All of us get older daily. We cannot escape our destiny. But many of us fear it and give up the fight easily, and simply wait for death. But it doesn't have to be that way. We can control how we age and in the manner we age while enjoying it. Growing older can be a pleasant and exciting period in our life, not a burden or fear. Let's talk about this perennial problem and fear of getting old.
There is a wonderful book by Deepak Chopra called SUGGESTIONS FOR KEEPING AN AGELESS BODY AND TIMELESS MIND. Allow me to discuss his interesting philosophy on the subject of aging. We will all grow old but if we prepare for it and follow some basic rules it can be a fascinating experience that we can enjoy as we make the transition into our “twilight years.”
Let's examination some negative factors that accelerate aging. As we go through the list, consider how we can better control and minimize their affects on us:
1. Depression;
2. Inability to express emotions;
3. Feeling helpless to change, oneself and others;
4. Living alone;
5. Loneliness, absence to close friends;
6. Lack of regular daily routine;
7. Job dissatisfaction;
8. Having to work more than 40 hours per week;
9. Habitual or excessive worry;
10. Regret for sacrifices made in the past;
11. Irritability, getting angry easily or being unable to express anger;
12. Financial burden, being in debt;
13. Criticism of self and others.
If we want to control our body and our mind, we must become aware of the many changes happening within ourselves. Many of the changes happen without our conscious awareness that they are happening. Everything that happens to us is a result of how we see our self. To become aware of the subtle changes constantly going on in our body we must listen to it. Awareness makes a huge difference in aging. To despair of growing old makes us grow old faster, while to accept it with grace keeps many miseries, both physical and mental, from our doorstep.
When we experience the physical world including our body, we must understand that it is a response to how we observe and create our world. The mind and the body are inseparably one. We hunger because our mind tells us. We ache because our mind tells us. We feel emotions because our mind tells us. What we eat affects not only the body but the mind as well. Understand that the mind and body are inseparably one.
Long before we get too old, we can prevent losses in activity and thinking by consciously programming our mind to remain youthful using the power of our intention. The decline of vigor in old age is largely the result of us expecting to decline. Are we doing anything about it? Or are we just accepting the inevitable?
Above we looked at some negative factors that accelerate aging. Now let's examine some positive factors that retard aging:
1. Happy marriage or satisfying long relationship;
2. Job satisfaction;
3. Feeling personal happiness;
4. Ability to laugh easily;
5. Satisfactory sex life;
6. Ability to make and keep close friends;
7. Regular work routine;
8. Regular daily routine
9. Taking at least one-week vacation every year;
10. Feeling in control of personal life;
11. Enjoyable leisure time, satisfying hobbies;
12. Ability to express feelings easily;
13. Optimistic about the future;
14. Feeling financially secure, living within means.
There are three ages of man:
Chronological age-how old we are by the calendar,
Biological age-how old our body is in terms of critical life signs and cellular processes,
Psychological age - how old we feel we are.
There are two recommendations missing from the list above that need to be added. I personally consider the two to be a vital part of our aging process and health. First, we must watch what we eat and the quantity we eat. Too many of us are still eating the same kind of foods that we ate when we were much younger. We neglect vegetables and fruit as the mainstays of a healthy diet. We eat heaping portions of fatty meat and other foods that our body finds hard to digest. Then we insist food be fried in oil. Is it any wonder that the body begins to rebel as we age?
Because we are not as active as when we were younger, we need less portions of food to consume. Our energy needs are much less, but for some reason we seem to overlook that. The result is that we become obese. Look in the mirror. What is your opinion of yourself? Are you proud of a big gut? How big are your “love handles?” Can you see your toes or even touch them? If not, you are overweight, and your body joints have so much extra weight to carry. No wonder our joints ache with so much extra fat to carry around.
Let's stop here and give you time to consider the ideas mentioned above. Next week we will discuss the second item that must become an integral part of our daily life if we are to stay young and active. I leave you with this message:
EVEN IF I DON'T WAKE UP TO DREAMS FROM GOD, EVERYDAY HAS TO MEAN SOMETHING TO ME, AND IF IT DOES, I BELIEVE THE BATTLE IS WON.
By Anthony Pellegrino
Source; http://www.saipantribune.com/newsstory.aspx?cat=3&newsID=74401
Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.
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