Aging is both a blessing and a curse. While getting older should certainly be celebrated, it is hard to ignore some of the changes that sadly come with it. Instead, many people turn a blind eye to these things as they age, with the following 18 things being famous examples.
Grey hairs
Although some embrace their grey hairs and choose to age gracefully, many of us ignore them for as long as we can. We pull the greys from our heads and dye our hair in an attempt to maintain our vibrant locks, but they’re only delaying the inevitable–everyone goes grey.
Reading glasses
As we age, our eye muscles weaken, and from age 40, it becomes increasingly more difficult to focus close up. This is a completely normal part of life, but many people won’t accept that they need reading glasses. Rather than get corrective lenses, too many people board the struggle bus instead.
Wrinkles
Fine lines and wrinkles are part of aging, yet we simply don’t accept the face staring back at us in the mirror. Botox is now one of the most common non-surgical procedures for reducing wrinkles, with Spa Medica finding that over 9 million Botox treatments were administered globally in 2022 alone.
Decreased mobility
The older we get, the more our mobility decreases, and we can’t be quite as active as we once were. Not only does this mean that the sport and exercise we once participated in is long forgotten, but simple things like walking and climbing the stairs also become a little difficult.
New technology
In the 21st century, new technology is constantly being released, and it is hard for anyone to keep up. As we age, it becomes harder to adapt to newer technology, and we are less inclined to try out the latest advancements. The older we get, the harder it is to accept rapidly changing technology.
Loss of independence
Although it does not apply to everyone, many people lose aspects of their independence as they get older. Whether they need help with daily tasks or fully assisted living, losing independence can be extremely heartbreaking, so we tend to resist this for as long as possible.
Retirement
We wait all our working lives for the day we can escape the rat race, but the closer we get to retirement, the harder it is to accept. Whether due to financial concerns or feeling a loss of identity, AARP discovered that more people these days postpone their retirement rather than striving to take it early.
Our mortality
Only one thing is certain in life, and that is that one day, it’s all going to come to an end. It can be extremely difficult to accept the fact that this date is slowly creeping up on us, so most people are happy to put it in the back of their minds.
Hearing aids
Hearing aids are typically associated with getting older, yet we just don’t accept that we need them. Age-related hearing loss is part and parcel of aging, yet so many people ignore and choose to pretend their deafness doesn’t exist. Everyone knows a grandfather just like this!
Societal constructs
Society has always dictated what is socially acceptable, yet the older we get, the more defiant we become, choosing to question these societal constructs. We start realizing that age is just a number and no one has the right to tell us how to act, so we just turn the other cheek.
Memory decline
It doesn’t affect everyone, but the CDC states that 1 in 10 people over the age of 40 experience some level of memory loss. This can be quite scary, so we generally ignore it for as long as possible, playing it off as tiredness rather than accepting it.
Our children are no longer children
Seeing our children flying the nest and knowing we had a helping hand with that is a beautiful experience, but there is also a touch of sorrow in realizing our children are no longer kids. They now have a life of their own, and it’s difficult to accept that they no longer need us.
Disappointment
When we’re young, wild, and free, disappointment is common, but the older we get, the less we accept it. Older and wiser, we have a greater perspective on life and a more positive outlook, knowing that time is precious, so we don’t accept disappointment in our lives easily.
Rudeness
With all those years under our belts, we’ve developed a backbone and will no longer tolerate rudeness. We no longer accept people being impolite and will speak up about it. Bad-mannered people will simply not be indulged and will, instead, be put in their place.
New music
As we get older, it can be difficult to let new music into our lives, finding ourselves describing new music as ‘just noise.’ Interestingly, BigThink found this has a neurological explanation, with the brain struggling to identify different rhythms as it gets older.
Insecurities
We reach a certain age when, suddenly, our insecurities fade into the background. They are no longer important, and we want to enjoy the remainder of our life without these insignificant hang-ups. Flaws we have focused on all our lives abruptly disappear, and our quality of life soars.
Loneliness
Many people refuse to accept that loneliness increases as we age, which occurs as we disconnect from old friends and create our own families. It’s pretty clear that this is, unfortunately, how things are, but we refuse to accept this and prefer diving headfirst into social plans.
Declining health
Finally, most health conditions are undeniably age-related, but many of us don’t want to accept that our health will decline as we age. It’s best to be honest with yourself because, while there’s no going back to our youthful energy, we can still lead incredibly healthy lifestyles in old age!
More From Planning To Organize
18 Common Behaviors That Will Make People Lose Respect for You