Growing older and reaching a “senior” age can be disconcerting, whether our living conditions are favorable or unfavorable.
Unless we die prematurely, we will all face the challenges of old age. What we could long deny through the magical, invincibility-fraught delusions of youth will become inescapably real.
Aches and pains, dyspepsia, insomnia, chronic pain, memory failures, and other common symptoms are not unique to older individuals but are more common as the body and mind lose their youthful elasticity and resiliency.
No one is guaranteed a long life and no one comes out of the human experience alive.
But go to any nursing home or assisted living facility and observe individuals going through the end stages of the aging process. Some age well, and some not so well.
Erik Erikson, a 20th-century developmental theorist, believed that identity and personality continue to develop throughout all stages of life, including the final one. He outlined an elaborate, progressive, multistage theory of human development with distinct psychological milestones from infancy to death.
In infancy, trust versus mistrust is the cornerstone for building an individual's ego and identity. When infants' needs are reliably met by their caregivers, they will develop trust that the world is a safe place to accomplish the subsequent developmental tasks of learning, socialization, attachment, and work.
Erikson labeled the last stage of his theory integrity vs. despair. This stage, beginning around age 60, requires we reflect on the past and assess whether we have had a successful or meaningful life.
After reflection, people in this stage may say that although they have not achieved........