Loss of Independence Losing physical functions and having to rely on others for daily care is the biggest fear among seniors.
Common fears about aging can lead to anxiety. Many older adults are afraid of falling, being unable to afford living expenses and medication, being victimized, being dependent on others, being left alone, and death. Older adults and their families should be aware that health changes can also bring on anxiety.
One study suggests that elderly people are more likely to fear the dying process, while young adults are more likely to fear death itself.
Common conditions in older age include hearing loss, cataracts and refractive errors, back and neck pain and osteoarthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, depression and dementia. As people age, they are more likely to experience several conditions at the same time.
The major cause of death in the 55-64 age group is cancer followed by heart disease and injury. In the 75+ age group, the leading cause shifts to heart disease, and injury drops below Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), cerebrovascular diseases, and pneumonia.
Many people fear death and/or dying. These fears can be summarized as fearing the pain and loneliness of dying, the fear of non-existence, and the fear of the unknown after death. The most common fear, in Western society, is that the process of dying will be painful, prolonged, and will reduce the quality of life.
Often, these fears are irrational and are about things that do not pose a real threat. Common types of phobias for older adults are fear of death, disaster, and danger to the family. A fear of dental procedures is also common. When facing these fears you might feel dizzy, have chest pain, or heart palpitations.
Fear of Pain and Suffering
Many people fear that when they meet death, they will experience excruciating pain and suffering. This fear is common in many healthy people, as well as in patients dying of cancer or other terminal illnesses.
Some common risk factors for anxiety disorders in seniors include: Stressful life events (e.g., death of a loved one) Limited physical mobility. Loss of independence.
One of the most noticeable and challenging aspects of aging is the physical decline that occurs over time. As we age, our bodies gradually lose their vitality and resilience. The once effortless activities become more strenuous, and we may find ourselves battling ailments and chronic health conditions.
Another reason is older adults are more likely to have experienced the circumstances that lead to fear of change. Older brains are less malleable. Children adjust better to change because they don't have as much “legacy material” to change, noted Roger S. Gil, a relationship and family therapist.
Gerascophobia is a fear of growing or aging [1].
Depression is the most common mental health problem in older people. People aged 85 and older have the highest suicide rate of any age group. Two-thirds of seniors with mental health problems do not get the treatment they need (the "treatment gap").
Fearing loneliness in old age and ideal life expectancy
Another fear commonly associated with reaching very old age is the fear of surviving close others and of being left alone.
Some of these fears include losing relationships, high expectations (maturing) and the choices that come with adulting. Though these all play a major factor in anxiety with seniors, some anxiety is also good to have. College and Career Counselor Curtis Menke explains what lies behind these senior fears.
Key facts. Depression is a mental health condition that can affect people of any age. More than 1 in 10 older people experience depression. The 3 main causes of depression in older people are poor physical health, social isolation and loss.
Generalized anxiety disorder and phobias account for most anxiety in late life; panic disorder is rare.
Feelings About Death
Some people seem to be inherently more at peace with death; whether premature or at the end of a long life. 3 Others find the dying process difficult to face no matter how old they get or how often they experience the death of a loved one.
“A lot of our fear of death is about losing the things we've built up,” says Steve Taylor, a lecturer in psychology at Leeds Beckett University in Leeds, England, and the author of Out of Darkness. “But elderly people let go of their attachment to these things, and in the process they let go of some of their fear.”
They find that atheists are among those least afraid of dying...and, perhaps not surprisingly, the very religious. Religion has long been thought to be a solution to the problem of death. Notions of an afterlife are nearly universal, though there is great diversity in the details.
Today a person 90 years of age is expected to live on average another 4.6 years (versus 3.2 years in 1929–1931), and those who pass the century mark are projected to live another 2.3 years.
Recovering after an injury is often a very long and time-consuming process, which is particularly true for adults ages 65+. It can often take months until they fully recover, but there are ways to speed up this process and recover a bit faster.