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My next few blogs are going to focus on aging - how we react to it, how our bodies react to it, and how we can find ways to be joyful and healthy as we age. My dear friend and confidante, Cendrine Hosoda, is a life consultant who specializes in spiritual, emotional and physical wholeness; she will be helping me with this series. I pray you will find this information helpful, insightful and uplifting!
I find the different stages of life fascinating!
When you're a child, you decide what you like to eat and that's what you eat - all the time. You don't think about food as a source of sustenance or energy. You eat because you're supposed to eat. You have no fear about much of anything - what you put in your body, how you treat your body, how you feel about your body.
Then there's adulthood. You now are thinking about food as a source of energy and growth. You think about what you eat. You watch labels, you try to eat healthier. Your body has changed and now there are fears - am I too big? Am I too small? Should I eat this particular food, knowing I may pay for it tomorrow? This is when the "if only" and the "I wish I had" thoughts are prevalent. You may exercise excessively - or wish you would. You begin to realize that what you could do at a younger age, you can no longer do - not without hurting! You still feel young, but you put your body into situations that it just doesn't like any longer.
Then there's the seasoned stage of life. Your body has changed again. What used to be easy may now be difficult - or impossible. Food becomes something that has to be done to sustain you. Foods you loved at earlier ages may now become your enemy. Activities you loved doing become a distant memory. Bones break easily, body parts creak and snap, your stomach makes noises that scare the grandchildren, and your energy seems always to be playing catch-up! Then, to add insult to injury, for women there's the post-menopause and the peri-menopause symptoms! You wake up moody, you are hot all the time, you are cold all the time. It seems that more meds are being added by your doctors to combat a myriad of symptoms and conditions - poor eyesight, poor hearing, brittle bones, unsteadiness, or maybe you now have diabetes, high blood pressure or heart issues. You never again say, "That won't happen to me!" And you complain and moan and groan (okay, that's me - I complain and moan and groan).
It can be disheartening. Our bodies are only made to last for a certain amount of time. So it's natural to slow down, to start feeling pains and aches you didn't have before, to have mood swings, to be on medications. But don't despair - there are options to help combat some of these symptoms and I want to mention three today:
Get into a daily, close relationship with God. When we are focused on our Creator, we spend less time worrying about our aches and pains. Psalm 92:14 says: "They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green," No matter our age or the condition of our bodies, we can still bear fruit. We can spend our days as disciples of God. We can do work that brings glory to Him. If we spend our time being His light and living out His will for us, He will give us what we need, physically and mentally, to complete our task.
Spend time with others. When we are giving to those around us, the blessings we receive can help to fill our buckets, which lightens our moods and creates more energy. 2 Corinthians 1:4 says, "He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God."
The more time we spend trying to lighten others' loads, the more God comforts and lightens our loads.
Take some time to rest and restore yourself. Ps. 62:5 says, "Rest in God alone, my soul, for my hope comes from him." Ps 116:7 says, "Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you." As humans, we can find ways to rest and restore our souls. We are all unique, so these ways are varied, but it is imperative that each of this take time to find out what refills us. Maybe it's reading. Maybe it's a walk in nature. Maybe it's a nap. Find what works for you and commit to doing that when needed.
Today, instead of complaining, moaning and groaning, which of these tips will you use to begin creating a better health journey?
Until next time,
Vickie
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