It finally happened. I knew that it would and I couldn’t stop it. But I wasn’t ready. It had already happened to many of my closest friends, but that didn’t make me feel any better.
On the first of July this year, I turned 40 years old. Yes, the BIG 4-0. I started thinking about this birthday around Christmastime last year. I wasn’t dwelling on turning 40 but wrapping my mind around the fact seemed somewhat challenging.
When I shared this with some of my close friends and family, I usually got some variation of the same comment. Their responses were mostly encouraging and related to physical appearance and professional achievements relative to my age. But my mixed emotions about turning 40 were not due to concerns about my appearance or worry about my career.
I wasn’t concerned about whether other people thought that I looked good for 40 or if they felt that I should have accomplished more by this age. For me, 40 is the time to perform my next big self-examination. A time for me to take a step back, reflect on my life, create new goals, and update my plans for my walk through life.
Having goals is important to me so reflection and self-examination are key pieces in this process. I like to be organized and develop well-thought out plans for achieving my goals. Over time I have learned to be less rigid in my plans and to re-examine them often because life usually doesn’t conform to our plans.
So what’s the big deal about 40? Compared to age 30, today my cholesterol and BMI are lower, my salary is higher, I’ve paid off all my student loans from college and medical school, I spend more time with my family and friends, and my jump shot is better. Okay, it’s my perception that my jump shot is better but the other things are facts!
Although I feel great about my life, there are some very important things that will impact my life plans at age 40 compared to 30. By far, the biggest difference in my life today is that I’m a mother. My two children, Elise- 8 and Trey- 5, have significantly changed the way that I see life and my priorities. Because of them, I am also more aware of the importance of being a good role model; recognizing that ‘do as I say, not as I do’ is usually ineffective.
Another difference at age 40 is the focus on being healthy. Some of the most common chronic medical conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes are more prevalent after age 40. So the efforts to be physically active, maintain a healthy weight and avoid tobacco that worked prior to age 40 is not enough. Screening for the early detection of some conditions like breast cancer should begin at age 40.
According the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, ALL women age 40 should:
- Get a Pap test at least every 3 years to screen for cervical cancer.
- Have a blood pressure check at least once every 2 years if it was previously normal. If the blood pressure has ever been elevated, more frequent monitoring is needed.
- Get a flu shot every year to protect yourself and others from the flu.
- Get enough folic acid because women of child-bearing age require an additional 400mcg of folic acid daily to prevent birth defects. This supplement is recommended for sexually active women until age 50. Many pregnancies after age 40 are not planned.
- Based on family history and other risk factors, SOME women age 40 should also:
- Discuss colon cancer screening with your doctor if someone in your family has had colorectal cancer.
- Get your cholesterol checked once every 5 years if you are at high risk for heart disease (if you smoke, have diabetes, high blood pressure, are overweight or have a family history of heart disease).
- Get screened for breast cancer. Talk with your doctor about when to start getting mammograms and how often you need them.
- Get tested for sexually transmitted diseases including HIV if you have unprotected sex.
- Talk with your doctor if breast or ovarian cancer runs in your family. Some women may benefit from additional screening or medications to prevent cancer.
To learn what prevention strategies you should be planning based on your age, visit http://healthfinder.gov/ Enter your age and gender in the myhealthfinder tool and you will receive specific information about what you can do stay healthy.
I hope you will join me in my celebration of life and make plans to stay as healthy as possible!
