Pleasure – The Upside of Not Becoming Invisible



life returned

Vitamin D -Does It Live Up To It’s Hype?

A recent Finland research study among white women,aged 70 -80 living at home to determine whether taking D supplements, exercise or both could reduce their risk of falling. There were 409 women in the study.

According to JAMA Internal Medicine the study found that taking Vitamin D did not help woman from falling! Additionally, they discovered that doing exercise cut the incidence of serious falls, but not the overall risk of falling.  The research was divided into three groups; those who got a placebo without exercise, placebo and exercise, or Vitamin D and exercise.  Those who exercised did strength training, balance, weight training and improvement for agility.

The results showed that Vitamin D did help maintain bone density in the femoral neck ones and shinbones. Also, the group that worked out had improved physical fitness.

Some some physicans feel that due to the many factors that play into an injurious fall in this age group, exercise may be the most effective way of prevention

What Is The Third Phase Of Life?

The aging summit brought up the subject of consciousness. I was wondering what was this third phase of life they mention? It’s anybody who is over the age of 60! My next question is how is this phase different from other phases of life?

The speaker gave several ways people are different in this third phase of life:

1. People become less self occupied.

2. People have an increased curiosity about past generations.

3. People have an increased need for meditation.

4. People’s fear of dying leaves them.

How do people navigate differently once they reach 60?

Those who age successfully have been found to be more conscious of not mechanical things that happen, but are more tuned into their interior lives. Apparently, gut feelings and intuition feed into our unique filters and impacts how we see the world.

The art of being fully aware – emotionally, physically and psychologically, gives people the freedom to look for and at the “opportunities and challenges of aging- no matter what happens to them”.

Some of the pointers we were given to travel through this third phase of life with gusto, include staying in love as long as possible with someone or something and trying to overcome our fears about aging. He advises to take a look at the things that scare us and detach from them. How do we detach? We look back and see how we have used our strengths to get us through life so far, what qualities are important to us and applying them to ourselves.

Poet, David White summarizes this lecture by saying,

“Learn to place our identity at the edge of discovery – we can have a vital life.”

The Wisdom From Those In The Know

Do you ever wonder if there is a secret to growing older in a way that is positive, enriching and enviable?  The lessons from Centenanarians were the topic of a lecture at the recent Aging Summit I attended.

Epigenetics which basically  is the study of what turns gene expressions off and on can be influenced by ones beliefs!  We were told that if one has “meaningful joy” in their lives then the gene expression which is anti-inflammatory will occur!

The interviewer posed the question of why is it so difficult to change our beliefs and how can we create more meaningful beliefs?  The answer stems from what they have learned from those successfully traversing the landscape of being a centenarian.   These people tend to break away and create new neuro maps in their brains.   Another important finding is how they view their role in society   They are always living in the present and looking to the future.  An example was given of a man aged 102 who proudly showed off his flower garden and commented, ” Wait until you see it in five years”   My father was another person who never dwelled on his passing and enjoyed every day “he could open his eyes”.

These people are reported as having peaceful ending because they lead peaceful lives.


thI have to talk about another lecture I heard last week at The Aging Summit. We were asked to think about our reason for getting up in the morning. This will help us structure a personal conversation with ourselves on what is called our purpose or our intention in life. What do we want our life to really mean?

Richard Leider talks about how we should be ,ore reflective as we age and be certain to be true to who we are and what we want to leave behind. Purpose, he explains does not become about by some mystic revelation, but through our actions.

He offers up what he calls ” The Napkin Trick”. He has us take out a napkin and write down: G+P=C. What our are gifts? What are our passions? What are your values? Put these answers all together and you come up with your purpose.

The “happiest man in the world”, Matthew Picard, is a Buddhist Monk. He claims the purpose of life is compassion and claims the two most important days of your life is birth and the day you determine why you were born! He claims the value in the formula should fit the culture in which you are living.

So, go do the napkin test, determine your purpose and grow older with gusto!

Consciousness and Why It Matters As We Grow Older

Today is the second day of the Aging Summit and I first learned about how to position oneself after the age of 60! Our speaker points out that during what she refers to as the 3rd phase of life people become lead self occupied, have more of a curiosity about past generations and show an increased desire for meditation coupled with a lessening of the fear surrounding our demise.

First let me explain what is meant by consciousness as we grow older. This state of being refers to more than what automatically occurs in our brain. It revolves around but feelings, intuition and our personal filters on now we view the world. Our speaker defines it as, “Anything that happens in our interior world. What happens on our bodies and having a full awareness by having an observant mind.”

The emphasis is on having a “Open Heart.” Our heart can become more open by looking at things emotionally, physically and psychologically and finding both the challenges and opportunities for growth.

The lecture in a nutshell is summarized by the following quote by the poet David White: “Learn to place our identity at the edge of discovery – we can have a vital life”