Older men who lead high-stress lives, either from chronic everyday hassles or because of a series of significant life events, are likely to die earlier than the average for their peers, new research from Oregon State University shows.
Tag: Carolyn Aldwin
“Religion helps regulate behavior and health habits, while spirituality regulates your emotions, how you feel,” said Carolyn Aldwin, a gerontology professor in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences at OSU.
A new study of how men approach their golden years found that how happy individuals are remains relatively stable for some 80 percent of the population, but perceptions of unhappiness – or dealing with “hassles” – tends to get worse once you are about 65-70 years old.
“I read a lot of life histories and fell in love with older adults and aging research,” Carolyn says. “I discovered that older adults were like living history books…I discovered that older adults had these rich, complex lives – and that everyone had a story to tell.”
This is the first study to show a direct link between stress trajectories and mortality in an aging population.
Professor Carolyn Aldwin, has interviewed thousands of people across the United States, many of them combat veterans, for longitudinal studies of aging. Her findings have shaken up conventional notions about stress and trauma across the lifespan.