MEL WALSH--LIFE & HEALTH AFTER 60

I talk to myself in public

Yes, sometimes I talk to myself in public. Some would call this insanity, but I call it writing a column.

 Columns are the way I lecture myself and of course, you too. Together we learn to up our Vitamin D, check out our blood pressure and note the salt content of prepared foods such as pizza before we scarf down a day’s salt limit in one encounter with pepperoni.

So here’s another of those self-lectures---this one about how to stay independent, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed into the years ahead.

 First, the bad news from a study at the University of Pittsburgh.  Women are living longer than men, but some of them aren’t living better. Women who gained weight over the years and women with arthritis are more likely than other women to be disabled in their later years.

Translation: Being disabled can mean needing help from our children, the ones we say we don’t want to bother in our old age. Being disabled can also mean we miss a lot of family fun. Example: If we are obese to the waddle point, we are not going to take nature walks our grandkids. And forget travel. On most trips, we have to be able to get up and keep up. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to stay home sitting in my decliner, watching Golden Girl re-runs while I miss out on seeing the rest of the world.

Trying for Better As Well As Longer

The experts at the University of Pittsburgh expect things to get worse unless we get smarter. Obesity rates are still rising which will translate into rising disability rates. This trend will have an enormous impact on the quality of life of older women.  So can you say expensive in-home care? Can you say nursing home?

To be fair, skilled nursing facilities can be a godsend and despite the stereotype, some of them are well-run. (Aside: check out the turnover rate of the facility’s staff. If they are in and out fast, you should be too. However, if they remain on the job, it may mean they and their patients are well-treated.)  Still, a nursing home is not the upbeat mental picture most of us want to have about our old age.

So let me ask: What’s the five-star movie in your head about being 60, 70. 80, 90 and 100?

Mine involves a much thinner woman, one whose joints are not aggravated by the weight she puts on them. She is folk dancing on the terrace of Nepenthe in Big Sur.  She is waltzing at the weddings of great grand kids. She is still writing columns hoping to preach herself into good behavior.

And I hope you dance along with me.

Mel in The Union

The Union staff
» More from The Union Staff
12:01 a.m. PT Jan 28, 2008

Hot granny hits "O": Local writer Mel Walsh was featured for the second time this past December in Oprah Winfrey's "O" magazine. In May, she was in People magazine and also made her third appearance as a guest on The Early Show, interviewed by host Julie Chen.

That same week, Mel's book, "Hot Granny," rose to No. 134 on Amazon.com.

Mel has appeared on the Food Network and Retirement Living TV, the new network for older adults. Next month, AARP Magazine will publish her column on older women and younger men.

Mel has an hour-long radio show on KVMR-FM, 89.5, streaming at kvmr.org. She was interviewed in Washington, D.C., in November for AARP Radio. For her book, Mel does many radio shows across the country and in Canada, all by phone and all in her bunny slippers, she says.

Look for her column, Second Wind, every Friday in The Union.

Mel in December issue of O, The Oprah Magazine

    It's the time of year when people begin planning whose house will be invaded for the holidays. Women cringe, hoping the Avenging Angel of Bad Gravy will pass by their doors this year. But there's one way out of this roasting pan and that's to consider passing the festivities on to the next generation. Mel says maybe it's time for older women to endow their adult offspring with the family turkey platter. In the December issue of O, The Oprah Magazine, Mel explores what it means to leave her post as Turkey Queen and pass the kitchen crown to her daughter. On newstands or in your mailbox now.

Mel in O, The Oprah Magazine

Check out the August 2007 issue of O, The Orpah Magazine. Mel is a featured contributor on page 22. The article and interview begin on page 190... (21 Things You Can Stop Worrying About Right Now).

Also look for Mel's article in the upcoming December issue of O, The Oprah Magazine. It's about passing on the holiday turkey platter to the next generation. The issue will be on the newstands in mid-November.