Episode 007 Only one thing is certain...We Will All Die

Episode 007

Everyone dies (in this lifetime). It's not if, but when. The Circle of Life. Yet, we are so afraid of death. Why? Is it the unknown of death? Do you need to stay alive to take care of your kids? Is it because you are afraid of the pain and suffering? 

If you're young (or have kids) - 20's, 30's, 40's - pay attention!  Sadly, more and more younger people are dying!  I just saw an announcement at work the other day of a 39 year old father who passed away unexpectedly.  Someone shared that a friend's 21 year old daughter recently passed away due to diabetes complications.  We just sat down with a friend who's teenage grandson ended up in the emergency room because his blood sugar levels (he already had full blown diabetes) were out of control.  I learned that another co-worker in her 30's who recently had a baby was diagnosed with diabetes before her pregnancy - she mentioned that she grew up eating lots of pre-packaged and fast foods because her parents didn't know better.  Dis-eases of the old are inflicting the young - and we're all paying the price!

Most people are afraid to die in at least one way, usually because of experiencing a loved one die in that way. What is it for you? Are you most concerned about dying from a heart attack, so you closely monitor your blood pressure and cholesterol levels? Do you worry about dying from lung cancer, so you choose not to smoke? Are you afraid of dying from colon cancer, so you've had a colonoscopy? Have you watched a loved one die of diabetes, so you manage your blood sugar?
 
Have you ever stopped to think about how you want to die? Many years ago, I attended a weekend workshop at UH, the University of Hawaii, about death. I remember one of the speakers who shared that a group of Hospice Nurses were asked if they could choose how they would die, what would they choose. Many of them chose cancer - which I found fascinating. The reason being that they would have at least a few months to get their things in order, to spend time with their loved ones - time to tell them how much they loved and appreciated them.
 
I heard a doctor share that his ideal death would be, one day in his 90's strong and healthy, having spent an active day fishing with his grandkids, going to bed with his heart filled with joy and happiness, drifting off to sleep and not waking up. Is this possible? Of course, we hear about people dying peacefully at home in their sleep.
 
With the acceleration in new discoveries in the understanding of how the body works, it's possible to live a 100, 110. 120 years healthy and active. What a gift! Time is our most precious resource! We can make more money, we can find ways to make clean water, but time...once it's gone, it's gone. We can't create more. A life-changing gift - the possibility to have more time on this earth!
 
My goal is to live to 120 years, healthy, happy and cognizant! Why? So I can check off EVERYTHING on my bucket list, and even add to it 🙂 Travel the world, Play with my great grandkids. Touch the lives of millions instead of thousands! Surrounded by loved ones, enjoying life!
 
"There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done"
~ Circle of Life by Elton John
 
More and more people are living until 100 years. The New England Centenarian Study found that the number of Centenarians is increasing, even before the explosion of the Longevity / Reverse Aging Movement with Dr. David Sinclair. And it is definitely possible to live to more than 110 years old. "When the centenarian study began in 1994, the prevalence rate was one per 10,000, making centenarians one of, if not the fastest growing segments of the population. In 2010, there are about 70,000 centenarians in the U.S. We have observed amongst supercentenarians (age 110+ years), that health span equals lifespan. Thus we believe that instead of the aging myth “the older you get the sicker you get”, it is much more the case of “the older you get, the healthier you’ve been”."
 
Did they all live similar lives? No. The study found that they varied widely in years of education (no years to post-graduate), socioeconomic status (very poor to very rich), religion, ethnicity and patterns of diet (strictly vegetarian to extremely rich in saturated fats). These common characteristics were noted.

• Few centenarians are obese. In the case of men, they are nearly always lean.
• Substantial smoking history is rare.
• A preliminary study suggests that centenarians are better able to handle stress than the majority of people.
• Our finding that some centenarians (~15%) had no significant changes in their thinking abilities disproved the expectation by many that all centenarians would be demented.4 We also discovered that Alzheimer’s Disease was not inevitable. Some centenarians had very healthy appearing brains with neuropathological study (we call these gold standards of disease-free aging).5  https://www.bumc.bu.edu/centenarian/overview/

The Cambridge City Over 75 Cohort Study followed people over 75 years old for 20 years. What they found was of the 321 participants who died between 85-89 years of age, during their last year:

• 50% of persons needed the help of another person to bathe
• 30% needed the help of another person to shower
• Only 43% could walk one block, and only 19% could walk around town
• 57% needed help preparing meals
• 76% needed help doing housework
• 86% needed help shopping
• 34% needed help taking their medicines
• Putting this all together, 59% were disabled in basic activities of daily living (ADL). 26% could do all their ADL independently, but needed help with instrumental activities of daily living (IADL). Only 15% did not have disability in ADL or IADL. (note: ADL refer to basic activities essential to living independently such as bathing or dressing. If one is disabled in ADL, one generally can not live successfully without help. IADL refer to higher ordered activities important to well being such as housework or meal prep)
  https://geripal.org/last-year-of-life-in-oldest-old

Reflecting on loved ones who passed away over the past few years...My Aunty was 91 years old, but had dementia for the last 5-6 years. At times, she would stay up all night, puttering around the house.  My step-mom "slept" in the living room to be sure she didn't walk out the door.  Soon - she was worn out from not getting good sleep.  Fortunately, my uncle saved enough money so we could hire caretakers 24 / 7 for the last year of her life. 

Our friend's dad had cancer - went through all the rigorous treatments, was clear, then it came back and he died, all of a sudden. We've been hearing of many cancer diagnoses, again of all different ages, with a few passing away really quickly.

Another friend's father had a few strokes and required full time care, which the family took on, for a few years. We have several other friends whose loved ones, of varying ages 30's, 60's, 70's, have had strokes within the last 2-3 years. Thankfully, they all lived, however they've needed hours of care and support.  Placing huge emotional and financial burdens on their loved ones.  Many are still working hard to relearn how to talk and walk and even eat.

So, how will you choose to spend the final years of your life? Full of Vitality or Dependent on Others? The choices you make today dictate the outcomes of the future.  It is possible to change the path that you're headed down within months.

Today, if you don't die all of a sudden from a heart attack or stroke, you will most likely spend the last 8-10 years of your life suffering (recovering from a heart attack or stroke, with cancer, with dementia or alzheimer's, with toes or feet cut off, on dialysis, hobbling around in pain), unable to take care yourself, unable to do the things that you love. You may be alive but not LIVING LIFE!
 
How do you want to die? How do you want to spend the last years of your life? I came across this short, yet poignant video highlighting the two paths. I encourage you to watch it!
 
Your Last Ten Years of Life
 
(I do not agree with the high starch, low fat ad at the end. There's been lots of research, tons of data showing that this eating philosophy has made us sicker. Checkout my other blogs!)
 
I invite you to Take Charge of your Health! Decide to be one of the 15% of 75 years old who are fully independent!  Follow my blogs as I share my discoveries about how the body works and what we can do to optimize our health and well-being to live a long life filled with VITALITY until our time on this earth is complete!

If you'd like to learn about the natural tools that we use in our home to support our bodies and accelerate our body's ability to heal, send me an email at [email protected]!
 
 "A person in good health has a thousand dreams.  A person in poor health has one." ~ Indian Proverb

Take charge of your health!

Live in possibility!

Lisa Malia

"Live pono with your heart at peace."