With a particular focus on end of life, I wanted to take a swing at this seemingly heavy topic with a different perspective. You see so often we talk about the years of life, instead of the life in those years. As we age what sort of quality of life do we wish for ourselves, or those closest to us? Can we influence that quality of life in our younger years and if so, how? Well…read on.
Recently a term called the “marginal decade” was coined. Though we may never know when our time comes, it’s safe to say we live in an aging population. The likelihood is that we will live into our 7th, 8th or even 9th decades before leaving this world. The quality of life we maintain in the last decade, whenever it may be- is the marginal decade. For example if you want to live independently you will have to be able to do the following:
- Walk around the supermarket comfortably.
- Carry 5-10kg groceries from supermarket to the car, then into the home
- Get up or down stairs with relative ease
- Shower, self cares and fess in self independently
- Stay cognitively sharp
It is then possible to back pedal and consider those goals and how they may need to be addressed right now. The research around this is still developing but hypothetically:
Goal 1: Tolerating a 5km+ aerobic paced walk in our 40s might slowly go down to still walking 2km comfortably in our 60s.
Goal 2: As a 30-40yr old this may mean being able to carry 25kg+. From 40-50yrs it could be 20kg. In our 60s carting 15kg around should still be possible.
Goal 3: In our 30s this could be performing 20-30 squats or lunges in a row. As we age it might reduce to 10-15reps.
Goal 4: A key aspect of this is balance! How long can you stand on one foot? There is great research for age-matched balance to test yourself against so check them out!
Goal 5: Challenge yourself mentally! Learn something new, an instrument or language. Read books! Play sudoku. Perhaps most importantly stay socially engaged as this is shown to be one of the best ways to avoid neurodegenerative conditions.
Of course these are only a few hypothetical, yet all too realistic examples of how someone may start to “backcast” some of those goals into present. Then there are healthy food choices, sleep more, stress less, read more etc etc. Of course the list of “how to live” is endless, but I’m convinced that anything is better than nothing, no matter how small.
Ultimately end of life will come to all of us. Though the exact circumstances are out of our control, much of what we may hope for can be influenced in our life choices now. A certain level of fear affects us about the latter stages of aging, yet for most I suspect it is more to do with a loss of function than the loss of life. The prospect of death itself doesn’t trouble me per se, it is more the process of dying that would command my attention.
As a husband, father, and advocate for all things healthy- I would encourage everyone to consider the small things that can be done now, that make a big difference in our last decade.
Nb. Written as Health columnist for the Hibiscus Matters.
