I heard on The View this morning that new research has shown that the happiest Americans are the oldest. I found this to be interesting as these studies invalidate the ancient stereotype of the lonely senior citizen.
Reportedly, older adults are more socially active than we think. The more social connections one has the happier they will be in life. The study suggests that the odds of being happy increase 5 percent with every 10 years.
This type of information can be helpful to the many Americans out there who fear growing old. If every year brings us more joy, than I say bring on the aging process.
However, this kind of happiness also relates to the idea of being content in life. Older adults tend to be more satisfied with what they have than do younger people, which doesn't surprise me. Perhaps to reach this kind of happiness, we must endure the inevitable ups and downs that ultimately will bring us joy. For instance, starting a family and building a career may cause a lot of stress, but in the end, we reap the benefits of our loved ones and success.
In any event, the idea that old-age will bring us doom may need to be reconstructed. Being a senior citizen doesn't need to mean nursing homes and adult diapers, but rather being a grandparent and retiring after a long, fulfilling career. Hopefully, all of us can be that fortunate.
I have to admit that I fall into the category of Americans that fear growing old. I just feel like our bodies fall apart after we hit the age of 45. I can see what you mean about being happy because people are content with their lives, but I just feel that the older you get the less of a social life you have because you are either working or busy with life. Thinking of my parents, they have work friends but they rarely hang out with real friends because they are busy. Maybe you are referring to really elderly people that are retired and have nothing to do, but either way, I think there are less social opportunities with the older you get.