Do you worry about growing older? About half of women do. Here's a letter from one: "Please could you advise me on how to overcome anxiety? I mostly feel ok in daylight, but I wake up at 2 am or 3 am, and have 'butterflies' in my stomach, and sometimes I feel so heavy I canbarely move my arms. I have been told that I have to use a medication, maybe even the rest of my life. Although a lot of people have treid to reassure me, I am really upset about it. It makes me feel like I'm getting older, which scares me!"
Can you relate to this? Why is aging scary? Women told the WomenSpeak Project they have few role models for aging successfully. Many say their mothers never discussed "age" and they saw them simply "suffering through it."
Behavioral scientists have shown us that we learn the most as we grow up from role models, usually our parents. These role models show us behaviors that we assimilate and then begin to duplicate everyday. These actions and behaviors are driven by beliefs, attitudes, and "world views" of these role models. If, for example, a female child watched her mother suffer with aging woes, the girl may have similar issues when she grows older.
A young girl searches for reference points that reveal how her world reacts to her. Women are bombarded by media messages that say stay "young and beautiful if you want to be loved." At the grocery checkout she sees magazine covers of beautiful, young, glowing women smiling with perfect teeth and perfect figures. It is an impossible, airbrushed ideal that can raise fears about wrinkles, weight, and coming up short in the desirability derby if her man compares her to these beauties.
And appearance is just the start! In fact, most women worry far more about money than about their looks. The struggle to fund single motherhood or a secure retirement worries many women.
Another huge anxiety issue for women...an "elephant" in the living room, as it were...is their health. Although women say their health is a major aging concern, many cannot identify any specific health issue as their focus. Although younger women have long talked freely about reproductive issues of childbearing, later in life, the term menopause remained unspoken, as did sleeping problems and mood swings, dry skin, loss of libido and "feeling out of control." Many saw their mothers and female relatives sicken and slide complaining into an unhappy twilight.
No wonder the women we talked to struggle to grow older gracefully. They lack role models and mentors with whom they could share their thoughts, emotions and concerns about aging. My research with more than 1,000 women showed that half were afraid of getting older! That's an epidemic of women worrying about their futures.
What can you do? First of all, stop the squirrel that is your mind from running round and round in the cage of anxious thoughts. Challenge your thinking and choose to focus on the things you can do something about.
Every woman's body will change as the years pass. That is inevitable. Do the best you can with a healthy diet, hydration, good skin care, and physical activities you enjoy. Pay at least as much attention to developing your inner beauty through spiritual exploration and by caring for others. After that, work on self-acceptance: ignore the flawless images in the media and talk to other women about your feelings and concerns. Adopt the attitude of cultures that revere their elders for their knowledge, wisdom and contribution as guides and teachers.
Affirmations: I am a valuable human being no matter my age or my body size. I am a loveable and caring person. I deserve to love and be loved. I was created to be unique and special. I am like no other human being. I have a special place in this world and will let my light shine.
Face up to financial anxiety. Take a hard look at your spending habits to find places you can save and begin to faithfully put that money into savings. If you truly have no pennies to spare, you might to increase your income, perhaps by improving your job performance, or even by acquiring more skills so you can get a better job. There are other women in your community who are working on these same issues, so reach out.
Affirmations: I have the intelligence and talents to learn what I need to know in order to achieve my goals. I am willing to spend less today so I can save for tomorrow.
Harness your health anxiety to develop good habits. By all means, examine your breasts for lumps and watch for reduced rates on community health screenings to get your blood sugar and cholesterol checked. But remember, experts say the majority of health problems plaguing American today are caused by poor lifestyle choices. Basically, that's about eating, drinking, sitting around...and worrying! Even if a disease or condition "runs in your family," you can greatly reduce the chances that you'll get it by adopting a healthy lifestyle.
Affirmations: I like the way I feel when I exercise and eat well. I can easily and comfortably change my habits to achieve better health. Taking good care of my body and mind makes me happy. I deserve to take time for myself. I give myself permission now.
Choose to get happy and feel great. Start by identifying the single most important action you can take to fight your biggest worry, then get with your girlfriends to develop your strategies. The WomenSpeak Project found that few women openly talk about their aging concerns, so open up! Whatever your needs are, smart women working together can help. Trade childcare while you go to school or work out, share an extra job, cook together to try new healthy recipes, split inexpensive bulk food items or start an investment club to help your savings grow. Women are expert problem solvers!
Women can help other women talk about their concerns about growing older. It's also important toget help if you are struggling with an emotional condition such as anxiety or depression. These conditions have consequences if not treated quickly and professionally, but both can be treated successfully with early intervention.
Each day, take a moment to focus on something special about yourself. If you notice you are putting yourself down and comparing yourself to others, stop that stinkin' thinkin' right now! Be good to yourself. You are worth it!
We all know and realize, whether we want to admit it or not, that as we grow older, our bodies need a little extra help in the vitamins and mineral department. As our bodies age, they lose their ability to absorb certain nutrients that are valuable for the maintenance of our bodies and overall health, necessitating nutritional supplements(http://www.mitamins.com). Just like eyesight starts to go and hearing fades, so too do certain other body functions, including the digestive system. While it still works, we now experience a few more glitches, and the ability of our digestive systems to break down and distribute valuable components such as fats, sugars and carbohydrates, which can cause problems with general health and wellness.
This inability to not absorb essential vitamins and minerals with age often causes deficiencies (and a need for nutritional supplements) that cause problems such as malnutrition, weakened immune systems and illnesses. Most ?recommended daily allowance? charts are meant for the general population of adults between the ages of 18-50 years old. Older people need even more than the average daily requirements due to the decrease in performance mentioned above. In addition, many older people must also deal with the effects of medication on daily food intake and absorption. Many grow deficient in vitamins and minerals without even realizing it.
Older people, especially those who are ill or taking medications, must be especially attentive to their nutritional supplement health needs. Because medications often deplete natural stores of nutrients in the body or decrease the ability of the digestive system to absorb such nutrients from the food they eat, it is vital that seniors are provided adequate sources of proteins, vitamins(http://www.mitamins.com), minerals(http://www.mitamins.com), and enzymes that will help keep body systems in good working order. Such forms as nutritional supplements can provide adequate amounts of necessary daily vitamin needs.
Because many conditions begin with the aging process, seniors are especially at risk for vitamin depletion, and yet, senior health is often neglected. Whether poor eating habits develop from lack of money or because of decreased activity or desire to eat, nutritional supplements for seniors are required to help prevent health conditions such as malnutrition, anemia, iron deficiency and even more serious conditions such as osteoporosis, diabetes and other key issues that afflict seniors.
After losing life partners or other family members, many senior citizens don't take care of themselves. Poor eating habits and lack of interest in food is often the first indication that a senior is more than likely not receiving an adequately balanced diet. It's important for seniors to take nutritional supplements to offset lack of proper foods in their daily diet, which suffers with age anyway, but is often made worse when seniors seriously limit their dietary intake.
A lack of physical activity and physical problems often lead to poor nutrition among seniors, and it is up to friends and family members to make sure that foods are prepared properly and that adequate needs are being met. Good nutrition with seniors means making sure that adequate amounts of basic vitamins and mineral intake is met. That means they should be getting more than the daily recommended amount listed on general nutritional supplement bottles. Choose nutritional supplements designed for seniors to ensure that adequate amounts of iron, Vitamin A and Vitamin C are included, as well as Vitamin D are being consumed and absorbed.
However, the most important vitamin group that seniors should make sure they get comes those from the B vitamin family. Older people lose the ability to make stomach acid, which will reduce the body's ability to absorb Vitamin B12 and folic acid. That may not sound alarming to you, but it can reduce alertness and hasten memory loss in seniors as well as cause numbness to extremities.If in doubt, ask the doctor to explain the type of medication you or your loved one is taking and how that medication will affect the absorption of vitamins and minerals in the body. Also determine what extra vitamins and minerals might be called for in order to give your body the best chance of maintaining optimal health as the aging process continues.
Both Nancy D. O'reilly & Mitamins Team are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Nancy D. O'reilly has sinced written about articles on various topics from . Clinical psychologist Nancy D. O'Reilly, PsyD, has worked with women for more than 25 years. She founded the WomenSpeak Project to support women growing older in a youth-oriented society. Access ongoing. Nancy D. O'reilly's top article . to your Favourites.
Mitamins Team has sinced written about articles on various topics from Stress Management, Soccer and Stress Management. Author Bio: Mitamins teambd@mitamins.netFind Authoritative Health Information on Vitamins & Nutritional Supplements; Get Custom Vitamins & Nutritional Supplements for all Your Health Needs.Vitamin health and Nutritional Supplements(. Mitamins Team's top article generates over 110000 views. to your Favourites.