Are you worried about aging? Maybe you are witnessing the deteriorating health of your parents and are concerned about you being tied to the same fate. Maybe you are worried about what aging looks like for you. Wrinkles, age spots, graying hair, sagging breasts, dry skin…
Our goal should be to live a long life without deteriorating bodies, to enjoy every one of our last years. There is a lot we are in control of, like how we nourish our body with healing foods and how we soothe our mind through self-care. In this, and the coming blog, I’ll share how you can keep your mind and body young using proven habits and techniques.
Keep in mind that in order for you to have a young mind you need a young body and in order for you to have a young body you need a young mind. With that said, please read both blogs and start with a few habits that resonate with you and then expand. We are here to help.
4 Ways to keep your mind healthy:
There are a number of habits you can practice to reduce stress, worry and anxiety. All of these directly impact your body’s aging process. I’ve picked four that I believe are critical for your mental wellbeing. I encourage you to start these today as every step towards them will already extend the number of JOYful years in your life.
1. Change your beliefs:
What beliefs do you have about aging? We have certain images of what ‘young’ and what ‘old’ looks like. Where were these images created? Who told you that wrinkles are ugly?
In Okinawa, Japan, an area in the world where most centenarians live, people who are well over 100 years old, they see wrinkles as beautiful and gray hair as a sign of wisdom and experience.
Our surroundings shape us. They create a staggering number of beliefs that in turn create emotions of anxiety, fear and frustration. These emotions negatively impact every cell in our body and accelerate their age, leading to chronic disease like diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular disease and even cancer.
You want to become aware of those beliefs by starting to listen to your thoughts. Ask yourself if you truly want to believe them. If the answer is no, there is a process where you can remove those beliefs and with it the negative feeling. Learn more about the voices in your head in this blog.
2. Find good friends:
If you want to age well, having a circle of close friends is as important today as it will be in the future. Research shows that loneliness is a strong predictor of premature death. It also causes a strain on mental health, lower quality of life, and is a much stronger predictor than merely living alone, in both men and women.
There are even studies that show that taking care of a goldfish increases your sense of responsibility for someone else which in turn adds years to your life. In addition, there are studies showing that your life is greatly influenced by your 5 closest friends. Start building a small but meaningful group of friends today. Caring about them and they about you, will start adding years to your life today and down the road.
3. Change your perspective:
I love how one of our health coaches talks to her clients about the seasons of life. There is a season where we may party and stay up late. Another where the kids are so young you can’t do anything but change diapers. And, then another where the kids move out of the house and you have more time again.
Can you be okay with the fact that life has different seasons and that there is beauty to be found in every one of them? It’s okay to not go bungee jumping today. Can you get excited about traveling more or spending more time on a hobby or with your grandkids? There is JOY to be found in that.
Learn more about how to change your perspective in this blog.
Whenever you try to change your perspective but the little voice in your head is telling you that it’s just not possible, please go back to the first point above. Learn more how to manage the voice so you can effectively look at life as a glass half full.
4. Cast a vision:
Have you ever thought about what you want your retirement to look like? If you haven’t, do it now! Most of us just see what we fear about getting older, but I encourage you to spend the time to think about what will be great about that season. Ask yourself:
- What do I want to learn?
- Do I want to move? Somewhere else or downsize.
- With whom do I want to hang out with?
- What do I want to see and do?
- …
Make yourself a cup of tea, sit down on the couch and start writing down your vision of those later years. Learn more about how to get an inspiring vision in this blog. Who knows, maybe you’ll find a whole new perspective on how great aging can be.
Make sure to read the coming blog where we talk about what steps you can take to prepare your body to stay young and vibrant until old age.
Do you want to keep your mind and body young? Then click the 'Contact' button in the top right corner or simply send us an email to info@joyvial.com to schedule your free discovery session.