As someone who is well and truly on the other side of young I have had a few confidence challenges since noticing my first wrinkles and sagging jowls.
The first time I was aged shamed was after just celebrating my fortieth and being told I was now middle-aged. Could have been worse I know, but the thought had not yet occurred to me, and it did set me back a bit.
Since then I have encountered many incidences where my age has been used as a put down and such quips have left me feeling insecure and valueless particularly, when it came to my relationships with men… the ‘am I good enough?’ question, often with the subconscious answer, ‘no not really’, have sometimes loomed large in my life.
Since the baby boomers have now well and truly reached, and overtaken middle-age, wrinkles and sagging skin are on display more than ever before. We are not going to stay at home and hide ourselves away just because we are old. Baby boomers haven’t stopped wearing red lipstick or growing our hair because that is what is expected of us. We don’t feel old (most of the time), sometimes it comes as a shock when the light is good and we see just how many of those pesky wrinkles have arrived, seemingly overnight.
Fortunately, things are changing. There seems to be a ground swell where the over 50s are making a comeback in the value stakes. Suddenly wrinkles are not a barrier to work, play or relationships. Even the terminology is changing. Anti-ageing is no longer an acceptable phrase, products are now being described as ‘for mature skin’. No more treating aging like a disease, now it is a badge of honor. Being old is hip… maybe not yet, but it’s only a matter of time. Think Helen Mirren.
The signs are everywhere. Clothing designers are using older models on the catwalk. Websites for over 50s job applicants are now the go to sites for employers who are seeing the light. Technology companies now realise that having over fifties on the team adds finesse and knowledge to their organisations. The youngsters are taking time to talk to us and are realising that 50 is the new black and we do have something to offer in the terms of knowledge and experience, even though we may not understand what their texts and Facebook messages mean.
Copyright: auremar / 123RF Stock Photo
And we can look great. We no longer must be engaged in this obscene war against aging and we can be proud of the fact we woke up this morning! We can be stylish and fit. Now wrinkles are interesting, they add character, they are just another look (that we all achieve and often much sooner than we realise). Once again, the baby boomers are getting the notice that they have come to expect and are beginning to be valued again. Viva the anti-aging revolution!