time to make sure your hormones are in the correct balance. Check out my blog Happy Girls Use Happy Cream to see if this may be something you need.
Catch yourself in the act of using your age as an excuse for not trying something. For example, “I think I’m doing pretty well, for my age.” What does that mean? Though it’s true that most 65-year-old men and women don’t engage in as much risk-taking or thrill-seeking behavior as they did when they were younger (like driving too fast with a high blood alcohol level), this is because of a wonderful quality that comes with age: wisdom. I like this quality. It is a good one.
Christiane Northrup, M.D. Excerpted with permission from The Dr. Christiane Northrup Web site.
This is the first part of a very interesting article I found. I hope you will come back tomorrow to read the rest.
If you don't want to wait for the rest of this article tomorrow click HERE.
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