Chapter 12

Final Thoughts on Ageing

Growing older – we are all in the middle of doing this right now. Even as you read this book you are ageing. Do you feel any different now than you did 1 hour ago? What about 1 week ago? Last year, or the year before?

Ageing is always with us and we may not give it much thought from one moment to the next. At some point or another we may say ‘I’m not as young as I used to be!’ Perhaps, climbing the stairs leaves us a little out of breath. Or maybe we notice more aches and pains after a day on the allotment than we used to.

It is important to remember that growing older is happening to everyone all of the time. Growing older is not a disease! Yes, growing older may be associated with a range of disorders but and this is an important ‘but’, most of us can expect to have a good quality of life as we age. Disease and infirmity is not asine qua non of ageing. It is not inevitable.

Yes, there may be some activities that you can no longer undertake with advancing years, but not many. It may be that they take you longer, or that recovery needs more time. But remember, older people generally have more time. There are fewer deadlines, less pressure, life is usually more relaxed. Whilst some older people continue to work, most are retired or semi-retired. This allows for the pursuit of hobbies and interests that may only have been enjoyed fleetingly, if at all, when you were younger.

Yes, growing older may have its limitations and constraints, but it also has its freedoms and benefits. Look at how much more relaxed and less stressed grandparents often are with their grandchildren than they might have been with their own children. Old age is a time when many people give something back to their local community. Volunteering is very popular amongst older adults, such as visiting the housebound; helping at local schools, sharing history and traditions from days gone by; helping to care for a part of their local environment; being more involved in their faith community and so on. Many older adults take up or return to study, perhaps gaining qualifications that they did not have the opportunity to gain when younger.

Our older people are a rich resource for our communities, local and national. Many employers now look for ways to retain the experience and wisdom that their older employees possess.

It is true that for some, growing older may bring frailty and poor health. In this text we have provided, in detail, an insight into the physiological changes that ageing brings. We have presented a number of common health problems that are particular to older adults. We have done this so that the reader may make links between the physiology of normal ageing and ill health. We have endeavoured to include a wide range of age-appropriate health assessment tools in order that health-care professionals can make sound assessments of their older clients/patients. We have presented a number of strategies that should help to restore the individual to health, or at least, minimise the disruption that ill health may bring to an older person’s activities of living.

Growing older may have its own unique challenges, but it is also a time of new opportunities. As health-care professionals, we have a duty to help our older clients face up to the challenges and maximise the opportunities.

As one now quite elderly and iconic gentleman was fond of saying – ‘Live long and prosper!’