Whenever I heard the phrase, “growing old gracefully” I always thought of this as a positive thing, a compliment. But is it just that we don’t have any other choice but to accept the fact that we are getting older, and we need to get over it? I don’t think so, I heard a phrase recently and I liked it so much more then aging gracefully. It was aging GRATEFULLY. This absolutely describes my view of aging since the time I lost both my mom and sister. Every birthday should be looked at as a blessing not a curse or something to dread. My mom passed away at 49 and wanted so much to celebrate her 50th birthday and did not get the opportunity. My sister passed away at the age of 50. This year was extremely difficult for me because I turned 50 in November. Bittersweet you could say! Aloha 50!
Back in the day there used to be “rules” that you were expected to follow once you hit a certain age which used to be around 40. You weren’t supposed to wear your hair long or wear a bikini or short skirt. That was for young people! Boy, have we come a long way! I am growing my hair longer right now! Lol!
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So, are you aging gracefully? What makes a person appear older than they really are? I investigated it and found a couple of things that might surprise you!
Wrinkles/Age spots
Not only on your face but we get them on our hands and body. Our hands can really age us sometimes! Have you ever looked at someone’s hands and thought, “hey, they look like an old person’s hands?” I have! Ladies we also need to take care of our necks, this can also age us prematurely! Have you heard of a creepy neck? It’s a wrinkly, saggy neck, this can be prevented or at least pushed off for a bit. It is never too early or too late to start a skincare routine. If you need help with that click here.
Gray Hair
I know several people that have stopped coloring their hair and have let their hair go completely gray. It looks great on them, and I give them great props for having the confidence to be able to do this. Unfortunately, this can give us the appearance of looking older than we are. I have white hair growing in around my front hairline. I like to call it, “free highlights!” It blends in well with my highlights that I pay for!
Lip Height
I honestly never thought about this one! Did you know that our lips tend to get thinner the older that we get? But why? Our lips start to lose collagen and they begin to “deflate and thin”. Just like how men’s ears continue to grow as they get older! Did you ever notice how older men have larger ears? More and more women are getting lip injections every year to help with this problem.
Female Hair Thinning/Receding
I personally know several women that suffer from hair thinning but it is very common for women to get a receding hair line. (Frontal fibrosing alopecia) Have you noticed your forehead seems to be getting bigger and bigger… There are options out there that might help you. Always start with talking to your doctor first to rule out any medical issues. I have seen great results from Monat’s Intense Repair Line. If you want more information about it, please click here.
50 is the new 40
Have you heard the term; 50 is the new 40 before? What exactly do you think that means? In general people are living longer then in the past. People are in better physical shape and living healthier lifestyles. So, it would only make sense age we perceive as “old” is not the same as it used to be!
How to make peace with getting older
We have spoken a lot about our physical appearance while aging but there is a lot that happens to us emotionally as well as we age. As women our hormones go crazy because we go through menopause so, please don’t forget that is a huge factor to consider. I would suggest going to see your doctor to have your levels checked. All of this can be hard to deal with emotionally. What can we do to help make peace with getting older?
- Focus on what you are grateful for. Remember my whole “Aging GRATEFULLY” thing!
- Talk to someone that is going through a similar situation or time in their life. It always makes you feel better to know that you are not alone.
- Take care of YOU! Self-care is important!
- Encourage other women, you will be surprised how much that will also help you. We are all in this together!
- Don’t accept the philosophy of “you’re too old to”. If you want to wear it or try it and it makes your feel good about yourself… Do it!
Are you aging gracefully or are you getting a little help along the way?
I mean surgically! If you are you are not alone! I dug into some statistics from 2020 because 2021 statistics are not available yet. I was not surprised by the fact that more women than men are having plastic surgery procedures performed. Women account for 92% and men 8% of all plastic surgery procedures.
Top 5 procedures of 2020! (Can you guess?!)
- Botulinum Toxin Type A (Botox, etc.)
4.1 million
2. Soft Tissue Fillers (Juvéderm, etc.)
1.9 million
3. Chemical Peels
889,742
4. Laser Skin Resurfacing
871,674
5. Laser Hair Removal
635,618
Check out all of 2020 plastic surgery statics here: https://www.plasticsurgery.org/documents/News/Statistics/2020/cosmetic-procedures-women-2020.pdf
I am curious… I shared my age with you, I recently turned the big 50! Are you willing to share how old you are and how it’s going? Does it stress you out each year or are you Aging GRATEFULLY?
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