PARENTAL ROLE AND LIFE AGING

To see young couple loving each other is no wonder, but to see an old couple loving each other is the best sight of all

Post Parental Period

Post Parental Period is a time of improvement in their lives. The post parental years offer new freedom and allow husbands and wives to recreate the intimacy of their early childless years. Menopause- is a landmark for women as they end their childbearing years. Sexually, they are active, although they undergo some sexual changes.

Aging is the accumulation of changes in a person overtime. Aging in humans refers to a multidimensional process of physical, psychological and social change. Some dimensions of ageing grow and expand over time, while others decline. It is an important part of all human societies reflecting the biological changes that occur, but also reflecting cultural and societal conventions.

 AGE is measured chronologically, and a

persons birthday is often an important event. However the term aging is somewhat ambiguous. Chronological aging may also be distinguished from social aging - cultural age-expectations of how people should act as they grow older and biological aging - an organisms physical state as it is ages.

Proximal aging- age based

effects that come about because of factors in the recent past. Distal Aging- age based differences that can be traced back to a cause early in persons life, such as childhood.

RETIREMENT
Retirement is the point where a person stops
employment completely.
It is generally viewed as the milestone that marks the

end of middle age and the entry into old age.

It is usually occurs between ages 60 and 70. A recent

study of those who retired early ( before the age of 63) found that two out five had found new jobs for pay, working about 20 hours a week.(Morse and Gray 1980)

Changes Involved in social Retirement

Loss of Finances- this is perhaps the biggest adjustment that retirement brings. Loss of Self-Esteem- when people is no longer feel useful and needed they may lose self worth. If the retired person believes that he or she has been as successful as anticipated and has something to show for all the effort, self-esteem appears to suffer less. Loss of work-oriented social contacts- retirees often report missing the people with whom they interacted daily.

 Loss of Meaningful tasks- Marriages which have

been stable for years can be shaken by a husband with retirement fidgets. On the simplest level, a great part of a mans adjustment to retirement involves filling the gap provided by the work situation Loss of reference groups-

THEORIES ON AGING
Biological Theories- the biological basis of aging is

unknown.
Evolutionary Theories- explains why almost all

living things weaken and die with age.

Reproductive-Cell Cycle Theory- aging regulated by the

reproductive hormones that act in an antagonistic pleiotropic manner via cell cycle signaling , promoting growth and development early in life.

Some Theories suggest that Aging is a Disease.

DNA Damage theory of Aging. DNA damage causes

the cells to stop dividing or induce apoptosis , often affecting stem cell pools and hence hindering regeneration. Autoimmune Theory- increase from antibodies that attack the bodys tissues. Accumulative Waste Theory- the biological theory of aging that points to buildup of cells of waste that presumably interferes with metabolism.

Wear-and Tear Theory- changes

associated with aging are the result of chance damage that accumulates over time. Somatic Mutation Theory- aging results from damage to the genetic integrity of the bodys cells.