5 TIPS FOR WOULD-BE SENIORS
Hello,
We have blogged about Who an older person is, 5 tips for relatives of older adults, 5 Tips for Caregivers, we will now write 5 Tips for about to be seniors.
We use “would-be seniors” to refer to those who are still vibrant, would not be classified as aged but are not many years away from being seniors. In age terms, they would be around 45years to 59 years old.
- Make Financial Plans
As the saying goes, make hay when the sun shines. It is best to prepare ahead by ensuring that we make savings for our upkeep. As we grow older, we will require money to be able to meet our needs at a time we may already be retired.
Read: Who is an Older Person?
If we save ahead, we don’t feel the financial burden when an eventual need arises.
- Take Care of your Health
We may think it is still possible to eat as we like without restriction and our body may still be a little forgiving for how we treat it but it is not wise to keep mistreating it.
It is important to form habits that will be sustainable health wise.
We should also undergo periodic medical tests to be certain of our health status.
- Build a Habit of Regular Exercise.
As our muscles and joints begin to get weak, there is a need to engage them in exercises that would keep them fit even in our old age. The same thing with our minds, we need to continue to engage ourselves and others with a view to keep fit mentally.
Be disciplined enough to develop a plan and stick to it.
- Make your house a safe space.
As we get older and more prone to falls and accidents, we should make our house a space that remains safe well into old age.
It is better to redesign to our taste and safety needs than have someone else redesign the house compulsorily after we have suffered a few adverse effects of not ensuring our space is safe.
- Never Stop Learning.
I have observed in a lot of older adults in developing countries that there is usually a time in later years when they have reserved for rest and rest alone.
They spend their youth trying to be comfortable at old age OR maybe even trying to survive the competitive youthful period and when they feel they have gotten to the age of retirement, they let go and just rest.
Sleeping throughout the day, just staying indoors for weeks, not reading a book in months etc.
For every one of these cases, I observed a rapid onset of aging and a sharp decline in mental prowess. I have not made any scientific studies so I would not be sure if the early onset of aging necessitated the period of “rest”, or the period of “rest” triggered the early onset of aging.
Regardless, my advice will be that even though it is okay to “rest”, but it is not okay to do nothing especially if you have led a busy life earlier. Build in activities, talk to people frequently and never stop learning.
These tips are not exhaustive, you are welcome to add more tips in the comments section.
P.S: We use the word older adult is used interchangeably with seniors, Elders, Elderly.
Love,
AZELDERS.