Beginners Guide to Becoming a Senior Citizen

There is no denying it. Everyone whose health endures is destined to one day find themselves turning that life page and becoming a senior citizen. You can play around a little with the particulars, deciding on your own at what age one really becomes a senior citizen. Is it at 55, 60, 62, 65 or not really until you are 70? No matter, its coming for us all at some point. When it comes we can continue to lead a healthy, active and productive life and enjoy our new senior status by remembering the ideas in this beginner guide to becoming a senior citizen.

1. Celebrate your longevity - The first and most important suggestion from any beginners guide to becoming a senior citizen should be to celebrate your longevity. You don't have to throw yourself a mega party, though if that suits your tastes by all means indulge. More simply you can get together with friends or family and share a meal and each others company. You can go out with your spouse or best friend to some place special to you. You can plan a trip, a cruise or simply a walk at the local nature center. The important thing is to celebrate the glory of being you.

Becoming a senior citizen should not be a time for sulking or melancholia. You are a survivor otherwise you wouldn't be celebrating today. Survivors have lots of things to do and full lives in front of them yet. So take a weekend, a day or a few hours and just reflect on the good things that have filled your life to date and then start planning to enjoy tomorrow with joy and gratitude for the chance to be the best senior citizen ever .

2. Check in with all your doctors. A helpful beginners guide to becoming a senior citizen would be remiss not to point out that becoming a senior is a good time to take stock of your well being in many ways. One place to begin is by using the beginning of your days as a senior citizen to check in with a few health care professionals. You didn't make it to your present age without some good genes but from here on in having a little assistance from trained professionals can give you something to fall back on besides your talented gene pool.

Certainly a trip to your primary care professional makes sense. He or she is the person most personally responsible to direct your overall health. Your primary care doctor is the one who will take care of many of your prescriptions, order routine blood work or scans and help you to select doctors in specialty fields as the need arises. Having a physical examination and an opportunity to talk with your doctor about what you can expect as you enter your senior years should be seen as practical reinforcement rather than something frightening or unnecessary.

If you already are under the care of a specialist or two, a good beginners guide to becoming a senior citizen would remind you that it's a good time to check in with them as well. And how about a trip to your eye doctor, dentist or podiatrist if you haven't seen them recently? Becoming a senior citizen means arriving at an exciting threshold. You want to be able to function at your fullest capacity, discovering that capacity and how to maintain it will be easier with the assistance of your medical team.

3. Stop by your Social Security Office If becoming a senior citizen in your mind means reaching the age of 62 then you should arrange to talk with someone at the Social Security Office about when to file for your benefits. If becoming a senior citizen in your mind means reaching the age of 65 then you will want to talk with someone at the Social Security Office about how to receive Medicare coverage. In fact whenever you have self determined that you are a senior citizen you really can benefit by talking briefly with a Social Security Representative about your benefits and how and when to file to receive them.

The good news is that it is likely that you can have the conversation you need without leaving home. You can either speak by phone to someone at 1-800-772-1213 weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or you can seek services on line at www.socialsecurity.gov. Knowing what your benefits will be can help you to feel secure as you become a senior citizen.

4. Visit the local Senior Center So far this beginners guide for becoming a senior citizen sounds a little gloomy with lots of talk about being old and going to doctors, but there is place in this beginners guide for becoming a senior citizen for some fun too. If you want to locate some fun geared for newly arrived senior citizens the best place to go is definitely your local senior citizen center.

There are very few towns in the U. S. today that don't support some type of senior citizens center. Each one is unique and has its own strong points and not so strong points. But at all of them as a new senior citizen you will be warmly greeted by the center staff and someone will likely take you on a tour of the facility and acquaint you with the programs that are available. You might like the cribbage group that meets on Friday mornings or the men's breakfast group that gets together once a month. You might be really excited about the special trips and mystery rides that are offered at senior citizen prices. But most of all you are likely to enjoy the fact that you find yourself in the company of lots of people who have already joined the ranks of senior citizens and can provide you with their own personal beginners guide to becoming a senior citizen.

5. Sign up for a fitness or exercise program. Many of the new activities that you are bound to discover at the Senior Center will require some basic fitness. You'll enjoy whatever you do a lot more if doing it doesn't exhaust you or wipe you out for the week. The solution is a good suggestion from the beginners guide for becoming a senior citizen - sign up for a fitness or exercise program. You can do this at your assisted living residence, YMCA, health club or possibly at the senior center itself. Putting exercise into your weekly schedule can help you to raise your endurance and energy level and slide a few pounds off in the bargain. You can choose your own exercise format and perhaps get a little assistance from a fitness professional. The important thing is to get going and stick with it. To make it easier and more fun, bring your spouse or a friend. You will have company and your own portable support system.

Becoming a senior citizen is no small accomplishment. Living well as a senior citizen can be simple if you keep in mind ideas from this beginners guide to becoming a senior citizen. Oh and smile and enjoy your new and respected place in society.