how do we all deal with aging, as spectrumites or otherwise

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Why is it that when we're young we don't really think about how our parents are probably going to die before we do because they're old?

(I'm sorry, I know everyone else hates their parents)

" Slow down...You move too fast ..You got to make the Morning Last"

I saved and invested so I could retire early and play golf and putter around in my gardens.
Stress reduction by not having to work. The back yard is very private.

I don't know if it helped by planting Zinnias, but I saw more butterflies this year.

I'm trying to age gracefully. I'm 70. I'll retire next month.

During the pandemic I lost 140 lbs. (64.5 kg) to get to a healthy BMI. I'm not overweight. I've been able to keep it off for 2 years so far. I'm fit.

I gave up sugar and ultra processed food during my weight loss and I think that's why I don't have arthritis or joint pain yet. I'm on the mediterranean diet now and I cook all my own food. I'm trying to use organic foods most of the time. I'm most fearful about developing a metabolic disease that results in the common old age conditions Diabetes, Cancer, Heart disease, or Dementia.

I'm doing more resistance training now than I've ever done. I'm trying to prevent some of the muscle loss that comes with age. I won't have anyone to take care of me if I lose mobility.

My 2 older brothers died young from cancers (before they were even eligible for social security). My 2 younger sisters are still alive but they complain of joint aches and pains. One sister has had breast cancer but it has been treated with drastic surgery.

I quote my long gone father frequently. He told me "Getting old is Hell, but it sure beats the alternative"


Every day is a gift, use it and enjoy it to the best of your ability. Even though those abilities have more limitations as we age, we are still capable of finding things to be grateful for as we age.

I pretty much deal with aging by fighting against it by a strict diet and different kinds of physical exercises to adress any issues. Step by step I have escalated my efforts for the last 10 years.

I'll be 44 next month so I'm still relatively inexperienced with 'aging' in the decline-management sense but a few things that have been relevant:

1) My 30's nearly destroyed my health, I've been recovering, doing light workouts, and supplementing aggressively ever since (enzymes, collagen, vitamins, nootropic mushroom blends, autophagy supplements, etc.).

2) I like walking, it's low impact and keeps my legs in shape. For whatever reason I've noticed that while my legs are pretty large in terms of musculature I notice that my vascular health is touch and go - ie. if I stop walking for a week and try to walk a couple miles I'll be hobbling the first day I get back into it (maybe that will change eventually but for right now it's pretty standard).

3) Stretching and light weights - I do standing splits, touch my toes / ground for a minute several times per week and also have some light weights (again - rebuilding my shoulders). I'd like to get back into something like Vinyasa Yoga or finding a martial arts instructor who could hold a candle to the one I had for over a decade until last year.

4) Microdosing psychedelics - this combines with the mushroom supplements. If I understand Paul Stamets correctly he did some research into stacking a microdose of psilocybin mushroom with Lion's Mane and Niacin (B3) and that it had huge neurogenerative effects - I typically try to take Lion's Mane anytime I microdose.

5) Morning meditation - I do it every day, partly for grounding myself in the intention and purpose of self-reflection, self-improvement, and living my life (to the best of my ability) on the terms I want to live it - even if that means beating my head into the wall of spirituality just enough to keep my orientation out of pure materialist status-chase style living.


Fears?

1) If I end up living alone the big concern is having to deal with predatory dynamics from neighbors wherever I live (legal bullying, etc.).

2) I'm deeply hoping that I can invest my way out of the work world, or at least forced involvement with it. I want to stay busy and still contribute but with the understanding that the moment someone tells me that I need to do something illegal for them I know - at every level - that they need me more than I need them and I'd rather they knew that as well to avoid any confusion. The other obvious piece - being as economically and financially predatory as our culture is I don't want to be used, abused, and rendered homeless in old age - largely because people could care less about each other and would even care less about an autistic guy.

3) Somewhat like 1) but broader - I want to stay on top of how peer predation and bullying changes with age and I want to make sure that I know what I'm in for with respect to my 50's, 60's, 70's, etc. to see if I can get there pre-armed rather than needing a few years of massive trauma every decade of my life to force me to learn the new psychopathy format that my peer group has moved on to.