When a person reaches late adulthood it is natural to reflect back on the achievements and failures of their life. Questions like, have I made a mark on this world? Have I made a difference in the lives of my family and friends? The answers to these questions will depend on the way one judges if their life was something to be proud of or to regret. When a person gets to the end of their life, whether they had a life of faith in God or not, the way they feel about the life they lived will determine if the last days of their life are filled with dread and trepidation or hope, contentment, and peace.
When the disappointments over shadow older people’s lives it leaves them feeling their lives have been wasted, leaving them feeling a sense of despair and bitterness towards the world around them and not ready to accept death when the time comes. Late adulthood is the time when those who feel no sense of self-worth continue to focus on the negative things that have happened within their lives instead of being ready to look back on their life as a lesson (Vaillant , 2002).
These individuals have a difficult time accepting their lives will soon be over but instead wonder and worry about what their real purpose in life was all about. Most who view their lives this way either fear death. Late adulthood in many peoples life is a time when they take stock of the accomplishments in their life and enjoy the fruits of their labors, whether it is the family they have, or the wealth they have acquired. Hopefully the end of one’s life will be filled with happy memories instead of regrets.
Older individual’s bodies have endured many changes throughout the years, some of these changes were predisposed and dependent upon certain genetic factors while others were developed and acquired over time. In late adulthood the average individual will experience a number of physical, mental, emotional, health, societal, and cultural impacts that can have an influence on the way they live, perceive and present them self, how they interact with others, and their ability to cope with the stresses and strains of everyday life. These are the years that individuals should continue to remain active not only physically but mentally as well.
By continuing to remain an active player in the game of life this gives them the opportunity to continue to use the physical skills they have acquired by continuing to remain physically active these individuals have a better chance at living a longer, healthier, and happier life. An individual’s health and activity level can make the difference in how long abilities can be maintained and what their quality of life will be. Physical activities do not have to be too strenuous for individuals as long as they continue to utilize muscles that have taken years to develop and strengthen.
Mental activities can consist of anything that will increase the amount of information the brain intakes which can help to stimulate growth in the brain. Health is a bigger issue in late adulthood stage since their bodies have gone through many changes and depending on how well they have taken care of themselves over the years will be a determining factor in whether or not there are any health issues (Vaillant , 2002). Cardiovascular health is very important because people who suffer from heart disease tend to decline early in their mental abilities.
When there are cognitive declines in individuals it affects the way they take in information, how fast information is processed, their ability to store new information and the ability to block out irrelevant material. The aging process causes deterioration in various aspects of an older person’s memory performance causing individuals to have problems in maintaining, receiving and comprehending new information. Activities are popular in this stage since many people are retired by now and need to fill their time with physical and mental activities.
The purpose of memory and cognition is to provide individuals with the ability to problem solve, think, make decisions, learn, and process information. An individual’s cognitive functioning is the foundation to their intellectual activities which help them to perform and remember many of their daily tasks. Individual’s ability to learn is well preserved in later years and could possibly improve with age especially in an area of special interest to the individual (Boyd & Bee, 2006). Enriched and challenging environments can also stimulate growth in the brain later in life.
When cognitive functioning begins to diminish in older adults they may forget to carry out some of their normal activities or memories of who they are and the people around them may begin to fade. These types of losses can be very detrimental to not only the individuals but to their family and friends as well. When disease begins to affect an individual’s brain their quality of life is being taken away from them by unseen forces and families and doctors have to learn how to manage and deal with these declines in order to help the individual who may not understand the things that are happening.
By understanding where each individual is on a developmental scale it gives a beginning point in understanding which stage of development was not successful for an individual that will be helpful in determining and implementing ways for individuals to begin dealing with certain issues and eventually helping them to overcome and begin to accept what has happened and try to move forward in life. As individuals begin to increase in age they need to have contact with individuals their own age that can understand and relate to the changes and experiences that have occurred within their lives.
By socializing with people their own age it gives them a sense that someone else may be able to relate and understand their experiences in life. It also gives them visual proof that life does not stop after you retire from a job but instead that life can continue on if you just take the opportunity and resources available in the community for older people (Boyd & Bee, 2006). Older individuals need to have others around them who will treat them with dignity and respect when they are in their final stages of life. Many of us do not believe our capabilities for improving our quality of life.
It is vital that we understand where the person stands in terms of their beliefs and perceptions of their abilities and challenges of aging. Stereotyping the older generation can be detrimental to their continued growth. The clinical setting may be too overwhelming for some that they may create a negative attitude resulting in degrading their possibility of unexpected growth. It is very important for psychologists to understand what factors may be affecting their patients’ physical health as well as their mental health, because they may often be connected.
When psychologists have an understanding of what issues are affecting their clients then they have a better understanding of how to handle their needs by providing them with the care that will help in dealing with these life changing issues. This is the time in life where older people should sit back and enjoy all the fruits of their labor. As long as older individuals continue to feel they are a part of life they will continue to be active outside of their homes and not sit around waiting on death to knock on their doors.
The development of one’s personality and intellect are dynamic processes. All throughout our lives we are influenced by our social interactions, belief systems, traditions, health, religions, and many other factors. It is a never ending process of development but in some situations people make choices in their life that may lead to disillusionment leaving them stuck in a vicious cycle of disappointment. Aging is not an easy process and if one has a predetermined outlook on it then that will become their destiny.
Many aging people fear losing control of their senses which is a natural part of aging process but yet if one applies themselves to continuous stimulation adaptation is possible. My father was in many ways a wonderful example to me. His love of life and positive attitude towards life greatly influenced the way I live my life. I made sure that he knew how proud of him I was, and how thankful I was for his life. He never wasted a day that I know of; he always had a plan and was busy working on something. When he did take a moment to sit, he was reading, at least till he started snoring.
My father was a man of faith and he worked at serving those around him. He told me once that if I was ever wondering what to do, ask yourself what would Jesus do? He said that I would find it hard to go wrong with that. He had so many wise loving pieces of advice for me and my siblings. My father died from complications due to his advanced stages of dementia. My father had many scary confusing days’ towards the end of his life but the strength of his character was strong and resolute till the very end. This, I believe gave him peace.
