The flip side of ageing

Through massaging I'm seeing the flip-side of ageing. As clothes and shoes come off, I'm seeing crusty, sun-induced growths on backs (message to all: cover up!), arthritic feet that are so deformed they look like gnarly sculptures; incontinence pads and bowels that eliminate through bags.

I saw one lady struggle with tears when she was trying to tell me it's not fun being 90. She'd had a stroke and wears a hearing aid and has poor vision. The message that I felt very strongly she was trying to tell me is that this is not who she used to be. She's a prisoner in a body that doesn't co-operate for her.

I've picked up Deepak Chopra's book on ageing from the library here - to see what he thinks we can do to age gracefully and healthily.

I'm sure I've said this before and I'll say it again - look after your body, enjoy your body! Don't take the fact that it works, forgranted!