Successful aging is a subjective experience that each of us decides individually.  What does it mean to you to age successfully? You may want to take some time to think about that for yourself.  You can even write some things down and talk about them with your peers. It may prove to be insightful! For some people, successful aging means:

  • Feeling satisfied with the choices they made in life
  • Accepting their limitations as they age
  • Feeling financially secure
  • Seeing the success in how they raised their child(ren)
  • Avoiding disease and disability
  • Waking up with a smile on their faces everyday

While there has yet to be a magic potion to guarantee that older adults will live optimally (at least none that I’ve heard of and please fill me in if I’m out of the loop), there are some things that you can do to help boost your chances of aging successfully.  Here are a few tips to help you use preventative measures to maximize successful aging:

  • Everyone seems to have a “senior moment”.  It is good to stay actively cognitive and keep an optimistic outlook!  What ways do you do to maintain intellectual engagement? What are a few ways you can start to develop more interest in things if you’re not intellectually engaged?
  • Maintain a social network!  It is so important for us to engage with others.  It seems that we are meant to be social beings. Having just one person to talk to helps promote social health.  This is particularly important for men as maintaining social relationships comes more naturally for women and this may need to be more of a conscious effort for men.
  • Adopt a healthy lifestyle!  On a daily basis, you can take steps to make healthy habits a part of your life.  It may include drinking more water, eating more fruits and vegetables, taking time to de-stress, or something else that helps you to feel better.  It can feel good to take the initiative in living a healthier lifestyle.
  • Maintain good economic habits to avoid financial dependency.  That may mean spending less money, keeping to a budget, or even going back to work part-time after retirement.  Having good financial health is imperative as we age.

So, do you already work to maintain a healthy lifestyle as you age?  If not, it will benefit you to take some time to think about different ways you can help yourself to age most successfully … whatever that means to you!

* This was written with a bit of help from a book titled, “Adult Development and Aging” by Cavanaugh and Blanchard-Fields, and a text titled, “Aging and the Life Course” by Quadagno.