Shocked by aging process

Oh, I hear ya! I am not accepting my aging well. It feels like it happened overnight. I was feeling great and loving my age and then all of a sudden I'm having all sorts of different medical situations. I am also overwhelmed with the thought of how many years I have left, which leaves me with many regrets and personal disappointments. I will be 61 in March.

Aging can indeed be difficult. But I suggest you get a full check up with your PCP. This might have co-factors along with aging that could be treated. Have you spoken to your doctor? If there is no additional cause, just on a personal note I've found that exercise (for me it needs to be easy going!) does help with mood and focus. I'm sure you'll get some helpful answers here, too. Thanks for checking in with us.

How about sharing a bit more about yourself.

There are two ways of dealing with this. One is, since it's inevitable, accept it, be grateful for all of it, figure out if it's absurd or not, lift other people's spirits instead of weighing everyone down with prophet of doom. It's gonna happen and you have the choice as to how you want to deal with it. OR
Cling, rant, feel cheated, be angry, sad, morose all of which will make it harder on yourself and everyone around you.
Does anyone really want to live forever? The best you can hope for is to die in your sleep.

It is the most common lament! This - my 70th year - was so much fun. 2025 saw me having a pacemaker implanted and a left total hip replacement. Was supposed to have vascular surgery to my left leg, but the cardiac issues made that be postponed until 2026. Yes getting older is so much fun!

My mom was a very wise woman and also a holocaust survivor, she was a POW for five years and lost her family including young ones. She always told me to keep my sense of humour and not to take myself too seriously, if I ever bemoaned myself about getting older she would say, then die young, I know it sounds harsh but there’s a point in there. I lost her a while ago and now I’m almost 75 years old and in my sixth year lung cancer survivor, believe me when I say that you’re privileged to get older because so many people don’t get to experience it including children, God bless you.

Thank you. I am taking your comment very seriously. I will probably revert back, because right now that's who I am, but what you told me is obviously truth.

Have you had your thyroid checked?

@dmbwa99362

Well I am 79 in February. Don't worry! There are many ways to live a long life.
You are just having a panic attack. Check with your doc. about this. Worrying can also take years off your life...so don't.

@shmerdloff This is great!
As an aside, a friend told me her story, the best I ever heard about a beloved parent’s passing: the whole family had gathered at Grandma’s house for a holiday meal- aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, brothers, sisters, grandkids. The meal was enjoyed by all, they shooed Grandma to her favorite chair in the LR, while they cleaned up, loaded the dishwasher, laughed and teased each other, chased the kids, fed the babies. When people made it back to the LR, they discovered GM had passed in her sleep. What a wonderful way to leave this world. I get teary-eyed whenever I think about it.