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Speaker 1: Now the saying used to be life begins at forty. Well,

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Speaker 1: now it begins at fifty one. Prime time experiences the

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Speaker 1: best part of life. Apparently it starts at fifty one.

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Speaker 1: The average prime for those in their fifties was forty four,

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Speaker 1: for those in their sixties was fifty three, and for

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Speaker 1: those aged seventy plus the best time was around age

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Speaker 1: fifty nine. So I'll look forward to being seventy plus

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Speaker 1: and remembering how good this year is. But doctor Marlene

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Speaker 1: Kresovitsky is conciding with the World Health Organization's Global campaign

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Speaker 1: to combat agism. Marlene, thank you for your time. I

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Speaker 1: suppose it goes to show that you're happy in the

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Speaker 1: moment and that's the answer to life.

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Speaker 2: Hi, Matthew, thanks for having me on. Well, it's a

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Speaker 2: very encouraging and optimistic point of view, isn't it. This

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Speaker 2: Generation Scene report done by Australian Scene is telling us

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Speaker 2: that it's an optimistic time life. It's so encouraging to

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Speaker 2: see so many older Australians are feeling optimistic and positive.

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Speaker 2: They're hitting their prime in their fifties and beyond and beyond,

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Speaker 2: and one in three feel that their happiest times have

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Speaker 2: occurred or are occurring after turning fifty, and they're experiencing

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Speaker 2: those great gifts of getting older. They feel more experienced,

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Speaker 2: they feel wiser, satisfied with life, financially secure many of them,

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Speaker 2: and happier, and they're positive.

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Speaker 1: How do we bottle this feeling, Marlene? Is there a way?

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Speaker 2: Well, what a great question. I guess. What we do

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Speaker 2: need to do is start to shift our very negative

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Speaker 2: attitudes towards getting older. Generally, we tend to think about

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Speaker 2: getting older at a time of life we don't look

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Speaker 2: forward to. We tend to assume that it's a period

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Speaker 2: of decline, dependence, and it's not a happy time. Many

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Speaker 2: many advertising companies tell us that old is ugly. In media,

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Speaker 2: we're misrepresented as frail, to get full, foolish, and we

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Speaker 2: internalize those stereotypes and those assumptions, and many of us

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Speaker 2: in our immediate environment will think those views too. So

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Speaker 2: if we can embrace this time of life, which because

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Speaker 2: they're living longer and healthier lives generally, could be about

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Speaker 2: a third of our lives. If we can shift our

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Speaker 2: attitudes and challenge some of those negative assumptions, we're likely

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Speaker 2: to do better and to feel better.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, So I wonder what leads to it though

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Speaker 1: it is it just the sense of being financially secure.

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Speaker 1: I imagine that's really a key part of it ultimately,

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Speaker 1: especially for people in their sixties and seventies.

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Speaker 2: Look, of course, it's a key part of it, and

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Speaker 2: I think the reality is that most people, as they

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Speaker 2: get older, they've been through the trials and tribulations of life,

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Speaker 2: and they tend to learn from their experience, and so

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Speaker 2: they also many people tell us that they think less

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Speaker 2: about what others think about them and feel freer to

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Speaker 2: express their own attitudes and their own feelings. So I

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Speaker 2: guess it's a combination of things. But surely that security

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Speaker 2: is something, and we know, though sadly, that not all

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Speaker 2: older people are financially secure, that it can be very

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Speaker 2: tenuous time for many many people. What tends to feed this, though,

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Speaker 2: is I guess the other side of this generation scene

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Speaker 2: report is also telling us that while people themselves may

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Speaker 2: feel that they hit their prime at fifty one or beyond,

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Speaker 2: the reality is that other people start seeing this differently.

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Speaker 2: So we think our best views are yet to come,

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Speaker 2: but others maybe not. And that's exactly potentially can be

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Speaker 2: employers in particular. You know, as we get older, we

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Speaker 2: start to be seeing as less relevant, maybe less valued,

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Speaker 2: our skills are out of date, stuck in our ways,

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Speaker 2: and so on, and this can have a very negative

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Speaker 2: impact on getting older. And that's about, as I said,

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Speaker 2: those negative stereotypes and assumptions about older people.

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Speaker 1: What about words then to describe older people like boomer,

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Speaker 1: which in itself isn't a terrible word. I mean, we

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Speaker 1: you know so many people and I'm in the category,

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Speaker 1: although very late in the category, as a baby boomer.

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Speaker 1: But that's I suppose it is used in a derogatory fashion.

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Speaker 2: It is sadly words like boomer women in particular being

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Speaker 2: called a Karen. Again, this report highlights the prevalence of

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Speaker 2: that and also the very hurtful emotional toll that that takes.

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Speaker 2: It's not a lighthearted thing to do. It hurts, It

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Speaker 2: has a negative impact, and it's all about it stems

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Speaker 2: from this idea of marginalizing older people, making them invisible,

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Speaker 2: treating them as invisible, and certainly disregarding their views. So

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Speaker 2: it can be a very hurtful, very dismissive way to

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Speaker 2: treat an older person and their views, and it does

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Speaker 2: have an impact. But as I say, it's part of

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Speaker 2: this more general attitude that we have as a society

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Speaker 2: where older people as less relevant, less able to contribute.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, indeed, all right, health is another key part of

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Speaker 1: this for people getting older and in order to enjoy

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Speaker 1: what life has to come. Speaking to doctors obviously GPS

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Speaker 1: about the best health advice for one's own conditions is

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Speaker 1: the sensible thing to do. But do you have advice

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Speaker 1: for people in that regard in terms of ensuring because

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Speaker 1: if you like finances, you want to make sure you're

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Speaker 1: as healthy as you can enjoy those golden years.

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Speaker 2: The people in this survey are telling us that the

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Speaker 2: key to feeling positive and optimistic is to stay connected,

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Speaker 2: to stay healthy. Right, so on looking forward to the future.

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Speaker 2: But again, part of this negative attitude towards older people

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Speaker 2: is that many people, sadly, including doctors and health professionals,

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Speaker 2: will dismiss symptoms basically saying that oh, it's because you're

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Speaker 2: getting older or it's an inevitable part of aging. Now

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Speaker 2: that's not a diagnosis and you can't do anything with that.

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Speaker 2: So I would encourage people if they are going to

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Speaker 2: their health professionals, and I hope that that do, to

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Speaker 2: not accept that as a diagnosis, and to ask for

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Speaker 2: your health professional to talk to you about treatment options

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Speaker 2: and the way that you might be you might manage

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Speaker 2: this particular ailment that you're experiencing. For a lot of us,

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Speaker 2: getting older is inextricably linked with this decline, and it

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Speaker 2: is true some of us will experience becoming frailer and

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Speaker 2: so on. But the key here is get the attention

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Speaker 2: that you need discuss the treatment options that you have,

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Speaker 2: rather than it being dismissed and fobbed off as oh, well,

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Speaker 2: you're just getting older.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. Absolutely, And you touched on social connections and again

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Speaker 1: as part of your happiness moving forward, being remaining socially

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Speaker 1: connected is really a key thing, isn't it.

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Speaker 2: It is really critical, And just to pick up on

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Speaker 2: the point that your previous caller made, I would also

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Speaker 2: suggest that intergenerational connection is really really important and mentoring,

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Speaker 2: as your caller spoke about, can go both ways. I mean,

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Speaker 2: we're all open to learning at whatever age we are

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Speaker 2: yes and benefiting from the experience of others, and we

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Speaker 2: know that intergenerational connection and building that solidarity across generations,

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Speaker 2: not only with your immediate circle of friends, who might

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Speaker 2: just be around your age, but broadening that connection is

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Speaker 2: a really good way of dispelling those negative assumptions and

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Speaker 2: those myths and stereotypes. So that would be the extra

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Speaker 2: dimension that oservis.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, Marlin. Fascinating discussion. Thank you so much for

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Speaker 1: your time. Thank you, Matthew, Doctor Marlin Krasovitski, who is

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Speaker 1: conciding with the World Health Organization's Global Campaign to Combat

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Speaker 1: Ageism and report out today we peak happiness at fifty one,

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Speaker 1: but depending how old you are, in your seventies, well

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Speaker 1: it's fifty nine. For people in their sixties around fifty one,

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Speaker 1: and so it goes on. So look, just be happy.

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Speaker 1: As the song said, don't worry, be happy, and that's

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Speaker 1: certainly a key to it.