Lies I Was Told About Getting Older

I’ve been thinking about this subject for a few weeks now, I will be 47 at the end of June 2013, which I do not consider to be old.  Some of you in your 20’s will beg to differ with this opinion, and some of you in your 60’s and 70’s will consider me a spring chicken!

The reason I started thinking about this is because I realized I had some belief patterns that were a little stuck in my subconscious mind.  When we believe something we make it our Reality.  If we believe it can’t be done, we quit trying.  If we believe this is how life is, then that is how OUR life is.  This is where I found myself to be.

I am actively working on replacing these old limiting belief patterns with new ones that will serve me a lot better in my life.  My young and vibrant life!

THE TOP 5 LIES I WAS TOLD ABOUT AGING

1. Beauty fades – I heard this a lot when I was younger, and still see it around now on Social Media sites and hear it from some “inspirational” speakers.  Beauty changes, but it does not fade.  I know some very beautiful women that have 20 or 30 or even 40 years on me.
2. It is harder to lose weight as you get older – our metabolism might slow down a little bit, BUT … it is because we LET it.  Kids have a higher metabolism, but they are constantly moving (unless they are addicted to TV or video games, but that’s another subject).  The less you move, the slower your metabolism.  Your metabolism might not be as young as it used to be, but you probably aren’t moving as much as you used to either.
3. Your body gets stiff as you get older – with some people yes.  But it doesn’t HAVE to.  You might have to make a more conscious effort to keep from getting stiff, but it doesn’t have to happen.  Not saying that I never have stiffness in my own body, but I find that doing yoga, or even the most basic of stretches can keep the stiffness at bay.
4. Your memory isn’t as good as it was when you are younger – this is almost true for me, but its because I have let it be.  I am working on changing certain aspects of that.  I find that with some things, it is not always that your memory isn’t as good, its that a lot of things are a lot less important than they used to be.  You may not need to ‘keep score’ with certain things anymore.  Another reason, is that we allow ourselves to get wrapped up in a lot of different thoughts at once.  Practicing awareness of what it is we are doing and thinking can improve our short term memory.  As can exercising our brain.  Doing certain puzzles, or playing memory games can help.
5. It is harder to change or accept change as you get older – I don’t believe this at all.  I believe that there are a lot of older people who do not like change, even ones that used to embrace change, but once again, this is all in your head.  Some people, as they get older, lose sight of having a future goal.  It is our future goals that keep us going.  As we get older, our goals might change, but we can still have them.  If we do not have a goal to strive for, we get stagnant:   You are either growing or dying.  Without a goal, you are essentially dying (this can be at 20 or at 90).

Some of you who are quite a bit older than I am might say that I just don’t know what I’m talking about.  You might be thinking “Just wait till you get to my age!”   I guess all I have to say to that is “okay”.  When I was a kid, I had people who were in their 40’s saying that to me – we’ll I’m your age now, and I don’t feel as lousy as you told me you felt back then.

Now, and in the future, I will try and keep my mind and my body moving.  I will make goals, and I will move toward them.  If I find myself getting ‘stuck in a rut’ (been there already many times in my life), I will pick something, anything new to begin to move towards.