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Ranchers here generally retire at death. I've talked to a number of these people, many in extreme old age (90+); they seem mighty sharp for the most part.
I think the key is having a healthy amount of stress in our lives. When we have concerns and the need to address these concerns we take the challenge and generally overcome adversity. It's very different from book clubs and volunteer work which are hobbies and which are completely voluntary. The latter simply isn't the real world. Living creatures evolved through stress and adversity; it's unnatural and shocking to the organism when they're replaced with a void.
I know that I enjoy stress because I always seem to manage to have some in my life. It's what makes me different from a rock.
Ranchers here generally retire at death. I've talked to a number of these people, many in extreme old age (90+); they seem mighty sharp for the most part.
I think the key is having a healthy amount of stress in our lives. When we have concerns and the need to address these concerns we take the challenge and generally overcome adversity. It's very different from book clubs and volunteer work which are hobbies and which are completely voluntary. The latter simply isn't the real world. Living creatures evolved through stress and adversity; it's unnatural and shocking to the organism when they're replaced with a void.
I know that I enjoy stress because I always seem to manage to have some in my life. It's what makes me different from a rock.
You have described stress in amounts which are healthy. But the medicos tell us that overwhelming and constant stress is not healthy. You are describing life in terms of absolutes, but not all jobs are created equal and not all retirements are created equal either. I certainly agree about the "void". Where we part company is equating retirement with a "void". It may be for some people, and those people are probably driving the statistics that the article lays out. Employment if not the only route to challenges and adversity.
Happy in is calling it stress but I wonder if it might be anything that gets the adrenaline pumping.
Even if you stay busy with retirement type activities, you might be relaxed enough about them and they may not provide enough challenge to do that.
We 're saying the same thing but using the word stress makes it sound like a bad thing
You have described stress in amounts which are healthy. But the medicos tell us that overwhelming and constant stress is not healthy. You are describing life in terms of absolutes, but not all jobs are created equal and not all retirements are created equal either. I certainly agree about the "void". Where we part company is equating retirement with a "void". It may be for some people, and those people are probably driving the statistics that the article lays out. Employment if not the only route to challenges and adversity.
That's almost certainly true but it's the most common source of constant stress levels, the healthy kind. Not all jobs are equal in stress but I suspect that most jobs establish regular levels of stress. Even jobs such as police and fire work have regular stress. It doesn't go from zero to 100 when the fire or shooting starts. Anticipation and fear would bring stress as well.
Perhaps living in a war zone or constantly climbing high peaks with some danger and similar activities would have the same effect. I think the element of danger is implicit because all organisms including humans risk death to survive. Performing satisfactorily in a job has simply repaced hunting the wooly mammoth for humans. Financialdanger has largely replaced physical danger.
It would be interesting to see dementia rates at various ages for people who have never worked but who have stable incomes compared to people who have never worked and do not have stable incomes. I believe that the latter group would be more resistant to dementia.
Quote:
Originally Posted by old_cold
Happy in is calling it stress but I wonder if it might be anything that gets the adrenaline pumping. Even if you stay busy with retirement type activities, you might be relaxed enough about them and they may not provide enough challenge to do that.
We 're saying the same thing but using the word stress makes it sound like a bad thing
That's exactly the point I was making.
Stress is not an unmitigated evil. All organisms require stress to survive.
Last edited by Happy in Wyoming; 07-16-2013 at 06:49 AM..
That's almost certainly true but it's the most common source of constant stress levels, the healthy kind. Not all jobs are equal in stress but I suspect that most jobs establish regular levels of stress. Even jobs such as police and fire work have regular stress. It doesn't go from zero to 100 when the fire or shooting starts. Anticipation and fear would bring stress as well.
Perhaps living in a war zone or constantly climbing high peaks with some danger and similar activities would have the same effect. I think the element of danger is implicit because all organisms including humans risk death to survive. Performing satisfactorily in a job has simply repaced hunting the wooly mammoth for humans. Financialdanger has largely replaced physical danger.
It would be interesting to see dementia rates at various ages for people who have never worked but who have stable incomes compared to people who have never worked and do not have stable incomes. I believe that the latter group would be more resistant to dementia.
That's exactly the point I was making.
Stress is not an unmitigated evil. All organisms require stress to survive.
Dang. I didn't know that both my combat experience and my cop-on-the-street experience on a narcotics taskforce had been replaced by financial danger. But I'll take it.
Seriously though, you're right about stress being a somewhat necessary component to life. It either makes you or breaks you and in-between it keeps you on your toes, unless you cave.
The proof is in the pudding. I don't yet have dementia. At least I don't think I do. But what do I know?
I think participating on this forum keeps you on your toes.
Never know what someone is going to say.
Typing skills up, mental acuity, And starting your
own thread is always a challenge
Retirement from the "workforce," working now PT for pleasure and some $. When you work on your own terms, it's a different story. But even if I did no work at all now, I'm sure the dementia would kick in at some point soon either way. I haven't been able to find my second pair of glasses for weeks, and am still watching movies I swear I haven't watched before but they slightly ring a bell.
That's fine for people with sit down jobs. Some of us are in physical trades and can only go so long.
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