Senioritis? What does that have to do with colitis? Or with those of us whose high school years are long behind us?
According to Oxford Dictionary online, the definition of senioritis is “a supposed affliction of students in their final year of high school or college, characterized by a decline in motivation or performance.” Or the Merriam-Webster online definition of “an ebbing of motivation and effort by school seniors.”
In a way, we seniors are in our final high school years. Graduation is approaching. Instead of our bodies and minds getting stronger, however, they become weaker. Throw in an illness or chronic condition and our weakening is compounded. Isn’t it possible that we might experience a decline or ebbing of motivation? A pulling back? A disinterest in life around us?
If we’re going through a lot of pain, we’re going to try to get through minute by minute. But if (when!) the pain subsides enough, then we need to decide if we’re going to feel sorry for ourselves or actively participate in life.
I’ve read accounts of younger people in remission with colitis working up to running marathons. Being seniors, our bodies probably won't let us go full charge like that. Some of our aging, ailing bodies will only allow us to sit and watch the world go by. But to defeat colitis senioritis . . . or any senioritis . . . we need to engage. What matters is finding what we can do.
There are lots of suggestions for our young high school friends to beat senioritis. Those suggestions are also applicable to us old fogie seniors.
Remember that grades are vital. Okay, we are long past worrying about grades. The important word here is vital. Remember that we are vital. And that vitalness will be different for each of us.
We are vital to people around us, even if we do not see it. But even if we think others do not care about us (rarely true), we are also vital to ourselves. In other words, your life can't exist without YOU. Be present when you can, as often as you can.
Get (medical papers) organized. The older we get, the more paperwork multiplies worse than proverbial rabbits. This can result in forgotten appointments, lost prescriptions, bills going unpaid, or other embarrassing or frustrating moments. Figure out what organizational system works best for you, whether it be a binder, file box, computer drive, etc. It will take some time for the initial organizing, but once done, it will be a huge burden off your shoulders.
Keep going to school. This is not literally feasible in most cases, but what it means is try something new. Learn something new. It is never too late to try a new hobby or project. It invigorates our senses and can rewire or renew our brains. The time is going to pass one way or another, why not pass it doing something enjoyable and interesting, or at least new?
Sleep. Over the years I’ve occasionally heard older
seniors mocked for sleeping so much during the day. Things like, “If they
wouldn’t nap so much during the day they’d sleep better at night.” That may
be true for a healthy, young body, but not an aging and/or ailing body that
wakes up every few hours to go to the bathroom (especially with colitis), or
can’t get comfortable because of achy muscles, or deals with hot flashes or night sweats, or just refuses to sleep longer than a few hours at a time. I
never know what kind of sleep I’m going to get or not get. I wake up some
mornings refreshed, and other mornings I wake up feeling like I haven’t slept
in days. I’m thrilled if I get four straight hours sleep at night. Some days
naps are the only thing that get me through. I can’t do the things on this list
if my body feels nauseous because it is hurting for sleep. And since colitis has taken over, when my body needs sleep, it starts to hurt and I feel sick.
Physical activity. Even light exercise gets the juices and endorphins flowing. You can find exercise routines for seniors online, including sitting exercises. Short walks help, too. Read my post An Alternate to Exercise: Virtual Reality Games (No kidding.)
Find your productive place. This is an interesting
one. What inspires our productivity? Does that happen in a certain place or a
certain frame of mind? How do we get to that place, especially if we’re feeling
blah? I don't know the answer yet.
I hope this answers the question, why senioritis on this site. Besides, I couldn’t find anything else to rhyme with colitis. 😊
Posts
