The Sheer Happiness of Getting Older
Plus: The confusion of breast cancer screening and risk interpretation
Welcome back to your weekly dose of wisdom and wellness. Among this week’s highlights, below, are two important stories about breast cancer that delve into changes in the assessment of risk and its many confusing aspects. Plus you’ll learn why BMI should go bye-bye. But first…
I used to think that as we age, we tend to get more set in our ways and… cranky. That surely describes a lot of older people. But it doesn’t have to be that way. As I’ve aged, I realize that crankiness comes on strong in mid-life, as one deals with the multitude of pressures related to raising a family, feeding and housing kids, dealing with teenagers, and getting slapped around at work. We strive so hard, we simply don’t have time to stop and smell the proverbial roses, or to just do absolutely nothing now and then.
If you’re mired in that mode, take comfort in this knowledge:
As we ease into our later years, happiness comes more easily. Yes, older people are happier, studies consistently show. It certainly has been true for me, partly because I’ve stepped back and really figured out who I am, and I’ve discovered my purpose, literally writing and editing the third main chapter of life.
Aging tends to mean fewer immediate pressures on our time and mental bandwidth, and if all goes well, we’ve developed some wisdom that allows us to revel in the small, good things and worry less about the awful, big things. We have perspective, and if we’re wise, we use it wisely. Sure, we might have more aches and pains, but research confirms that aches and pains don’t stop most older folks from living their best years.
Yet many people don’t fit the pattern of finding more joy with age, which brings us to this week’s top story, in which one of Wise & Well’s writer/psychologists, Gail Post, offers practical advice…
Some Older Adults Need an Attitude Adjustment
Unhappy older adults often haven’t found a purpose in their new life, the one that comes after the workaday phase, or they’ve hewed to narrow-mindedness. Other folks, as they age, develop wisdom, openness and a zest for life. That’s the type you want to be! Gail explains how to age wisely, in part by pursuing meaning and productivity.
The older clients I see in my psychotherapy practice who are better prepared for the challenges ahead are those most open to change. They retain their core sense of self but are willing to recalibrate as they face life’s difficulties. Of course, this involves some grieving, a willingness to abandon unrealistic expectations, and confidence in their capacity to weather challenges.
— Gail Post, PhD
Do We Need A New Psychiatric Diagnosis for Sluggishness?
The psychiatric community has created diagnostic criteria for a lot of formal conditions. But sometimes things can get too granular to be of much practical use. Take Sluggish Cognitive Tempo, which has been renamed Cognitive Disengagement Syndrome and is a sub-condition under ADHD. But since there’s no specific treatment, making it a formally recognized condition isn’t very helpful, this psychiatrist argues.
Modern insurance billing codes identify more than 563 separate mental health conditions. One trend in recent years has been to parse our current diagnostic system into smaller and more precise parcels, increasing the number of diagnoses. On the other hand, some argue that only one mental health condition exists, with multiple variations and permutations.
—John Kruse MD, PhD
Why BMI Should Go Bye Bye
BMI is an inaccurate gauge of health and health risks, yet it’s among the most widespread diagnostic measures, akin to blood pressure. There’s a better measure, but unfortunately it’s not ready for prime time. This doctor unpacks why we should stop using BMI—as many other people have been arguing—and why we shouldn’t nix it just yet.
People at most risk based on indicators involving body fat are those with the most fat deposition in the abdominal region, and for this reason there is a push towards a new method of measuring obesity called the body roundness index (BRI). Data suggests that it can predict health risks better than BMI.
—Dr. Julian Barkan
Mammograms Are Easy. Risk is Complicated.
Online tools to assess breast cancer risk can be revealing, and frightening. Exactly what you should do with the information is less clear, as this writer and her sister discovered when their risk scores—which logically should have been similar—came back way different. She goes on to explain the many, many, many risk factors that women may not be aware of, and what to do with all the information you might gather.
This much is clear: Many women of all ages have more breast cancer risk than they realize, and knowing what testing they should get and when is anything but clear.
—Chris Arestides, RN MPH
Breast Density: What Every Woman Should Know
Dense breasts come with a greater risk of breast cancer, and make the cancer harder to detect. A new FDA rule requires that physicians make it clear to women if their breasts are dense or not, then advise further discussion to determine if additional screening is indicated. But the changes risk further false alarms and overdiagnosis. Four experts explain the new rule, the science, the risks, and the areas where much remains to be learned.
There is still limited scientific evidence to guide recommendations for supplemental breast screening beyond standard mammography or tomosynthesis for women with dense breast tissue. Data shows that supplemental screening with ultrasound, MRI or contrast-enhanced mammography may detect additional cancers, but there are no prospective studies confirming that such additional screening saves more lives.
—Nancy Kressin, Christine M. Gunn, Priscilla J. Slanetz and Tracy A. Battaglia
Devastating Surgical Error Highlights Critical Need for Self-Advocacy
A doctor amputates the wrong leg. Or removes a liver instead of a spleen (just ask the wife of the late William Bryan). Stuff happens, as doctors are — news flash — human. That’s why this writer, whose father is a doctor, reminds us all to be the squeaky wheel in a hospital.
Don’t just unquestioningly accept everything your doctor says. In the game of life, you don’t get extra points for being a good patient.
— Gill McCulloch
Why Political Attacks Have Become So Disgusting
Immigrants and other “others” are being smeared by outrageous lies meant to elicit disgust, a primitive human emotion that has long aided the survival of our species by making dangerous foods taste bad. It renders the “others” non-human, cultivating hatred and fueling social and political division. This psychologist explains the powerful emotion, and how to curb the disgusting trend. Oh, and some actual facts:
Despite extensive and repeated inquiries, nobody has provided evidence that Springfield residents are having their pets stolen and eaten by immigrants. Immigrants have lower rates of drug abuse than native born Americans. Immigrants have lower rates of crime, including violent crime, than native born Americans, and this has been true for at least the last century and a half.
— John Kruse MD, PhD
Covid, Flu and RSV Shots: Why All 3 Matter This Fall
Vaccinations are not 100% effective at preventing infections. But people who get vaccinated are much less likely to catch a virus, and if they do catch it, they’re much less likely to become sick, and if they do get sick, they are much less likely to get really sick. Meanwhile, viruses keep mutating, so the latest vaccines will be more effective than those offered previously. This epidemiologist explains why, when and how to seek protection this fall.
It’s important to remember that vaccines do not offer immediate protection. You need about two weeks for your body to generate enough antibodies to offer protection. September or early October is a good time to get the flu shot to ensure you are protected in time.
—Annette Regan
Toxicity of Shame and How to Heal
Feelings of shame are rooted in secrecy, silence and judgment. Guilt says I made a mistake. Shame tells me I am a mistake, the writer explains.
Shame is a funk like no other. Not only does it say you’re not good enough. It whispers you never will be. There’s no hope for you here. But studies reveal how we can move forward when the toxic fumes of shame consume us in a world of self blame.
—Jennie Lyons
Jennie goes on to explain how she had dealt with her own shame, and offers practical steps you can take.
Why You Should Write a Gratitude Letter Today
A lot of advice on how to be happier and more fulfilled involves big changes to our behaviors and habits. But science has shown over and over that it’s often the little things that make the biggest difference in our relationship to joy, contentment and the other elements of that elusive quality we call happiness. In her weekly How to Feel Better tidbit, psychologist Catherine Sanderson offers a nifty suggestion for a small act that’ll have big consequences to well-being—for you and an important someone else.
Plus, from our sister publication, Aha! Science…
Why Is My Belly Button Shaped Like This?
I had a hernia operation at birth, and I’ve been told that’s why I have an outie. Whether that’s true or not, there are other reasons people have outies. Most, however, have innies. And I’ve always wondered why. Turns out your belly button, like everyone else’s, is nothing more than a scar. This writer does some serious navel gazing, and somehow manages to also address the age-old question about what belly button lint is actually made of. And here’s something I bet you didn’t know:
Behind the scenes, a ligament still connects the belly button to the bladder and liver. This is why overweight people usually have a deeper belly button (that ligament can’t stretch much) and why pregnant women often have a shallower belly button (the bladder is pressed outward by the growing fetus).
— Sam Westreich, PhD
What’s in Your Eyelashes? Probably Lots of Mites.
Human skin is covered in tiny little organisms, from millions of microscopic bacteria, fungi and viruses to nearly invisible mites, a teensy member of the spider family. Try not to think about it too much. But one species of mite fancies your eyelashes. They are what scientists call beneficial parasites, so the best thing to do is live with it. Unless they overwhelm your eyes. Here’s what to know.
Itchy red eyes plagued a Chinese woman for more than two years before she finally sought treatment. Doctors were shocked to find more than 100 Demodex mites living in her lashes and along her inner eyelids.
—Annie Foley
Foley explains what to do if you have symptoms of a mite overload, and how to prevent such an infestation in the first place.
Will Sleeping Under Trees at Night Suffocate You to Death?
The writer, a scientist, ran across this odd claim in a Google search. Thinking it totally ridiculous, he researched the possibility. Turns out there’s an acorn of truth, which leads to a fascinating explanation of what trees do (including making carbon dioxide, which is toxic to humans in sufficient concentration). But there are far bigger dangers to worry about if you’re sleeping in a forest.
We’ll be back next Friday with another Wise & Well Weekly newsletter. Meantime, I hope we’ve helped you make tomorrow a little better than today.
Cheers,
Rob