CYNTHIA CARTER: In many different ways, old is a state of mind

Q: How old are you?

A: When some people reach a certain age, they consider themselves to be “old.” In my opinion, old is a state of mind.

You’ve heard the expression, “You’re only as old as you feel.” Well, there are some days we do feel old, which may only last a few hours or a day.

If you think old, you will act old and, gradually, you will become an old person.

Several measures are used to determine who is old. Chronologically, it’s the number of years a person has lived. Biologically, you measure a person’s physical fitness. To be physically fit, our body parts should work well, meaning we are young biologically, but old chronologically.

So, you see, age is a personal thing. Most young people think everybody is old when you pass a certain age, but it is really no certain age. You are just much older than they are. We thought the same way until we reached those ages. Now, we consider those ages young.

We grew into a person from our parents. All living things share a pattern — development, growth, aging and death. Don’t you wonder sometimes why we age and wish we could stop the process at the age or stage of life that we want to?

The study of aging is called gerontology. Not all signs of aging can be seen. Some take place inside a person’s body. The parts of the body where changes often occur are the heart and blood vessels. As a person gets older, the heart may not be able to work as well as it once did, causing so many people to join exercise clubs or just walk, which is good. Research shows that.

A happy and physically fit older person was probably a happy and physically fit young person. A sad, overweight old person was probably a sad, overweight young person. You have a responsibility to control your health.

One of the best compliments an older person gets is, “You don’t look your age. You look much younger.” Women especially love to hear those words.

Just because we’re chronologically aging, which is the number of years we have lived, doesn’t mean we’re old. It’s your attitude that makes the difference. You can refuse to accept the labels that are put on older people, such as old, senior citizen, elderly and others.

As time moves, your body will tell you how old you are. It will move a little slower, but no matter how your body feels, just keep moving You can still function and do a lot of things, but do them in moderation. Here are a few tips:

— No. 1: Be good to yourself mentally, physically and spiritually;

— No. 2: Educate yourself about life by enjoying each day, especially if you have retired;

— No. 3: Have a positive attitude, a loving and giving spirit.

Whatever it takes to be happy is what you should do. Doing too many things at one time is not good for the mind, body or soul. You should organize and prioritize before taking on some of your tasks. Some tasks can be done later, or not at all.

We easily become accustomed to our lifestyles and it’s hard to change it. Planning is always important in anything we do. It’s our map, causing us to think before applying and makes us flexible for changes, which makes life less stressful.

We want to keep our bodies healthy and looking young, so we should plan our meals in advance. In other words, know what foods and drinks are good for us and our bodies.

It also is important for us to embrace your individuality and to look out for ourselves. We must take control of our own lives by changing. To change, sometimes, is scary because we know what is present, but we don’t know what the future holds. In essence, none of us do.

Ask Grandma is a weekly column written by Cynthia Carter. If you have a question to Ask Grandma, email it to [email protected] and include “Ask Grandma” in the subject line. You also can mail questions to Ask Grandma, c/o The Albany Herald, P.O. Box 48, Albany, GA 31702. Phone-in questions can be left on our Bright Side comment line, (229) 888-9351.