Does growing older scare you?

musicismylife78

I can think of few things that scare me more. In fact it scares the hell out of me. My mom and I were looking at pictures of her, from her wedding day. She mentioned her and my dad were my age, 25 when they got married. When she said that, it made my heart drop. The thing that scared me, was it just showed how much time flew. 25 years ago they were my age, and right now I consider them so old.

I think growing older for me, scares the hell out of me, because of how I am running out of time to do the things I want to do in life, and every birthday is in essence a marker that says "you are running out of time".

At a certain point, I dont know when, but at a certain time, a certain birthday, your birthday, my birthday stopped being happy and joyous and became a marker of you and me getting older.

I love my grandfather, he is 83, but, all he really does these days, is lay on his couch and watch tv. He doesnt have the energy or passion to go outside and do much of everything.

Growing older reminds me that this could be me. I could be like him.

libragirl

Yeah, I used to worry about it. Just the fact that I'm getting older and running out of time and I used to get mad about certain people holding me back but I realize Im in control of my own future and I learned to move on and leave certain stuff in the past. It's just not worth my time worrying about stuff I have no control over.

Claireack

I probably seem ancient to you at 42, but honestly I don't feel any older than I did at 25. Yep my body isn't quite the young slender thing that it once was, and I've had a few health problems over the years. But, to be honest I'm probably happier with myself at this age than I have ever been before, I'm more likely to do things now that I wouldn't have considered when I was younger. I'm not so bothered what people think, in fact things are just pretty damn good.

Yes I know that I've got a lot more years ahead of me (hopefully) and things will crumble and become a bit more decrepid but I'm just going make the most of every year and every opportunity that comes.

Don't be frightened you really are quite early on in this big adventure and so far things have got a hell of a lot better for me with age.

comebackgirl

No it doesn't scare me. It used to when I was younger, but as I've gotten older I've gotten happier...more at peace with myself and realized I have a lot of choice in how I live my life and making it what I want it to be. When I was younger it seemed like a lot of things just "happened" to me and I didn't really understand the choice and control I had to make things different. Now I do. My grandfather was miserable when he died at 86...but he was also miserable most of his life. I worked with a woman who was filled with joy and was the life of the party at 88. So I don't really think it's "aging" that takes you to a place of misery. A lot of it is your outlook. I know people in their 20's who don't do much more than lie on the couch and watch tv either. The biggest lesson for me has been to really try and enjoy the present, rather than always looking at the future and what might happen, could happen etc. Too much of that and you really will miss your whole life.

"I wanted to grow old. Just want to grow old." As long as someone keeps me well groomed and dressing cute when I'm too old to do it for myself

Music For Rhinos

Birthdays are good.

The more you have, the longer you live.

FinsburyParkCarrots

No. I would love to grow old.

youngster

George Carlin's Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives
when we like to
Get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years
old, you're so
Excited about aging that you think in fractions.
"How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never
thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on
five! That's
the key.
You get into your teens, now they can't hold you
back. You jump
To the next number, or even a few ahead.
"How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could
be 13, but
hey,you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your
life . . you
Become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . . YOU BECOME 21.
YESSSS!!!
But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened
there? Makes you
Sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out.
There's no fun
now,
you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?
You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING
40. Whoa! Put
on
the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it,
you REACH 50 and
your dreams are gone.
But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think
you would!
So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and
MAKE it to 60.
You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70!
After that it's a
day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!
You get into your 80s and every day is a complete
cycle; you HIT
lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't
end there.
Into the 90s, you start going backwards; "I Was JUST 92."
Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you
become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!"
May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes
age, weight and
height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why
you pay "them "
2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts,
gardening,whatever. Never let the brain idle. "An idle
mind is the
devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you
gasp for breath.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on.
The only
person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be
ALIVE while
you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether
it's family,
pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies,
whatever. Your
home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve
it. If it is
unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can
improve, get help.
9 Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the
mall, even to the
Next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.
10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every
opportunity.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we
take, but by
The moments that take our breath away.

dave grolsch

Growing older kinda excites me in some ways
I never got to travel like i would of liked to,so in years to come certainly before i am fifty the mortgage will be gone,kids should of flown the nest and yeah i should be able to do things i dreamed about.
I,m nearly forty and its kinda nice,i am comfortable in my own skin and i have so many adventures still to do-
so if any of you old fuckers want to get on a motorbike and tour around europe in the next few/five years hell even go and see dimitris in greece....i,m in

pearljgirl2010

comebackgirl wrote:

No it doesn't scare me. It used to when I was younger, but as I've gotten older I've gotten happier...more at peace with myself and realized I have a lot of choice in how I live my life and making it what I want it to be. When I was younger it seemed like a lot of things just "happened" to me and I didn't really understand the choice and control I had to make things different. Now I do. My grandfather was miserable when he died at 86...but he was also miserable most of his life. I worked with a woman who was filled with joy and was the life of the party at 88. So I don't really think it's "aging" that takes you to a place of misery. A lot of it is your outlook. I know people in their 20's who don't do much more than lie on the couch and watch tv either. The biggest lesson for me has been to really try and enjoy the present, rather than always looking at the future and what might happen, could happen etc. Too much of that and you really will miss your whole life.

"I wanted to grow old. Just want to grow old." As long as someone keeps me well groomed and dressing cute when I'm too old to do it for myself

Surprise---I agree with you :-)

I'm only 30 and when I think of getting older, I see good things...as long as I'm healthy and happy, I don't mind my age.

anotherclone

I'm 45. You'll hear it all the time, but I honestly do look and act like I'm 30-something. I was carded last weekend at a Greek festival and the lady said "wow, you look good". Anyway, my point...getting older. Think about all the stuff you know in your 20's, then double that. Getting older is fun and you don't have to give a rats ass about someone else thinking you're weird or something. You just are who you are. The older you get, the more comfortable you are in your own skin.

The way I look at it is that when the clock stops ticking, I'm dead. So you just gotta enjoy the ride.

musicismylife78

for me though, the birthdays and getting older indicate not the optimism and promise of the future. In fact, it feels to me like the complete opposite. its a sign and warning that time is running out. That hour glass is rapidly losing its sand.

I am 25, and I am sure that sounds young to some of you. But to me, I feel scared about getting older.

In addition, I think about how I dont feel I have done much with my life, how much life I have yet to lead. I think about how I really havent begun living life yet. And I get frantic, sad, and worried when I think about how I feel I have wasted 25 years.

eMMI

musicismylife78 wrote:

for me though, the birthdays and getting older indicate not the optimism and promise of the future. In fact, it feels to me like the complete opposite. its a sign and warning that time is running out. That hour glass is rapidly losing its sand.

I am 25, and I am sure that sounds young to some of you. But to me, I feel scared about getting older.

In addition, I think about how I dont feel I have done much with my life, how much life I have yet to lead. I think about how I really havent begun living life yet. And I get frantic, sad, and worried when I think about how I feel I have wasted 25 years.

you should try to get yourself out of that frame of mind.

why worry and fear getting older - it's gonna happen anyway. if you worry about it, it's gonna suck balls. if you let it come as it comes, hey you might have some fun!

I used to think about stuff like "how long will I still have to live". I too got upset and sad cause of those thoughts. but the thing is, none of us know how much life we still have ahead of us. 2 weeks, 3 years, 50 years?

I'm not very old myself (around the same age as you, 22), and I can relate to what you're saying. but I wisened up. like others have said, you're in charge of your life. if you sit around worrying about all the stuff you haven't done, you probably will never do those things. but if you go out and do it, do something, you're on your way to great things.

I've had a little wine so excuse any ramblings. but my point is, stop worrying about getting older! you can't stop it, use your time doing something more constructive.

stargirl69

comebackgirl wrote:

No it doesn't scare me. It used to when I was younger, but as I've gotten older I've gotten happier...more at peace with myself and realized I have a lot of choice in how I live my life and making it what I want it to be. When I was younger it seemed like a lot of things just "happened" to me and I didn't really understand the choice and control I had to make things different. Now I do. My grandfather was miserable when he died at 86...but he was also miserable most of his life. I worked with a woman who was filled with joy and was the life of the party at 88. So I don't really think it's "aging" that takes you to a place of misery. A lot of it is your outlook. I know people in their 20's who don't do much more than lie on the couch and watch tv either. The biggest lesson for me has been to really try and enjoy the present, rather than always looking at the future and what might happen, could happen etc. Too much of that and you really will miss your whole life.

"I wanted to grow old. Just want to grow old." As long as someone keeps me well groomed and dressing cute when I'm too old to do it for myself

What a wonderful post.I totally agree with you.At 18 I was very scared of growing old.Now at 40 I have had a wonderful life and it just keeps getting better.

I have met 20 year old who wear their dissapointment in their lives all over their faces and have met 80 year olds who have so much fun.Our chronological age really means nothing.What ages people is a negative state of mind.

Whizbang

I absolutely do not fear getting older. I'll be 40 in a few months and if it's anything like 30, it will be fantastic! I've jumped from airplanes, I competitively ride horses, go to concerts, time with family and friends. My dogs make me laugh every day. I have friends in Germany whom I will visit next year so I am going to take a couple refresher German courses (I used to live there and took a couple years in school....it will hopefully come back to me quick!). Aside from that, I keep learning for my job and want to take additional ASL courses.

My grandfather was 84 when he passed away. His wife of nearly 65 years had died 9 months before him and he was broken hearted. About 2 months before he passed away, he was on the phone with my mom (her dad). When she hung up, she said "well, your grandfather just bought a drum set and is taking drum lessons". He never stopped living, even at 84. He still took his boat out fishing off the Cape, visited his daughters, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He didn't drive as much so the family made a point of traveling to see him more often.

My point is that if, at 25, you're afraid of getting older/dying and just want to wallow in it, worry about it and otherwise dread it, you're already dead. Nothing is going to stop you getting older....time marches on, as cliche`as that sounds, it does. So either lay down and wallow in it or get out and live.

Heatherj43

musicismylife78 wrote:

I can think of few things that scare me more. In fact it scares the hell out of me. My mom and I were looking at pictures of her, from her wedding day. She mentioned her and my dad were my age, 25 when they got married. When she said that, it made my heart drop. The thing that scared me, was it just showed how much time flew. 25 years ago they were my age, and right now I consider them so old.

I think growing older for me, scares the hell out of me, because of how I am running out of time to do the things I want to do in life, and every birthday is in essence a marker that says "you are running out of time".

At a certain point, I dont know when, but at a certain time, a certain birthday, your birthday, my birthday stopped being happy and joyous and became a marker of you and me getting older.

I love my grandfather, he is 83, but, all he really does these days, is lay on his couch and watch tv. He doesnt have the energy or passion to go outside and do much of everything.

Growing older reminds me that this could be me. I could be like him.

You know, I am 54 and I do a lot of just watching TV from the couch. I do have the energy to go out, just don't want to. A lot of stuff grows old in time and just being able to sit around and watch TV is pretty cool. You'll see.
My fear is getting dementia. Both my parents have it and they can't concentrate enough to watch TV or read. Now that scares me.

justam

Growing older used to scare me more when I was younger.

Heatherj43

Whizbang wrote:

I absolutely do not fear getting older. I'll be 40 in a few months and if it's anything like 30, it will be fantastic! I've jumped from airplanes, I competitively ride horses, go to concerts, time with family and friends. My dogs make me laugh every day. I have friends in Germany whom I will visit next year so I am going to take a couple refresher German courses (I used to live there and took a couple years in school....it will hopefully come back to me quick!). Aside from that, I keep learning for my job and want to take additional ASL courses.

My grandfather was 84 when he passed away. His wife of nearly 65 years had died 9 months before him and he was broken hearted. About 2 months before he passed away, he was on the phone with my mom (her dad). When she hung up, she said "well, your grandfather just bought a drum set and is taking drum lessons". He never stopped living, even at 84. He still took his boat out fishing off the Cape, visited his daughters, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He didn't drive as much so the family made a point of traveling to see him more often.

My point is that if, at 25, you're afraid of getting older/dying and just want to wallow in it, worry about it and otherwise dread it, you're already dead. Nothing is going to stop you getting older....time marches on, as cliche`as that sounds, it does. So either lay down and wallow in it or get out and live.

My 30's were the best years of my life. Around 45 things slowed down. Its okay, but no where near as productive as the 30's.

norm

well since there isn't a single fucking thing you can do about it, embrace it and live life to it's fullest

it's just life

comebackgirl

Whizbang wrote:

My point is that if, at 25, you're afraid of getting older/dying and just want to wallow in it, worry about it and otherwise dread it, you're already dead. Nothing is going to stop you getting older....time marches on, as cliche`as that sounds, it does. So either lay down and wallow in it or get out and live.

Exactly! And at that point wouldn't you already be living the reality of what you fear the most about getting older? Feeling stuck, stagnant, etc. The only way to get out of a rut is to do something different than you've been doing. In this case, I'd say change your outlook and go out and live.

"And the young, they can lose hope cause they can't see beyond today,...
The wisdom that the old can't give away
Hey,..."
Love Ed's little pearls of wisdom

Get_Right

well the money is good
but the body pains are not

Whizbang

Get_Right wrote:

well the money is good
but the body pains are not

growin' old ain't for sissies.....

Whizbang

comebackgirl wrote:

Whizbang wrote:

My point is that if, at 25, you're afraid of getting older/dying and just want to wallow in it, worry about it and otherwise dread it, you're already dead. Nothing is going to stop you getting older....time marches on, as cliche`as that sounds, it does. So either lay down and wallow in it or get out and live.

Exactly! And at that point wouldn't you already be living the reality of what you fear the most about getting older? Feeling stuck, stagnant, etc. The only way to get out of a rut is to do something different than you've been doing. In this case, I'd say change your outlook and go out and live.

"And the young, they can lose hope cause they can't see beyond today,...
The wisdom that the old can't give away
Hey,..."
Love Ed's little pearls of wisdom

Amen to that!!!!

norm

i may be almost 40 but i still think like an 17 year old :thumbup:

ZiggyStar

Nope -- I'm 30 and love getting older. The older I get, the better life gets!

My PARENTS getting older scares me though.....I don't want them to die! They're only 65 and 66.....still plenty of time.....I hope.

Whizbang

ZiggyStar wrote:

Nope -- I'm 30 and love getting older. The older I get, the better life gets!

My PARENTS getting older scares me though.....I don't want them to die! They're only 65 and 66.....still plenty of time.....I hope.

I'm with you on this Ziggy.....my mom is 63, my dad 70. Both come from parents who lived long but still watching them get older is a bit frightening. However, I must confess to my dad and I jumping from airplanes the last few summers. I believe it will be a tradition that continues as long as he's up for it!!!!

Get busy living or get busy dying.....

kenny olav

I think it's funny how people in their mid 20's freak out about getting older, and I myself was guilty of it. A lot of my co-workers are in their mid-20s and whenever I hear them get into a tizzy about turning 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 or *gasp* 30, I just have to laugh.

I'm 33 now. Almost 33 and a half! (I love that George Carlin bit) and I don't really feel older than I did when I was 25, but I know that I'm wiser. I know that my perception towards things and people has changed completely for the better.

So while I'm in no rush to turn 40, 50, 60, 70, 120 (ha), I don't fear it. I can only assume that the ride will only get more interesting from here on. So far, my 30's have been better than my 20's, that's for sure.

guacamolejoe

Stop trying to "count" the days & start thinking about living "each" day . Scared of growing old :roll: , I don't waste my time thinking about that shit . Plus I'm already old .

pjfan31

The only part that scares me, is growing old without marrying and having kids. I would hate to be an old man never having kids.

And if that fails,
There are always mail order brides right?

LikeAnOcean

If you think about it, relatively speaking, our lives are but a blink of an eye in history. To fear death is a survival instinct embedded in our DNA. Growing old is all state of mind..


I'm just as scared of death as I am the thought that billions of years existed before my existence..

Really its all about the now. If you are old and just sitting around, that is a conscious choice. It's merely another state of being..

To you and I, time did not exist before we were born, does not exist when we sleep and will not exist after we die.. the only time is now.


It's pretty crazy to look at my life long friends and think to myself we look the same as we've always looked, but to look at old photos and think we look very young.. I can only assume if I make it to 80, that will seem normal to me and everyone else will just look unusually young.

xavier mcdaniel

It doesn't scare me. I just remember thinking when I was 15, how far off 30 actually seemed. I'm more of a present tense kind of person, even with small stuff like someone asking what I want for dinner two days ahead of time.

Thoughts_Arrive

Yes, 25 now, wishing I was in my teens again.
And my dad greyed early, dammit.