Some things get better with age

How old are you?

I typically don't get too excited about birthdays, nor do I get too depressed. However, this last one felt different because it was my last birthday without a six or higher as the first digit.

I will not lie; I have enough ego or vanity to acknowledge that it feels pretty great when people hear my age and respond with some version of "OMG, you are not that old?!"

I am proud that going on three decades of having "health" as a value is paying off.

Paying attention to regular exercise, prioritizing sleep, and focusing on nutrition delivers some tangible results mentally and physically. 

But, of course, I know that every five years or so, we learn something new and that what I thought was "healthy" really wasn't, but that's OK as long as moderate coffee consumption continues to be considered part of a healthy diet!

Here are some of the other things I am committing to as the journey continues:

Physically

I will continue to (and double down on) my focus on sleep, nutrition and exercise in the coming years and, hopefully, decades. And the good news is that it's always possible to get started on keeping your body and mind in shape for the long run.

That means always looking for activities that promote balance, strength, mobility and flexibility. Yoga anyone?

I will continue to nudge myself out of my comfort zone physically without significantly increasing the risk of injury.

Mentally

Continue to challenge myself cognitively. I'm currently clunking along with learning Spanish and being humbled by an acoustic guitar. Stimulating your brain with new languages, instruments, crosswords, jigsaws or whatever challenges or excites your mind can have long-lasting benefits for memory, problem-solving skills and more. So don’t forget to exercise your brain!

Emotionally 

Continuing to do "the work" It's not always easy doing the inner work -- counselling, therapy, facing fears, having difficult conversations, being curious about and acknowledging unhealthy thoughts and behaviour patterns that don't serve you or those around you.

But the results are worth it: A calmer mind, sharper focus, healthier thoughts and feelings, renewed energy, self-awareness and more compassion, to name a few.

I am surrounding myself with people who embrace the above or are at least open to it all.

It seems easier as we age to get a little less social, even though all the research points to the benefits of having a thriving social network in the latter half of our life.

I know for me, prioritizing sleep has meant going to bed earlier and consuming less alcohol. These shifts in behaviour take out of play some of the obvious social gatherings.  

I will challenge myself in the coming years to seek out and nurture a healthy social network.

Spiritually

I’m surrounding myself with people and situations that feed my soul and spending as much time in nature as possible. 

I will also spend less time looking and my phone and recommit to meditation practice.

What we don't talk about 

I find a few things exciting and challenging at this stage of life, things we don't talk enough about and prepare for as a society.

Normalizing and openly talking about mental health and well-being is essential. We’ve come a long way in the past 10 years, but I still feel like too many people and families are suffering in silence, guilt, shame and confusion.

Watching your parents age and decline in their physical and mental health is difficult. Providing care and support for them to age safely and protect their dignity while protecting my emotional state is complicated and sometimes confusing. I was not prepared for this. I am learning so much from others who are going through and have been through this phase.

Nurturing and maintaining strong, healthy relationships with my adult children is my primary focus. Supporting them while not enabling them. Creating healthy boundaries as we transition into different roles in each other's lives. It's sometimes difficult to navigate these relationships because no matter their age, they will always be your kids to you, but they also need to be adults. 

My favourite part of getting older

It's fun. The game slows down a bit for you, but you are still playing at a good pace. If you pay attention and learn about yourself, understand yourself, learn about others, understand others, and let your ego fade into the background, things unfold around you, and you can navigate them with a little more grace and ease.