The Art of Growing Old Aging with Grace

by de Hennezel, Marie

• ISBN13: 9780670023455
• ISBN10: 0670023450
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-04-12
• Publisher: Viking Adult

Summary

A groundbreaking approach to aging from one of France's best- known clinical psychologists. How should we accept growing old? It's an inevitable progression and yet in Western society the very subject of aging is often taboo and shrouded in anxiety and shame. Not anymore, says Marie de Hennezel, an internationally renowned clinical psychologist and bestselling author. Now that our lives are longer and richer than ever before, it's imperative to demystify our greatest fear and cultivate a positive awareness of aging. In this timely and essential book, de Hennezel offers a fresh perspective on the art of growing old. She confronts head-on the inevitable grief we sustain at the loss of our youth and explains how refusing to age and move forward in life is actually what makes us become old. Combining personal anecdotes with psychological theory, philosophy, and eye-opening scientific research from around the world, she shows why we should look forward to embracing everything aging has to offer in terms of human and spiritual enrichment. The Art of Growing Oldis a thought-provoking, brave, and uplifting meditation on the later years as they should be lived.

Author Biography

Marie de Hennezel has spearheaded numerous national health initiatives in France over the last decade and regularly presents seminars on the art of aging well. She is the author of ten previous books, including the international bestseller Intimate Death, and is a recipient of the Legion of Honor Award.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xiii
I Write for My Generation	p. 1
The Island of Long Life, and the Warmth of the Heart	p. 2
When the Fear of Growing Old Assails You	p. 9
The Worst Is Not Inevitable	p. 15
The Golden Age of Senior Citizens	p. 22
Changing the Way We See	p. 28
Rethinking Our Aesthetics	p. 30
The Beauty That Shines Through	p. 33
Yvonne	p. 34
Answering Fears About Old Age	p. 38
Connecting Generations	p. 38
Natural Caretaking	p. 42
Sheltered Housing	p. 44
The Beguine Convent	p. 46
Outsourcing Elder Care	p. 48
Guiding Lights	p. 49
A Humanist Solution	p. 54
Seeing Dementia Differently	p. 56
The Right Kind of Care	p. 60
Encounters with Remarkable Elderly People	p. 65
Keys to a Happy Old Age	p. 78
Strategies That Work	p. 79
Up with People	p. 80
Accepting Growing Old	p. 7
Final Frontiers	p. 90
Solitude Is Golden	p. 95
The Heart Does Not Grow Old	p. 98
The Richness of Time	p. 100
Activities and Actions	p. 103
Living in the Now	p. 104
A Sensual Old Age	p. 107
Harold and Elise	p. 118
The Fecundity of Time	p. 123
Consciousness Raising	p. 125
Meditative Action	p. 126
Meditation, Simplified	p. 129
Rediscovering the Body	p. 130
Disability as an Advantage	p. 132
The Still Point	p. 133
The Last Joys of Old Age	p. 135
Our Inner Garden	p. 137
The Ability to Marvel	p. 138
Knowing How to Die	p. 141
Conclusion	p. 152
Ariadne's Thread	p. 156
Acknowledgments	p. 159
Notes	p. 161
Index	p. 169
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