Does age matter?
“Old age is a new soul With a self-transcendence-goal.” – Sri Chinmoy “Old Age Song” The Transcendence of Old Age Along with death and taxation, getting old is one of those inevitabilities of life that cannot be avoided no matter how hard we try. Conventional wisdom suggests getting old is synonymous with a declining mental and physical capacities. Getting past 70 is thus a time for retirement, reflection, nostalgia and living the quiet life. Not only this but despite the overwhelming inevitability of getting old the process is something most people are uncomfortable and will often try their best to ignore or even reverse. Yet Spiritual teacher Sri Chinmoy has never been bound by conventional wisdom and approaching his 75 birthday still shows no sign of slowing down in his on going pursuit of self transcendence. A former decathlon champion and long distance runner Sri Chinmoy has made transcendence of human limitations an integral part of his own sadhana (spiritual practise). These ran
Fertility decreases with age. Women in their twenties are more fertile than women in their thirties and on an average, it gets far more difficult for a woman to conceive after the age of 35. Fertility is at its peak when a woman is in her twenties, and when she is between 30-35, fertility is down by around 15 to 20 percent. This is not very much lower, and it probably means just a few more months of trying to get pregnant. However, once a woman reaches the age of 35, it is harder for her to conceive, and if she is trying to have her first child after 35, chances of it being born with Down’s Syndrome are greater. All this really means is that the mother will have to take more care during her pregnancy, and if she is careful, she can give birth to a happy, healthy baby at any age. Also, the chances of a woman giving birth to twins, peak between the ages of 35 to 39!
The romantic in me wants to say no. If the two of you love each other, than go for it; love will conquer all. But the pragmatist in me says differently. Most relationships are difficult enough as it is, why add the social stigma of a large age difference into the mix. As forward thinking and politically correct as most of us would like to think of ourselves, society seems to display a certain level of scorn towards a woman dating a much younger man. Women who mainly date younger men are labeled as “cougars.” A young woman in a relationship with an older man may be labeled either as naive or a gold digger. In either case the man is likely to be labeled a stud either for scoring a mature, experienced woman or a hot young thing. If you are an older woman, you might be asking “What’s the harm in dating someone younger than me?” Assuming both parties are of a legal and consenting age there is probably little harm in dating it can be great confidence booster to feel like you’ve still got it
As any middle-aged woman who’s ever swooned over the hot, hard body of Jake Gyllenhaal or Matthew McConaughey can tell you, a younger man can be hard to resist – particularly when it comes to sexual desire. “Men’s testosterone levels go down in their 40s, while women’s sexuality peaks in their 30s and stays there for quite awhile. So, by age 50 or so, men have far more sexual problems than women, which is reason enough for an older woman to consider a younger man, with whom the sex can be just spectacular for quite some time,” says social anthropologist Helen E. Fisher, PhD, professor at Rutgers University and chief scientific advisor of Chemistry.com.
