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What Does It Feel Like To Be 75? Say Goodbye To Spry : NPR

Seeded on Sun Aug 29, 2010 12:47 PM EDT
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While reporting my recent series on Aging At Home, I came across a special suit at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab. It's meant to help 20-something engineers feel the aches and limitations of an average 75-year-old so they can design better products for them. Think of it as working like those outfits Superheroes put on, only backward. Of course, I couldn't resist.

Now, I'm 40-something — no spring chicken. But if the crosswalk light is blinking, I can still dash across the street, no problem. Until, that is, MIT researcher Rozanne Puleo starts strapping me into what she calls her Age Gain Now Empathy System.

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spudpundit

As someone who is a couple of decades away from this experience (unless I take better care of myself) I found this interesting.

I've also heard of a bank that made its employees go through a similar experience: rubber gloves, glasses covered with Vaseline, and ear plugs to emulate some of the experiences that seniors go through.

I think it's good to give people experiences that increase their empathy for others. It helps increase patience, if nothing else. I also hope there is a stronger drive to increase excersize and improve diet for seniors so that the experience of aging needn't be so miserable.

  • 1 vote
Reply#1 - Sun Aug 29, 2010 12:51 PM EDT
pansysue30Deleted
Gaynel

I'm 55 and already know how it feels to be really old! Getting dizzy, falling, constant pain, physical limitations, irritable bowels, ok ok, too much info. Why don't they hire older people to design things for older people? I do agree that it is a great opportunity for young folks to understand how it feels to have physical and mental limitations. I wish it were mandatory everywhere. Yes, sensitivity training to teach us how to care for one another. How novel.

    Reply#3 - Mon Aug 30, 2010 9:41 AM EDT
    spudpundit

    I'm 55 and already know how it feels to be really old!

    I'm at the same age and it's really important to keep your body happy with good diet and light exercise. If you live in an area where you can find yoga or qi gong exercises, it's amazing what just 15 minutes a day can do for you. If you're in a more remove area, there are some videos I'd be happy to recommend.

    Yes, sensitivity training to teach us how to care for one another. How novel.

    I've tried a couple of times to start a program where store owners and managers would try a half day of navigating their own stores in a wheelchair. Unless you've been through it the experience is hard to understand. Trying to make your way through tight aisles, reaching high merchandise, trying to open heavy bathroom doors. Every attempt has petered out.

      #3.1 - Mon Aug 30, 2010 11:52 AM EDT
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      Gaynel

      Hey Spudpundit

      Thanks so much for your comments and recommendations. I do live in a rural setting that keeps me pretty busy as long as I move with intention. I have structured my life so as to have minimal stress and hopefully it will help me get along a little longer.

        Reply#4 - Mon Aug 30, 2010 8:34 PM EDT
        spudpundit

        This is one of the simplest, easiest to follow qigong sets I know of. A week or two after starting it I noticed I was bouncing as I walked. There are two sets. One sitting, the other standing. The sitting is kind of weird, so I'd stick to standing for a starter.

        http://www.amazon.com/Eight-Simple-Qigong-Exercises-Health/dp/B00016USR8/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1283215072&sr=1-1

          #4.1 - Mon Aug 30, 2010 8:39 PM EDT
          Reply
          Gaynel

          Can I call you Spud? Thank you so much for the link. I will check it out and let you know. I have had some exposure to qi gong (sp) and similar therapies. You know, sometimes we get so busy with life that we forget the simplest things, like taking care of ourselves. I have been very guilty of that but am trying to change. I'm finding it nice to communicate with all of you here and again Spud, I appreciate your input.

            Reply#5 - Tue Aug 31, 2010 9:36 AM EDT
            spudpundit

            Can I call you Spud?

            Most people do. I'm less fond of "Spud-boy" since it's mostly used by people trying to get my goat. :-)

            Thank you so much for the link. I will check it out and let you know.

            Best of luck and keep me posted. There's a lot of "esoteric" stuff around qigong. Some of it is interesting and valuable. A lot of it is based on 2000 years of tradition that doesn't hold up well under modern science. But there's definitely something about the standing movements that seem to increase health. Maybe it's just a daily commitment to movement and flexibility, but it certainly works for me.

              #5.1 - Tue Aug 31, 2010 1:43 PM EDT
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