Autumn Years Fall 2023

HEALTH & WELFARE

Fit for Life

The Power of Positive Aging By Roger Anthony

Okay, so I’m rebounding off of Norman Vincent Peale’s world famous title. But the truth is that staying positive and optimistic is in great part what will determine whether or not we get the best out of our Autumn Years.

or could go wrong. Even when good things happen to themselves or oth ers, they are already anticipating that it could all go awry, waiting for the other shoe to drop. They focus on the problems and do not look for solutions. They become suspicious, guarded, pes simistic, sometimes needy and ultimately curmudgeonly. Just as they tend to bring down what is happening in their, and perhaps even your, life their negative attitude and behavior often affects their health. Psychologists define attitude as a learned tendency to evaluate things in a certain way. Our attitudes are acquired through our personal experiences, social influence, upbringing and education, conditioning processes and our own observations and perceptions. The way you evaluate issues, people, events, etc., whether positive, negative or even uncertain, ultimately has a correspond ing effect on your beliefs, behaviors and well-being. A negative attitude can adversely impact the way we age. Not surprisingly, some people begin to have a negative attitude about their own older self. As they age, they may be come self-conscious, insecure, confused or even frightened by new or different things, changes or activities. Avoiding or rejecting change can give way to remain ing in the comfort zone and missing out on potentially different and joyful undertakings. Envisioning the worst case scenario for every situation, they tend to convince themselves that “I’m too old for that. It will be too hard for me. I won’t be able to do it or I will really suck at it.

R ecent research has shown that healthier lives. One such study at Har vard T.H. Chan School of Public Health found that people who had the high est satisfaction with aging were more optimistic and actually had a 43 percent lower risk of dying from any cause and a lower risk for conditions such as diabe tes, stroke, cancer and heart disease. They also had better cognitive function ing, were less likely to have sleep disor ders, were less lonely and depressed and were more likely to engage in physical activity. Clearly, there is a physiological con nection between attitude and wellness people with more positive attitudes about aging tend to live longer and

in aging. A person’s attitude can have a powerful influence, either positive or negative, over both behavior and health. Consider the people you know in your own life. Most of us are fortunate to know people who always appear to be up. They greet us with a smile, share your happiness and theirs, and are al ways positive and optimistic. They focus on the good things in their lives and minimize the bad. They tend to be out going, grateful for what they have and enjoy and are willingly helpful. And not surprisingly most of them seem to always appear to be in good health, even when perhaps they are not. Then there are those who seem to dwell on whatever they think is wrong

I once decided to try sailboarding, positive that I could do what much younger folks made look easy. The first lesson was about how to get up and stand on the board. Despite my confidence and optimism, my countless attempts always resulted in falling back into the water. I never made it all the way up, but with every awkward splash, I laughed. The more I failed, the harder I laughed until I was in a hopeless snit of giggles and had to stop. I did not succeed in what I was sure I could master but it did not matter to me because I had so much fun trying. It was all about my “When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade” attitude! At 60 years of age, I tried Spinning (high energy indoor studio cycling). I enjoyed it so much that I became an instructor and am still teaching it 22 years later. It’s all about attitude!

12 AUTUMN YEARS I FALL 2023