I was invited over to Marcia Meara’s blog to do a guest post today, The Write Stuff. I thought I’d write a post about aging gracefully and how it can sometimes affect the way we feel about ourselves with our changing outward appearance.
I write a lot about self-esteem issues in my books because I grew up suffering from a very low self-esteem and low sense of self-worth. Self-esteem issues begin with the hurts we’ve encountered throughout our lives and manifest as we grow older by the way we feel about ourselves, the way we take care of ourselves, and the way we feel we appear to others. As I grew to understand my feelings of low self-esteem, I chose to learn how to do things that made me feel better about myself, rather than let it take over my life.
In this article, I am writing about the physical aspects of aging. It goes without saying, that there are many other factors involved with the aging process: taking care of our health – body, mind and soul, most importantly. But I chose to write about how the physical part of aging played a part in my life, and share some of my tips on taking care of our skin.
I would also like to say that even though we may strive to be our best ‘me’, if we’ve suffered from low self-esteem issues most of our lives, there is a part of those struggles that many of us still harbor within us no matter how far we overcome our issues. For example: A person who struggled with being overweight all their lives and suddenly loses all the weight, may still tend to look at themselves as ‘fat’ when they look in the mirror. I know I went through that myself when I was younger. The point being, no matter how much we overcome, I know for myself, there is still a little demon of insecurity that keeps residence in a tiny part of my ego. But I sometimes think having a little bit of humility is good to keep us grounded.
Here is the article I wrote for Marcia’s blog:
“An Oxymoron – aging gracefully; pretty words for a difficult time for many who face new dragons at this certain time in life where physical appearance changes, yet some women bow gracefully to the onslaught of face and body alterations.
I admire the attitudes of many women whom just accept the changes, but I am a polar opposite to that kind of acceptance. I will use my last ounce of vanity to seek out the best methods I can find to combat aging. Sure, it’s inevitable; I’m not immortal, but most likely, I’ll leave this world wearing something leopard, a pair of stilettos (if I’m not caught dead at home on my computer wearing slippers), and sporting my signature orange lipstick and flaming red hair. All of these things became a part of me at a younger age, and I’ve maintained them for decades, so why would I cave?
Why should I have to stop striving to be the me that I’m comfortable in just because I’m in my mid fifties? . . .” READ MORE BY CLICKING THE LINK BELOW AND JOIN THE CONVERSATION.
Source: Fabulous Friday Guest Blogger D. G. Kaye #Aging Gracefully | The Write Stuff
P.S. Marcia is a fascinating woman. She runs her blog www.marciamearawrites.com as a place for writers to help writers. She invites writers to join her blog, feature excerpts from their work, post links, and a place for people to meet and share their thoughts. When you’re done reading this article, please visit Marcia’s WELCOME page and you will learn a lot more of what she does.
DGKayewriter.com 
Lovely post, Debby. No matter which end of the stick somebody grabs, they’re still fighting the age beast. Fighting teeth and toenail with every product and trick — or determined to act as if we don’t give a hoot let sag what may… Either way, we’re actually fighting it. I think. I think all your tips say that you mainly want to take care of YOU, not necessarily hanging onto youth. And that’s a very good thing. Low self worth leads to a lack of “deserving”… and that’s a bad thing. Believe me, I know. Shine on girlfriend. Mega hugs! 😀
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Oh thanks so much Teag for getting my message. Yes, by taking care of ourselves, for us to feel comfortable with ourselves is the message. Right, we’re not going to be young again, nor do we want to look like foolish clowns trying to do so. Looking and feeling good about ourselves is the goal. ❤
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Oxymoron-ic or misnomer, I shall persist in aiming to age gracefully. Maybe some of my grandsons’ energy and youth will rub off on me tomorrow. Could that really happen?
Now over to check out Marcia’s website. Thanks, Debby!
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Thanks so much for visiting both places Marian. And I have no doubts, with what I know about you, you will absolutely be aging gracefully!!! 🙂
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Great Reblog, Deb, with a terrific intro. Thanks for sharing over here, and I’m going to tweet this out, too. And thanks again for being my Fabulous Friday Guest Blogger this week. You ROCK, you know!! 🙂
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Marcia, it was a thrill. And I’m taking your huge compliment “I Rock” because you are the biggest “Rocker” I know!!! xo
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Haha… 🙂 ( If you are not caught dead at your computer wearing slippers ) LOL… you should have seen me this morning Muck spreading in the allotments in wellies 🙂 LOL.. You have nothing to worry about Deb 🙂 You rock!! as others have already said 😀 xxx
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Lol, you’re funny Sue! Thanks as always, and PS. I do have wellies too! 🙂 xo
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🙂 Special Hugs xxx
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❤ xo
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Hahaha… I enjoyed reading this. Lovely one!
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Wow! Thanks! So glad you found it interesting. 🙂
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Aren’t we all concerned about aging? But we’re fortunate to be in a time where we are more health conscious and aware than a generation ago. We avoid dresses that are matronly, go to yoga classes, enroll in college or university courses, keep our minds sharp, have great skin care products and are wise enough to know that we can’t do anything about aging but we sure can have a say and attitude on how we age.
Thanks for the coconut oil tip. I knew it was good to ingest but didn’t know it was a great cleanser. 🙂
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Thanks Carol. So glad you found the coconut oil tip handy. Do let me know how you feel about it when you try it. You already have beautiful skin so a little more TLC never hurts. 🙂 ❤
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