Jeff's Story behind Holistic Aging Today

10 years ago I like most adults my age had been dealing with an aging parent issue. My then 79 year old mother’s health had deteriorated to the point where her desire to live had seriously declined. Despite family and friends all around her, nothing any one could say or do had any impact on changing the way mom thought about her life.

Determined to see the world from her vantage point and stubborn in her view, my mother would rather curse the darkness that light even one little candle. Those who loved her most finding themselves at their own wits end had little recourse but to raise their voices and hope for the best. My own frustration was magnified ten fold as I faced this issue long distance.

Yet the lesson I learned is quite simple and equally quite profound. When one’s will to live is no longer there than despite anyone’s best efforts in the end the decision to change one’s mind set is ultimately left up to the individual themselves.

The question remains does it have to be that way? Does anyone faced with death and dying have to face that prospect alone? Or, can the path we chose leading up to our end be filled with spirit, with comfort, and with joy?

What is healthy aging? If we think about it at all we may each come up with our own definition. Our own sense of what we envision our later years to be. For some it may be physical well being. “If you have your health you have everything.” For others it may be the comfort of family and seeing the birth of future generations to carry on the legacy of our lives. Still others may view it as financial success being able to take care of ourselves in old age.

Yet in the end, healthy aging maybe all of the above, some of the above, none of the above, or more.

A topic rarely discussed aging is more often brushed aside with a quick comment or a bit of humor. (Funny you don’t look 50, or 60, or 70 or . . .) Yet what strikes an alarming cord in aging studies today is that most boomers are more fearful of aging than their parents . . . and are even less prepared to face it on their own.
Healthy aging is not what other people think it is. It’s what you think it is. And ultimately it depends upon what each of us can do to help one and other realize that vision for our families, our respective community, and ourselves. Wherever it is we may be.

Through this website and through a myriad of collaborative and innovative ways Healthy Aging LLC expects to help you honor and realize your vision.

We believe that the best way to predict the future is to invent it. We invite each of you to join us in inventing that future.

<