Marilyn Monroe - male impersonator at senior Halloween party, having fun[/caption]Marsha Hunt-----In 2008 a research study found the older Americans the happiest. But what about baby boomers who are edging toward those senior years?
USA Today reported on the research five years ago, concluding that older Americans are the happiest because they have accepted their achievements and lowered their expectations. They know what they have or don't have.
On the other hand, predictability aids in contentment. This means the more we can determine for ourselves what will happen next, the less anxious and the more content we are. And with the politics and social issues, experts tell us that ability to make clear decisions in a world of consistency is especially difficult, given the volatility of politics and the rapid advance of technology that makes one system outmoded almost as soon as it is mastered, as some folks declare who find it difficult to keep up with the advances. With seniors the unpredictability most face has to do with the death of friends and family and declining health. These issues impact contentment, but especially with younger groups, as seniors, for the most part, have had the experience of living through many years of changes and see the time left in life as one in which reflection takes precedence over striving to win or achieve great heights in a profession.
Baby boomers are miserable, while seniors were found happier than other age groups. In fact depression becomes the greatest around age 44.
The good news, however, about boomers, whose greater numbers and demands over the years have been highlighted frequently, are likely to become more content as they age, as the findings that seniors are happier than younger people have been consistent since 1972.
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