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Talkback is a
regular feature in laterlife.com run by
journalist and author Helen Franks.
Welcome to talkback 78
Read Helen's views and ideas, then add
your own by emailing her on helen@laterlife.com.
Whatever your opinion on the subject under
discussion, Helen wants to hear it.
If you would like to suggest future
topics for talkback, please email Helen with
the details. And remember you can also start your own
forum discussion thread by visiting the laterlife cafe
What is old anyway?
When my mother-in-law entered a residential home at the age
of 80-plus, she said of the other residents, “They are all
so old.” Old is never what you are. There is always someone
older.
In 2003 Caroline Howe, an Australian researcher, found
similar attitudes. She asked younger people, older people,
fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, grandmothers and grandfathers
about the experience of ageing and the concept of being “old”.
Very few people wanted to define what “old” was, but what was
common to all participants was that “old” was a point that would
eventually be reached, and it was always older than your current
age.
But far more important things were to follow. Caroline
went on to set up the OPAL (Older People and Living) project.
She wanted to know what it means for different cultures to
retire. She noted that retiring and getting older is not a
positive experience for everyone. There are small trends in
people who find retirement a difficult transition. For some, the
experience is distressing and leads to feelings of depression,
anxiety and stress.
As the population ages, she says, we can expect these small
percentages to grow in number to hundreds of thousands over
the next few decades. This will have a great impact, not only on
government policy but also on the general feelings of well-being
at a community level.
Retiring is translated in some countries as an expected
event, almost a right of passage. Some people look forward
to retiring for many years and plan accordingly. For some, the
changes that occur during retirement can be unexpected and
difficult, such as feelings of loss after leaving work.. There
has also been research revealing the onset of late post
traumatic stress disorder for some people in older age. We need
to start asking a basic question: is retirement as a concept one
that needs to be better thought through?
The OPAL project looks at the experience of retirement on an
international level, and is currently collecting information
on the personal experiences of retirement. The findings aim to
inform health professionals, policy makers and government on the
aspirations and the transition experience from work to
retirement. An internet-based survey has been designed to
capture an international population from all walks of life and
in all rural and regional areas. The richness of the data very
much depends on each participant. If you are interested in
contributing to the current study then please go to:
http://www2.fhs.usyd.edu.au/arow/opal/
Surveys can also be downloaded and printed from:
http://www2.fhs.usyd.edu.au/arow/opal/ and sent
directly to the researcher.
Helen would still like to hear your views
Don`t forget to take a look at Helen`s healthwise column
too
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