Category: Aging

Promoting Quality of Life

Quality of life is a concept that has many definitions, to date, there is no consensus regarding the meaning of the term. Given the concept’s multidisciplinary nature, it has been defined as a degree of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with life, and as dimensions such as health function, emotional response, economics, spirituality, and social support. Older people talk about the quality of life in terms of family relationships, social contacts and activities, general health, and functional status. Quality of life is “an individual’s perception of his or her position in life in the context of the culture and value system where they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards, and concerns. It is a broad-ranging concept, that incorporates a person’s physical health. Psychological state, level of independence, social relationships, personal beliefs and relationship to salient features in the environment (WHO)”

The quality life model includes:

1. Physical well-being and symptoms
(it includes functional ability, strength/fatigue, sleep/rest, nausea, appetite, and constipation)
2. Psychological Wellbeing
(it includes anxiety and depression. enjoyment/leisure, pain. distress. happiness. fear. cognition/attention)
3. Social Well-being
(it includes caregiver burden, roles, and relationships. affection/sexual function. appearance)
4. Spiritual Well-being
The WHO has integrated health and quality of life into a program called Active Aging. The program was designed to help people remain
independent and active as they age.

( to be continued—)

POSITIVE AGEING: FIND MEANING IN OLD AGE… CONTD

An affirmative mindset is essential for positive agers. Elderly who mature as they age develop qualities like insight, astuteness, common sense, shrewdness, wisdom and sagacity. Ageing does not necessarily ensure maturity. People who made the most contributions in their development and the development of others have acquired capacities through maturation. Maturation in old age involves applying existing qualities and skills to address challenges or age-related declines. Such elderly persons become better over time at addressing the issues of life. By way of learning new things or adapting to functional losses, they refine themselves.

 

To meet the age-related declines it is suggested that the elderly should develop the following characteristics :

 

1. Mobilize all possible resources

2. Make affirmative life choices

3. Cultivate flexibility

4. Focus on positives

 

Choose a strategy for managing your changing capacities as you age so that you can contribute to finding well-being and satisfaction in your later years. To improve yourself worth change your lifestyle and old habits.

 

· Do physical exercise regularly

· Eat nutritious and right food

· Try to be free from stresses

· Try new things

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CONTROL THE ENEMIES OF POSITIVE AGEING

Positive psychologist Seligman has discussed many features of positive psychology. Positive aging should be understood in the light of the important premise of positive psychology, the premise is – human beings possess strengths and resources that can be used as buffers against challenges or realities of life. The specific strengths according to Seligman are: “courage, future mindedness, optimism, interpersonal skill, faith, work ethic, hope, honesty, perseverance and capacity for flow and insight—“.

These individual traits of personality, values, attitudes and beliefs are the sources of coping with the aging process. The resources are psychological or intrinsic and external resources are medical care, housing, occupation, social security, etc. With a positive attitude, the elderly can modify their own aging experience. To cultivate a positive attitude aged person should first control over the enemies. The enemies are Rigidity, negativity, worry, self-absorption, regret.

SELF-CENTEREDNESS: BARRIER TO POSITIVE AGEING

Self-centeredness or self-absorption in old age is a complex phenomenon. It is a maladaptive quality related to coping and subjective well-being in the last phase of life. The person having a self-absorption style of life fails to develop other focused qualities, (which are the signs of wisdom) in old age. Such persons have a difficult time experiencing positive ageing.

Self-centeredness has many forms. A self-absorbed person focuses on him or herself and gives priority to the meeting of personal needs, desires, appetites and preferences. They do not give importance to the needs of others (even to their family members or caregivers). Self-focus may be of two forms-(a) I am special and (b) something is wrong with me. These two forms interact with the ageing process. The elderly thinks-“I am special because I am old” and should be cared for first. When he says that “something is wrong with me”, he is of the view that due to my vulnerability to disease and disability I should be given priority.
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POSITIVE AGEING: FIND MEANING IN OLD AGE

Generally, elderly people raise a question-“how long will I live”?. 

The right question which one should raise is – “ if I am going to live such a long time, how can I be happy in the process “?

 

The common worries of the elderly are- “I am losing my health”, “ I am losing the ability to take care of myself”. In late life person’s health declines, he loses youthful looks, feels functional loss and becomes physically vulnerable. There arises a gap between what he aspires to do and what he can do.

 

There are specific consequences of age-related declines, such as memory impairment (it can create a fear of loss of meaning as you get older), physical disability, etc. The age-related decline is different from decline due to disease. An age-related decline occurs gradually in stages such as by-function, disability, dependency and death. The pathway through these four stages of ageing is unavoidable. The decline will  affect you and influence your life satisfaction and well-being.


This process of decline is termed frailty which is not connected to illness and disease. Being frail means you are declining, it does not mean that you are weak or unhealthy.  Continue reading “POSITIVE AGEING: FIND MEANING IN OLD AGE”