The Story of a Middle-Aged Woman

Abstract

The following is a summary of an interview that was conducted with my mother. The questions that were asked were mostly centered on how she spent her days as a middle-aged adult. Throughout her life, she has suffered many challenges; however, she was able to persevere and overcome them. As a woman, now in her late forties, she is a full-time college student and she cares for two teenagers. In addition to the many emotional challenges, she has had to overcome a major physical challenge as well. The interview concludes by discussing research on possible ways to improve cognitive functioning.

Caption: Drawing of a man's head with a window in the back and curtains blowing in the wind, representing empty space and the losing of one's mind. 

http://quest.eb.com/images/132_1223980?subjectId=0&collectionId=0&keyword=memory+cartoon+&localizeMetaData=false

My mother’s life has proven to be more than challenging at times, and the struggles have not gotten any easier with age. This past Sunday, October 13, she celebrated her forty-eighth birthday, which places her in the stage of middle adulthood. During the interview process, she painted a picture of what her life is like on a daily basis, which proved to be less than easy.

            When asked how my mom viewed her life, her answers ranged from overwhelming and painful to joyful. I asked her to explain what made her life seem overwhelming, and most of her discussion had to do with my brother and sister who are both fourteen; in addition to the daily stressors of middle adulthood, she also has to deal with the stressors of raising two teenagers. My mom suggested that others do not wait ten years before having a second child because at her age, raising two teenagers is far from easy. On top of raising my brother and sister, my mother is working towards her Bachelor’s Degree in business. I asked her what her goal was after she received her degree, and she stated that she wants to work in a nonprofit organization. When asked why she wants to work in a nonprofit organization, she said, “I’m at that age where I want to feel like I’m giving something back…it makes me happy when I can help someone else…it makes me happy, and I don’t care if I get anything in return.” This statement seems to parallel Erikson’s psychosocial crisis stage of generativity versus stagnation. In addition, she stated that if she were not enrolled in school, then she would be doing volunteer work, which further supports Erikson’s psychosocial crisis. When asked how she takes care of herself, she mentioned that she sees a counselor twice a month, she goes to bed early to allow herself to spend time with the Lord, and she walks a little bit each day, even though walking is one of the biggest struggles that she faces every day.   

  As little as five years ago, my mother would walk anywhere from three to twenty miles per day; however, two summers ago, she had to undergo a surgery that drastically changed her physical abilities. About three years ago, my mother was diagnosed with Avascular Necrosis of the hips, which in lamens terms means that the blood supply was not getting through to the hip joints which caused her hip bones to begin decaying. As a result, my mom had to undergo a bi-lateral hip replacement. Life after the hip replacement has not been the same, as it has caused my mom to feel physically older than she actually is. However, this does not stop her from living life and enjoying as much of it as she possibly can.

When asked to describe a challenge from her past, my mother brought up going through labor with me. This answer may be typical for anyone who asks their mother about life challenges; however, the doctor who aided in delivering me, almost killed my mom. As a result of the doctor not performing my mom’s episiotomy correctly, she almost bled to death. After this incident, she was extremely weak; however, she knew that someone had to take care of me, and my dad was certainly not reliable at this point in time. She was able to persevere through this situation and provide the care that I needed.    

During the stage of middle adulthood, there are often some declines in cognitive functioning. There have been many studies conducted on possible ways to prevent declines in cognition. Muldoon, Ryan, Sheu, Yao, Conklin, and Manuck (2010) conducted a study involving the effects of dietary fish supplements on cognition in middle-aged adults, particularly the role of DHA and EPA, which are two types of acids that are found in dietary fish supplements. The authors suggested that “DHA was related to cognitive functioning, with higher blood levels associated with better scores on tests of nonverbal reasoning, mental flexibility, working memory, and vocabulary. In contrast, EPA was only marginally associated with working memory” (p. 851).  Muldoon, et al. conclude that since the present information was taken from “cross-sectional data,” there were no accurate conclusions that could be made, regarding the association between the dietary supplements and their effects on cognition.

Questions for the audience

1.      Although the article was inconclusive, does anyone believe that taking dietary supplements of any kind, can improve cognitive functioning?

2.      My mom had told me that she was happy to be enrolled in school; however, can anyone think of possible advantages and/or disadvantages of returning to school during your middle adulthood years?

3.      As mentioned above, my mom had a bi-lateral hip replacement done a couple of summers ago. Can anyone think of some possible emotional complications with having a hip replacement done so early in life? 

References

Muldoon, M.F., Ryan, C.M., Sheu, L., Yao, J.K., Conklin, S.M., & Manuck, S.B. (2010). Serum phospholipid docosahexaenonic acid is associated with cognitive functioning during middle adulthood.  The Journal of Nutrition, 140(4). 848-853.