Joe Shmmoe
MEMBERS ONLY
Added to Favorites
Favorite removed
Want to read more? Create an account on aarp.org.
A healthy lifestyle helps protect the brain. Make brain health a habit and register on aarp.org to access Staying Sharp.
Login to Unlock AccessNot Registered? Create Account
Add to My Favorites
Added to My Favorites
Completed
by Rachel Noble
Updated September 28, 2022
Mortgages, kids, job pressures: It's no secret that the older we get — and the more responsibilities we take on — the more we worry. Blame it on your brain: an October 2009 review in the international journal Biochimica et Biophysica Acta shows that as we age, neurological shifts can increase cautiousness, anxiety and negative thinking while boosting levels of stress hormones.
"This can happen to anyone and is part of normal aging," says Anthony Doran, a psychologist and professor of neuropsychology at Johns Hopkins University. "It's a result of the gradual breakdown of regenerative processes that occur in many tissues, including the brain."
Roughly 20 percent of older adults experience Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) — excessive worry that interferes with daily life — compared with just 3 to 7 percent of the general population, according to the review. The actual percentage of older adults with GAD may be even higher, since the condition is often undiagnosed.
Fortunately, you can fight back. Just as you can take steps to reduce your risk of cancer, you can combat anxiety and improve brain function. Here are four steps to keep your mind healthy, positive and ready for new adventures.
In his book Man's Search for Meaning, neurologist and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl wrote: "Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom." Use these tools to take control of anxiety so you can enjoy your own freedom and growth.
Rachel Noble is a therapist and director of women's behavioral health for the Inova health system in Northern Virginia.
• "Anxiety and the aging brain: stressed out over p53?" Biochimica et Biophysica Acta, December 2009. Read a summary of the review. (A fee is required to access the full review.)
• "Putting Feelings Into Words," Psychological Science, May 2007. Read a summary of the study. (A fee is required to access the full study.)
• "A Review on the Role of the Neuroscience of Flow States in the Modern World," Behavioral Sciences, September 2020. This scientific paper explores the research behind flow states, including factors that can help a person experience flow and what happens in the brain when they do. Read the full paper.