Women's Life Link Be Well, Be Happy, Be YOU!
If you are worried about getting older and your health slipping, you are not alone. Though aging isn’t a poor health sentence for everyone, it definitely is a time of life that brings many changes to our body, mind, and spirit. That said, we can all benefit from regular self-care and doing basic health practices. Let’s take a look at a few things to consider to keep you healthier as you age.
Get Regular Health Checks
As we age, regular health checks become even more important because our bodies have had more time to develop issues. Recommended screenings, checkups, and labs will likely change past the age of 40, as this is considered a more risky time, especially for women. Screenings like mammograms are a good example. After 50, your doctor might add others like colonoscopy, bone density, stress test, and a thorough skin exam. Remember, these tests are routine and are there to find problems early before they are untreatable.
Along with primary doctor’s appointments, I recommend also visiting the eye and ear doctors regularly to make sure everything is working optimally as you age. Unfortunately, eyes and ears are among the first things to deteriorate when you get older.
Get Adequate Sleep
Getting quality sleep is so important that I can’t stress it enough. This statement is even truer as we enter into our middle years and above. If you can get at least 8 to 9 hours every night, you will do your body and mind a huge favor as you get older.
If you constantly wake up throughout the night, there may be a fixable problem. Talk to your doctor about anything that could be sabotaging your sleep. Think about what you eat, drink, do, and feel right before bedtime. Remember, chronically missing sleep can impact your daily life, creating problems with your memory and feelings. Additionally, when you sleep your body repairs any cells that have been damaged that day.
Manage Pain
If you have had chronic or even acute pain, make sure to talk to your doctor about what you’re experiencing. Pain is the body’s way of telling us that something is wrong or out of balance. Ignoring or pushing through it could put you in danger of missing an important medical clue to serious illness or injury.
Always make sure to follow your doctor’s advice about treatment and follow-up care. For example, if you are in pain post-surgery, and your doctor tells you to wear compression socks after surgery, wear them! Doing so will help alleviate the pain that could be the culprit that’s stealing your sleep.
Get Regular Exercise
Exercising at least 30 minutes a day will bring the most benefit to women at any age. Of course, you can tailor this to a plan that matches your needs and state of health. Moving your body regularly can help prevent weight-related problems and will keep your pulmonary system working better. Exercise has also been linked to positive mental attitudes, this is due to the brain chemicals that are released while working out.
Living well and staying healthy as you get older doesn’t have to be difficult. Focus on the basics and be consistent with the health plan that you and your doctor come up with.
