aging and happiness Archives

Happiness as you age – no denial

Apr

20

2018

The older we get, the more we are told to embrace our age. To take pride in the decades we’re notching up. Yet most of us tend to ignore these exhortations to be loud and proud about getting older. On the contrary, we continue to mark birthday milestones in denial mode. I fear that if ...

It’s the (Positive) Thoughts that Count

Feb

24

2018

Readers of this blog will have noted that My New Old Self has enthusiastically embraced positive thinking. This was most recently in response to a study about the effects of exercise on older people. It revealed that the mere thought that you are not exercising enough can shorten your lifespan. Now there is a new ...

Facebook: Repository of Aging Adults

Jan

26

2018

When Facebook was launched nearly 15 years ago it was a hangout of the youth. Older users were few and far between. But now older people are the main age group joining up. Young people not so much – in fact, many are reportedly fleeing Facebook to other social media. “Teens just want to be ...

Aging – just accept it

Jan

12

2018

Nobody likes getting old. Yet the older you get the better you may feel. This is not some chirpy elder slogan, but a fact confirmed by scientific research. While our bodies deteriorate as we get older, our minds improve. They don’t get sharper, sorry – but one’s mood often becomes more upbeat. Studies show that ...

Being stubborn makes you live longer

Dec

30

2017

Name a few things that help you live longer. Exercise, sleep, healthy eating… Here’s something new to add to the list: being stubborn. A new study has shown that stubbornness is a characteristic that can help you live a long life. Research published in the academic journal International Psychogeriatrics looked at the mental and physical ...

Chilling to live longer 1

Jul

14

2017

It’s not only what you eat and how you move and how long you sleep that contributes to aging. What you think is also a factor. So think about chilling more. Warning: thoughts can be harmful to your health Recent research shows that certain thoughts can be so unhealthy as to contribute to an early ...

Busily bragging 1

May

19

2017

There are many ways one can tell that times have changed, and notice how today’s world is different from the past.Sometimes it’s in a single word – as with responses to the common greeting, “How are you?” More and more I hear this answer to that question: “Busy!” In my time the most common response to “How ...

No Deathbed for author Karel Schoeman 1

May

5

2017

I would have thought that an author who wrote movingly of deathbed reflections would embrace such an eventual life review for himself. Yet acclaimed South African writer Karel Schoeman chose to end his own life at the age of 77, rather than carry on living, writing and reflecting. Afrikaans writer Karel Schoeman commits suicide President ...

Time in nature can make you happy 6

Sep

13

2015

A new study has shown that spending time in nature can make you happy. Admittedly, this wasn’t a controlled and monitored experiment. There were no randomised control trials. However, while the sample was small, the lack of quantative data is made up for by qualitative research. Here is a brief summary of the findings of this ...

High Point of Happiness at 69 4

Jul

26

2013

If you’re feeling a bit miz in your 50s just hang in there for another decade. That’s when your spirits will soar higher than at any time since your early 20s. That may sound like a thumb-sucked horoscope but it’s actually the finding of a new study on happiness and aging. It pinpoints 23 and ...