Does a long trip take its toll on our bodies?

Since my husband and I are both in our seventies and the couple we traveled with are in their late sixties, I started thinking about how traveling to far away places – especially Africa – can take its toll on our aging bodies. Here’s the precautions and planning I did to counter any possible adverse affects on what would be the trip of a lifetime.

First I needed to get a series of shots required for traveling to Africa – polio vaccine, hepatitis, tetanus, and yellow fever – the yellow fever injection was painful for quite a while. I also brought along a 25-day supply of malaria prevention pills that I started taking a few days before arriving in Africa and continued for seven days after we left. I brought along the original prescription bottle to avoid any questions at the airport.

What to pack for Africa was another issue. We were told to bring crushable duffle-type bags to Africa with the admonition that that bag and any of our carry on pieces should weigh no more than a total of 33 pounds. Space and weight restrictions on the mini twin-engine planes we had to take to get from place to place in Africa imposed that dictum. However, in hindsight I realized I didn’t pack quite enough. I needed a couple of lightweight sweaters for the cool mornings and a couple more changes of lightweight loose fitting slacks. Since I get an allergic reaction to the sun, I was very concerned about sun-protection clothing. I wore mostly dark colored clothing throughout the trip. Sun block was also essential.

The short flights we took within Africa were exciting – we could actually see wild animals from the plane’s window before we landed – but, the planes are hot, cramped, and a little nerve racking – especially while landing on dirt runways. I felt very relieved when we were finished with those.

Late afternoon during a rainstorm 

       Besides flying, we rode in open four-wheel drive vehicles and very bumpy almost non-existent roads while on safari. Because we mostly kept the plastic side windows rolled up we had to take care to prevent getting sunburned, wind burned, and inundated by the dust wafting in off the roads. I had a good solution – a big cotton knit scarf that I wore many different ways. If the morning was cold I wore it wound around my head and neck, if it was dusty, I used it to cover my mouth. And I wore it to protect my back and hands and arms from too much sun. I wore that scarf constantly. However, our guides were good about rolling down the windows and loaning us ponchos during the few rainstorms we encountered. They really knew how to take care of us.

       Also, the seats in the jeeps were very high off the ground. I had to learn to climb in using a series of narrow steps attached to the sides. I had to use those same steps but going backwards on the way down.

At the Ngorongoro Crater wearing 

my ubiquitous scarf

Dietary constraints were another consideration. Since I can’t eat dairy, gluten, or red meat, I let my tour organizer know of these restrictions well before I left home. I was very grateful that most places we visited were prepared to cater to my needs. However, that didn’t stop me or the others in our little group from having some digestive problems. I think those came from eating fresh vegetables washed in regular, unfiltered, African water. We were warned to drink and use only filtered water while brushing our teeth, but I guess they don’t follow their own warnings when handling food. Even so it’s amazing how even while staying in a tent camp, we took showers with running water, and toilets flushed like the ones at home. The staff just has to keep pouring water into tanks at the back of the tent to miraculously make that happen.

The long flights were also a concern. We had to take two separate flights to London with a long layover in between. And on our way home between Paris and Los Angeles, we took three flights with two layovers. We had luggage problems not just associated with packing, hauling, and checking, we had a mis-marked bag that didn’t arrive home until the day after we did.

And what about jet lag? I had the worst ever after this recent trip. I’d heard we are susceptible to a day of jet lag for every hour we’re out of our normal time zone. Well, at some points during this trip we were twelve hours on the other side of the clock. I finally began to feel normal on my eleventh day at home. During my jet lag phase I missed two appointments, made with the same person. I know I’ll never live that down.

I hope I haven’t turned anyone off from taking a trip like this. Experiencing the wonders of Africa was well worth the effort and occasional hardships. Like I said at the outset, it was a trip of a lifetime. Just be prepared if you decide to go.

       This piece (now slightly edited) was originally published at the Aging Bodies website where I contribute a monthly article.

Thinking young on my birthday

Every month I write an article about some aspect of aging  for the Aging Bodies website. This month's article pertains to my recent preoccupation with age. Of course that makes sense. Today is my seventy-third birthday. 

Here's my article:

Aging Bodies

Think Young, Stay Young Tuesday, 14 May 2013 19:11

I’ve been thinking about age for a while – especially now that I’m sure to live well beyond the age of my father and my maternal grandmother and paternal grandfather. But I think age is just relative. We really are just as young or old as we feel.

My relatives who died at 72, the age I am now, looked and felt a lot older than they were. But they didn’t have the youth-prolonging advantages like healthy food and exercise opportunities that we have. We also have science on our side – better medical care and the miracles of skin care potions and plastic surgery.

Don’t you bristle when someone tells you how good you look for your age? I do. Couldn’t they just say, “You look good,” leaving out the “for your age” part of the sentence? But since I think I do look younger than my age, and I definitely feel younger, I wanted to know how others felt as well. To get my answers I asked several people to respond to the quote:

How old would you be if you didn’t know your age? (attributed to Satchel Paige).

What’s interesting is that the responses showed that most people think they are younger than their chronological age.

One woman about 60 said:

“I think I would be 55. My body is not as agile as I would like it to be, so I selected fifties rather than forties.”

She says she had great skin in her forties, but I think she has great skin right now. She even dares to go out in public without makeup.

Another woman who is over sixty-five said:

“Well, if I didn't know, I would say somewhere between 45 and 55.  I feel great and am totally active and engaged with the world around me.  I don't feel there is much that I cannot do, if I want to.”

We also tend to determine out age as it relates to parts of out bodies:

“I feel like I am about 42 in my head, 63 in my body and my reactions vary from day to day. Aging is very humbling. When I look at my hands I want to throw up because they look like the hands of a 70 year old. When I look at my arms I think, what the hell?”

I certainly agree. My hands are wrinkled, the skin on my arms and legs sag, and hordes of brown spots decorate my face, décolleté, and hands, arms, and legs. Perhaps I should say those parts of my body are older than I really am while I feel younger when I look at other parts. 

And don’t you just love it when someone acts with complete surprise at finding out how old you are? I like the shocked looks on their faces. So does this responder:

“I guess I’d have to refer to the people at Curves who are shocked when they learn I’m 73.  I don’t feel like I’m 73 but I know I feel worse than I did at 63.  So judging from my capabilities at working out, I’m younger than my age, and I look younger.  So I’d say I’m 60.”

Mirrors also play a role with some folks:

“When I look at my face in the mirror I think, who is that old women?"

 “If I did not know how old I was (and had no mirror), I would think that I was 50. I still work hard and long, concede nothing to aging and I remain an eager learner and willingly expose myself to new ideas and experiences.”                

“I just say I’m 30 and when I look in the mirror I remember I’m 87.” 

And some people’s age assessment depends on how they compare themselves with others:

“Keeping in mind that Fred Mertz on the old "I Love Lucy" show was supposed to be 50, I guess I should feel like I'm 30! My fantasies make me feel 40. But since I know that I'm old enough that young women do not and cannot even see me – because I've passed the point when old men become invisible – I guess I feel like I am 73, which I am.”   

“Every day I encounter people who think that they are ‘old’ and many of them are chronologically much younger than I am.”

“Ten years younger, because that's when the infirmity that is mine appeared in others.”

Others responded in terms of the age they’d like to be – as if they wished they could go back in time.

“I would be 48 years old.  I would still be at my most favorite job with the Navy.  I would be head-over-heels in love and had just found my soul mate.”   

“I would be middle aged – with half of my life in front of me, and believing that “the best is yet to come.”

“I'd be in my mid forties, when we first became empty nesters and a new exciting chapter was beginning.” 

Only two people responded negatively. One has had a recent illness that disrupted her feelings of youth and wellbeing:

“If you had asked me two months ago, I would have told you that I feel like 45, fit, going to Zumba four times a week, hiking, and enjoying all. Today I feel like 85 since five weeks ago I had a severe pseudo gout attack that left me in intense pain in both knees. I have not been able to exercise, and I’m only able to take short walks when the pain is less. The medication is not helping my wellbeing. Hopefully the rheumatologist will make me feel 45 again!!!”

The other said:

“Taking the survey is too depressing for me.”

I guess that person doesn’t want anything to do with her age real or perceived.

And one response was a combination of both the negative and positive:

“I have chronic back pain and when it is acting up I feel old, i.e., at or above my current age of 76. When my treatment of my chronic body pain is working, I feel much younger than my actual age, maybe as much as ten or more years younger, say 66.”

My favorite response is:

“Think young, stay young.”

That’s the key.

***

So, you're probably wondering how old I would be. Actually, I think I'd be no older than fifty-five. I'm trim, I'm pain free, I don't take any medications for physical maladies, and I always feel very good. Plus I workout every single day. I can't find I thing about me that says I'm actually seventy-three except for the fact that I was born in May 1940. 

How old would you be if you didn't know your age?

Late breaking book news

It’s time to bring you up to date with book news. It seems like things are moving so fast, I barely have time to do my novel and article writing. But it’s all good.

Books for Sale

As of yesterday the Kindle version of Leaving the Hall Light On is for sale. The paperback has been available for the last month or so. And in case you still like hardback books as I do, I have them for sale at my Amazon storefront at a reduced price of $21.50.

Marketing Events

Book giveaway at Goodreads. Hurry over there. It ends on August 28.

Google + Hangouts with Jason Matthews: Indie Authors #21 on Memoir Writing and Indie Authors # 24 on Writing as Therapy. I’ll participate in another hangout next Monday, August 27.

A September 13 roundtable with Linda Joy Myers of the National Association of Memoir Writers and Mike O’Mary of Dream of Things to talk about how I was able to contract with Dream of Things after my former publisher went out of business.

Readings at the Essay Fiesta and Waterline Writers and an interview on Rick Kogan's talk show on WGN radio – all taking place in Chicago in mid September (details to follow). Why Chicago? I grew up there and that’s where my publisher, Dream of Things, is headquartered. A great excuse to go back to my hometown.

And I’m scheduling a new blog tour to take place between October 1 and December 31. I’m so excited that many of the blogs that hosted me last year will host again during this tour. If you are interested in joining in, here are the details:

The Tour

The tour is open from October 1 to December 31, 2012. You can pick any date that works for you. And you can participate in one of three ways:

A.    Post a review of the book on your blog. 

B.    Post a Q&A with me using up to six questions from the list, below.

C.    Post a description of my book and conduct a contest to give away a free copy to one of your followers. (You can also hold a contest in conjunction with options A or B, if you like.)

If you would like to participate in the blog tour, please respond to this e-mail and let me know if you would like a print copy, a .mobi file (for Kindle), an .epub file (for Nook, iPad and other e-readers), or a PDF file. (The Kindle edition has just been released.)

Also, if you choose Option B (Q&A with me), let me know which questions you’d like me to address.

  

--

The Book

Leaving the Hall Light On: A Mother's Memoir of Living with Her Son's Bipolar Disorder and Surviving His Suicide charts the near-destruction of one middle-class family whose oldest son committed suicide after a seven-year struggle with bipolar disorder. Author Madeline Sharples goes deep into her own well of grief to describe her anger, frustration and guilt. She also shares the story of how she, her husband and younger son weathered every family's worst nightmare—including struggles with her own thoughts of suicide, and ultimately, her decision to live and take care of herself as a woman, wife, mother and writer.

·       "A moving read of tragedy, trying to prevent it, and coping with life after." Midwest Book Review

·       "Poetically visceral, emotionally honest." Irvin D. Godofsky, M.D.

·       "Moving, intimate and very inspiring." Mark Shelmerdine, CEO, Jeffers Press

The book is also available through my publisher, Dream of Things.

The Author

Madeline Sharples is an author, poet, and web journalist who spent most of her professional life as a technical writer and editor, grant writer and proposal manager. Through the tragedy of her son’s mental illness and suicide, she has become a thought-provoking expert on the affects of mental illness and suicide on family members—and, more important, on how to keep the surviving members of your family together and move forward in the aftermath of tragedy.

Questions for Option B, online Q&A with me (please select a maximum of six questions):

1.     What does the title of the book mean?

2.     What were the warning signs when your son first began to experience symptoms of bipolar disorder?

3.     How difficult was it for you to get your son to seek treatment and take medication for his illness?

4.     How do you give support and comfort to a person who doesn’t want support or comfort?

5.     How did you maintain your sanity after your son’s suicide?

6.     Did your marriage suffer as a result of your son’s bipolar disorder and suicide?

7.     How have you seen the stigma of mental illness and suicide play out in your life?

8.     What can a person do to help and comfort a family that has experienced a suicide or other tragedy?

9.     How did your elder son’s illness and suicide affect your thoughts toward your younger son?

10.  One of the ways you dealt with your personal tragedy is by writing about it. How did that help you?

11.  Who should read your book?

12.  What advice do you have for families that have been affected by mental illness or suicide?

And that doesn’t count my blogging, tweeting, Facebook posting, occasionally visiting LinkedIn and Pinterest, and writing for PsychAlive, Naturally Savvy, Open to Hope, and a new gig starting this month at Aging Bodies.