You can live your best life and feel good at any age. The key is taking proactive steps to care for yourself. Seniors can improve their quality of life by taking control of their physical and mental health. Although this might sound like a huge task at first, you can implement small, easy changes to your daily lifestyle to help boost your wellness. If you’re interested in feeling better, keep reading for some tips on how you can stay healthy and get the most out of each day.

Getting Help Around the House
Even for those of us who enjoy housework, it can become more difficult as we age. If arthritis and other health conditions prevent you from completing any chores, one solution is to hire some extra help. Luckily, professional landscapers and cleaners are affordable these days. In Los Angeles, for instance, most homeowners only spend between $117 – $223 for interior cleanings.

Staying Physically Active
Physical fitness is important at any age. In addition to boosting our immune system, improving balance, and building strength, physical activity also naturally reduces depression and anxiety. Be sure to talk to your doctor before starting any new workout program to make sure it’s safe for you. If you’re having trouble getting motivated to work out, you might even ask a friend, relative, or loved one to be your workout partner. Everything, including fitness, is more fun with a friend.

Coping with Stress
Although there’s a lot of focus on caring for your physical health as you age, seniors should also prioritize their mental and emotional health. Experts say stress hurts our health, making us sick. Despite those findings, however, health psychologist Kelly McGonigal advises taking a different approach to stress. McGonigal recommends rethinking your stress response as a helpful process that prepares you to perform better. Surprisingly, Harvard studies have backed up McGonigal’s claims. By changing the way you react to stress, you can improve your coping mechanisms and resilience when faced with difficult situations.

Beating Depression
Even those of us who adequately cope with stress can sometimes feel sad, lonely, or even depressed. To help beat the blues, try to surround yourself with people you love. Engage in social activities, which help you meet new friends and overcome loneliness. Because physical activity has been shown to reduce depression, you might go for a walk or take a gentle fitness class. You might even talk to a medical professional about medications or daily techniques you can use to boost your mood.

On those days when you’re having trouble staying motivated enough to get out of bed, be patient with yourself. Try to push through any difficult days, and always remember to treat yourself with the same level of compassion you’d show a beloved friend.

Getting Enough Sleep
Sure, your doctor’s said it over and over again, but getting enough sleep really is crucial for your health. A healthy lifestyle that consists of 8 hours of sleep per night helps reduce your risk of conditions like Alzheimer’s. “Deep sleep is like a power cleanse for the brain,” says neuroscientist Lisa Genova.

To fall asleep, you might try implementing an evening relaxation practice. You could convert a quiet space or an unused bedroom in your home into a meditation room, read your favorite book, or sit quietly in candlelight. Psychotherapist Terri Cole calls these relaxing spaces your own “zen den.” Best of all, Cole says it’s “something you have control over, and all it requires is a candle and maybe a nice, little meditation.”
Caring for Yourself

Although we all know the importance of caring for our health throughout our lives, it’s especially crucial during our senior years. From taking care of your body to hiring help around the house, there are many ways you can boost your quality of life at any age. Be sure to get enough sleep each night, and talk to your doctor about safe activities to help you stay fit. Remember, you deserve to enjoy a high quality of life. Your health and wellness are worth it.

I felt crappy after, but for the moment it worked to calm me down.

For me it was my escape from the stress of the day.  Sometimes I felt lonely, other times I was relieved to be in my own space and sometimes I was avoiding a task I didn’t want to do.

Think about what triggers it for you.

Watch the video below for some suggestions and I’d love to know what resonates with you.

So I started a cleanse last week (*important note at the bottom about cleansing).  I was happy to start it and I didn’t even ask my husband, Claudio, if he wanted to join in.  I’d asked him last time and got some type of response like, “My digestion is good so why would I need to do this”.  Ok, fine I wish we all felt so superb and needed no refining of our diet.

The night before I started my cleanse Claudio said,
“I think I’ll join you on the cleanse.”

I tried not to fall out of my chair or to sound too surprised as I didn’t want him to feel pressured into it.

So here we are 9 days into it and I’m so happy he is still along for the ride.

The reason I bring this up is sometimes for you or your loved ones, when you want to push and prod to make something happen, just laying the foundation and doing the things that make you feel well, alive, intrigued, inspired etc. come by example and not by forcing it.

Can you be that example for your loved ones or for yourself?

My husband leads by example in so many ways that I’m thrilled when he is willing to take on something out of his comfort zone.

And how’s the cleanse going…..

Claudio had a headache the first 3 days and now he is doing fantastic with it.  He’s got more energy, he’s much calmer and seems to be in such a great place.

As for me…..

I’ve had good and bad days.  I’ve been a bit tired and withdrawn which can happen.  But I’ll continue to stick with it for the next 5 days and hopefully I’ll feel better then him (oops, sometime I forget to lead by example too :)).

*All cleanses are not good for every BODY.  Modify, add on, do what you need to make it work for you.  Usually a well run cleanse will give some options depending on what you may need to be successful as some body types don’t do well eliminating too much at once and not all cleanses are good for certain body types.  And the cleanse we are doing is NOT a juice cleanse or starvation cleanse.  It includes grains, vegetables, lean protein.  If your body is stressed and hungry it’s harder for toxins to be released.