Being Older is Very Positive, Being Aged is Not
It should be noted that, on balance, everything except physical health becomes better with age. Outside of degenerative aging, becoming older is so good that people are driven to apologism for the fact that aging cripples and kills them - they conflate being old and being aged, seeing two very different things as one, and a certain confusion arises after that point.
Consider how much better it will be to be older once we start being able to treat the root causes of the degenerative medical condition called aging. If you're not there yet, consider just how good being older must be in order for people to be able to say they are well off even while their health is crumbling:
The SAGE study included adults between the ages of 50 and 99 years, with a mean age of just over 77 years. In addition to measures which assessed rates of chronic disease and disability, the survey looked at more subjective criteria such as social engagement and participants' self-assessment of their overall health.Participants were asked to rate the extent to which they thought they had "successfully aged," using a 10-point scale and using their own concept of the term. The study found that people with low physical functioning but high resilience, had self-ratings of successful aging similar to those of physical healthy people with low resilience. Likewise, the self-ratings of individuals with low physical functioning but no or minimal depression had scores comparable to those of physically healthy people with moderate to severe depression.
"It was clear to us that, even in the midst of physical or cognitive decline, individuals in our study reported feeling that their well-being had improved with age."
Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-12/uoc--poa120312.php
A less encouraging interpretation would be that cognitive decline limits the ability of aged individuals to perceive the faltering of their own condition.
Hello, I am 83 years and I found I was becoming very sorry for myself and therefore depression set in. I had to get a hold myself realising I am in good health and able to look after myself.
You just have to stop these negative feelings and keep your mind busy and active. I have decided I have to have a daily walk even with a walking stick. Which started today just a short walk to start with. I have had knee replacements for 15 years so they are becoming a bit loose. I used to love walking to town and back but cannot do that so had to accept it.
I keep myself busy with knitting and a bit of reading mostly a half hour before getting off to sleep.
I would like to know what other folk like me are doing. There are a lot of choices. I have started going to a Care group and you meet some lovely people there.