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  • Does getting older scare or delight you?

    Posted by William on December 23, 2022 at 9:17 am

    Getting older in life is, of course, not a new concept to the world at large. However, getting older is a newer concept that many cystic fibrosis teams are dealing with. Life expectancy has risen to the mid-50s for the average person with CF!</span>

     

    How do you feel about getting older? Does it scare you or have you embraced it?

    janee replied 1 year, 2 months ago 7 Members · 11 Replies
  • 11 Replies
  • Timothy Bransford

    Member
    December 27, 2022 at 4:14 pm

    There was a time when I believed I would not see another day.  I was wonderfully  wrong.

    So each night before I go to sleep, I offer a prayer of thanks for the gift of another day.  I  believe that maintaining a grateful heart is critical to living a positive life.

    Regardless of the uncertainties, I  am ecstatic to grow older.

    • gina-michele

      Member
      December 27, 2022 at 5:18 pm

      That’s so beautiful to read. I, too believe that maintaining a grateful heart is critical to happiness, mental health, and living a positive life. Thank you for the kind reminder to start my day off with gratitude more often and routinely!

    • William

      Moderator
      December 27, 2022 at 8:30 pm

      Thank you Timothy! We all should be grateful that we’re still on Earth, living and breathing. Getting older is a gift.

  • gina-michele

    Member
    December 27, 2022 at 5:11 pm

    I think I fall somewhere in the middle. I jokingly say things like “I can’t wait to retire” and how much I look forward to “kicking back and letting people take care of me. While I imagine that experiencing things like that later in life will feel wonderful and restful, I don’t like to think too much now of the different seasons of life to come – like new and unexpected challenges, changes, stressors, and loss.

    • William

      Moderator
      December 27, 2022 at 8:31 pm

      Life, like the seasons, is always changing. We absolutely should embrace it!

  • Timothy Bransford

    Member
    December 28, 2022 at 6:48 pm

    I’m quite sure I will never retire in the classic sense.  I have always needed a mission to be happy and fulfilled.  Fortunately, the need in our world is great and opportunities abound for someone who is willing to lend a hand.  The main difference is I won’t need to be paid for my labor.  My new mission will truly become a labor of love.  I’m very excited to find this new place.

  • kayla-hays

    Member
    December 29, 2022 at 6:30 pm

    I never thought it would scare me, but it kind of does! I just turned 40. Lungs are in gray condition thanks to Trikafta! I have developed anxiety on it, and maybe that’s part of my fear of getting older. Problems arise. I hear others saying that growing old sucks, your body falls apart, you’re limited in things. I’m trying to focus on the here and now and be thankful for the blessings I have right now that God has given me!

  • ron-holdren

    Member
    January 1, 2023 at 8:23 am

    I just had my 69th birthday on 12/29 and I feel great aside from the usual aches and pains. Still working and still living. God’s plan for me is still ongoing because he hasn’t called me home yet. I do look forward to each day as a Blessing and CF is part of that Blessing. It has changed me and brought me closer to my faith and so I do delight in getting older each and everyday.

     

  • janee

    Member
    January 3, 2023 at 10:22 am

    It’s certainly better than the only other option! I will hit 60 in October this year and have decided I will be doing 60 new things throughout the year to celebrate! They may only be small events; new food, new restaurants (food figures high on my radar) or venturing to new places.

    I thought 50 would be my last decade but am so happy to say I was wrong, in the main due to Kaftrio. I encountered a neurological problem in 2015 and had to learn to write, walk, drive and even walk again. It’s the only time I didn’t get snide looks for using my blue badge! I now work part time as I found not working at all to not be conducive to my own good mental health. It was a nightmare and as I was treated at a different hospital to my CF made me appreciate the team all over again.

    When I was much, much younger I heard a Dr describe me as like a car engine without oil, how wrong was he….. I am now most comfortable in my old skin, and would tell the 5 year old with dark teeth (antibiotic staining), that was always picked on that life would be good, always hard work but I would have the last laugh. Never give up.

    • jenny-livingston

      Member
      January 9, 2023 at 9:14 am

      Janee, I love this so much! You have overcome many things, but what I love most is the positivity radiating from this post. I hope your year of 60 things is wonderful! Maybe you can give us some updates throughout your year of new adventures.

  • janee

    Member
    January 10, 2023 at 4:35 pm

    Thanks Jenny. I do try to be positive as much as possible, like everyI have off days but so far have managed to find the positives in life. I’ll be happy to update you with my 60 experiences. Thank you for reading

     

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