​Seniors Matter(s): Reading - one of life’s pure pleasures!

Reading continues to be one of my favourite pastimes, and for good reason. We all know that relaxing with a good book is beneficial for people of all ages, but especially seniors, as it can reduce stress, provide mental simulation, and even improve memory.

Listening to a book is more convenient and enjoyable for some, and eBooks allow us to enlarge the text, a perfect option for seniors who may have a hard time reading small print. Books also make great gifts for the elderly reader in your life. Books can take us places we have never been, help us relive another time, and take us on great adventures – all without ever leaving home.

Stimulating conversations across generations, bringing people of all walks of life together, books and the discussion surrounding them, are powerful tools in improving the quality of life for anyone.

Reading is so much more than simply scanning words across a page and lugging around thick books in public to seem smart. There is something special about a good book, article, or story. Everyone’s brain works differently, and everyone has different circumstances and interests; some people don’t enjoy reading and would rather opt for movies, which is completely normal and justified. Others have difficulty concentrating or are impaired in some way and might, therefore, find audiobooks more helpful.

Either way, everyone has different relationships with the act of reading and with stories and storytelling, which makes it a special, unique activity.

Those who do enjoy reading and recognize its power or those who want to get into reading, might be pleased to find out that it has scientifically-proven benefits. Whether you are reading a newspaper article or a fiction book, the very act of reading is advantageous and valid because it is a mentally stimulating and enriching activity; no one format, or genre is ‘better’ than the other. Reading is valuable for people of all ages but is an activity you’ll want to continue or begin in your senior years for your benefit.

Copious studies have been conducted proving reading’s relation to stress reduction. One study from 2009 found that reading can reduce stress levels by 68 per cent, much more than listening to music or going for a walk. Participants who read for merely six minutes, experienced slowed heart rates and less muscle tension. Similarly, anxiety can be debilitating, but reading can – once again – prove to be a distraction and cause you to think more deeply about your (or book characters’) sources of anxiety.

I wrote about EQ vs IQ in my first book. Various studies have shown that reading improves people’s emotional intelligence. Part of being emotionally intelligent is having empathy and compassion for others and being open-minded, which reading also happens to increase. When things happen to characters in books, your brain simulates certain actions, and you might ‘feel’ what the characters are feeling. For example, reading the word ‘kick’ activates the areas of the brain related to physical kicking.

This advantage doesn’t just apply to fiction, although fiction especially increases empathy and overall emotional intelligence by creating fictional ideas and characters to which you can relate and with which you can empathize, ultimately allowing readers to better comprehend people’s thoughts and feelings.

Reading about other people’s experiences in the news, whether good or bad, can allow you to place yourself in their shoes and better understand them and their backgrounds. This can even boost your social skills by helping you read others’ emotions.

If you have recently found yourself unable to sleep, consider picking up a book before bed. Seniors commonly have more difficulty falling asleep than their younger counterparts for a few reasons. Reading for half an hour to an hour before bed, or simply incorporating reading into your daily schedule, in general, and not just before bed, can help you fall asleep faster and sleep more peacefully.

Eighteenth Century English essayist, poet, playwright, and politician Joseph Addison has famously stated that, “Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” While this is quite an old quote, it has held up today due to its truth.

The mental stimulation produced by reading can keep your mind sharp in old age. The brain must be constantly working to remain healthy.

We now live in an information age in which everything is instantaneous. We learn one thing, and it’s quickly replaced by the next new story. Everything is extremely fast-paced, causing people to speed up as opposed to slow down in every sense. Our patience and attention span have decreased and continue to decrease as everything around us becomes faster and faster to accommodate our shrinking attention spans and patience. In this digital age, many of us have consequently lost the patience for reading.

Reading requires more concentration than scrolling through your phone, for instance. You can’t exactly multi-itask while reading, either; a good book or article requires your full concentration so that you can fully retain all the information.

Some books require more attention than others. Reading a classic, for example, requires more effort to read than contemporaries, since they might contain concepts or experiences you don’t understand or haven’t lived. That is why you might breeze through contemporary books; whereas, reading a classic might take a few weeks.

Another huge benefit to reading is the improvement, development, or refinement of critical thinking skills over time. As you now know, reading is quite mentally stimulating. The exposure to different perspectives, ideas, stories, and worlds can cause you to reflect on and ponder them deeply, while comparing them with your own ideals, beliefs, and viewpoints. Eventually, you will create ties between these ideas or be able to recognize and assess why they are dissimilar.

Reading differs from electronic media in that it gives you more space to think, understand what you learn, and be critical and analytical. In the long run, critical thinking skills gained from reading can transfer over to problem-solving.

When you read, your brain enters a state that is like meditation, bringing you inner peace. What could be more freeing and relaxing than unwinding after a long, stressful day voluntarily with a book? A UK study demonstrated that readers are 21 per cent less likely to experience depression. All the benefits above such as improved sleep, increased creativity, stress reduction, and more, can combine to ultimately make you a much happier person.

I have no ability to know what type of reading engages you, so I am listing just a few I have come by that may interest you.

These should be available at your local library or bookstore.

The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940 by John Bishop. Told in the style of 1940s melodramas, this book is an excellent mystery with a touch of comedy. It’s a great read-out-loud book, as you or your loved one will share lots of laughs.

I’m Too Young to Be Seventy by Judy Viorst. This is a wonderful collection of poems that are witty, wise, and touching. It’s the perfect book for older adults who have young spirits.

Disrupt Aging: A Bold New Path to Living Your Best Life at Every Stage by Jo Ann Jenkins. Written by AARP CEO Jo Ann Jenkins, this book changes the conversation about age. Jenkins focuses on three areas: health, wealth, and self, and inspires people to live each year to the fullest.

Prime of Life by P.D. Bekendam. This book is for anyone who likes unexpected story lines, and is about a doctor who leaves his luxurious career behind to become a janitor at a retirement community. It’s filled with tons of humour and quirky characters!

The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg. This book is about a group of seniors who are fed up with early bedtimes and soft foods, and decide to reclaim their independence by committing a robbery. It’s a comedy of errors that will keep elderly readers turning pages until the very end.

Rules for Aging: A Wry and Witty Guide to Life by Roger Rosenblatt. Commentator on PBS’s NewsHour, Roger Rosenblatt gives practical advice through a wry sense of humour for those wishing to live longer, fuller lives.
 
Call It a Gift by Valerie Hobbs. This novel is about two people who meet each other late in life and fall in love, even though they are an unlikely pair. It’s a heartwarming, sentimental read — tissues may be needed.

“Aging Wisely: Strategies for Baby Boomers and Seniors” is Dr. Robert Levine’s book about aging that includes both mind and body in its approach. Although the title says otherwise, there are many things in this top book on healthy aging that apply to both sexes.

“A Man’s Guide to Healthy Aging: Stay Smart, Strong, and Active” - Authors Edward Thompson Jr. and Lenard Kaye examine “what’s next” after middle age and offer a man’s perspective on healthy aging.

“The Gift of Years: Growing Older Gracefully” is a book about embracing the aging process and taking it in. Author Joan Chittister.

New York Times bestselling author Michael Gurian (author of “The Wonder Boys”) takes us on a journey along newly-defined dimensions for our second half of life. “The Wonder of Aging: A New Approach to Embracing Life After Fifty” divides our second act into three stages: The Age of Transformation (from our late 40s to around 60), The Age of Distinction (from 60 to 75), and The Age of Completion (the final stage of our journey after 50, and he inspires his readers to go out and get it, whatever their “it” is).

“Caring about others, running the risk of feeling, and leaving an impact on people, brings happiness.” – Harold Kushner

‘Till next time!