Monday, May 2, 2016

The Dementia Meditation Twelve Bar Blues

Getting old is not for sissies, the loss of physical strength and mental sharpness can become quite devastating. Then, there's all kinds of illnesses, from Alzheimer's to cancer. I've had physical back pain for almost 20 years, and there are times I wish I had died during the night. But I really don't want to whine when I can bitch and moan...

One of the things I've found in myself is I no longer can sleep 8 hours at a time, and I tend to take short cat-naps throughout the day. I used to think that it was from low blood sugar, but it's not. What happens is after retiring we develop slower body rhythms, no longer seeking out the fast stimulations and adrenaline rushes when we were young. Unfortunately, it's too easy to go too much in the other direction and go too far inward, dwelling on our memories, staying at home all of the time, and not bothering to communicate with other people.

I like to read, but cannot spend more than a couple of hours before I fatigue. A cat-nap refreshes my mental acuity, letting me continue. The bad part is it now takes me all day to read the newspaper, longer to read a book. Talking to many other old farts like myself, I see that they often do the same. In fact, we would have a more productive work force if we scheduled naps in during the day; for example, work 3 hours, then take a 1 hour nap, then work 3 more hours. It's too easy to blame and condemn an older person, make them retire early or let them withdraw from the world until they no longer can take care of themselves. I'm sure you have seen this happen to those you love, and why Yeats raged against the dying light. No easy answer... One tool that I've found is on YouTube, listening to relaxing music designed to allow you a deeper sleep, it's listed in several categories as meditation music, and ranges from flute and water sounds, to full blown aural arrangements.

I know, this sure ain't no politics, just searching for some quality late in life...


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