There are usually great changes that take place during these years in most women's lives. This could include retirement, becoming a grandmother, travelling, bereavement, moving, dealing with age-related illnesses, finding new interests – the list goes on.

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How these years are spent depends very largely on your personality and the type of lifestyle you have had up until now. If you've never been a particularly social type, things will not suddenly change now. If you've always liked people, things will continue along these lines.

Dealing with changes in your life will be an essential skill during this time. An inability to deal with change or to adapt to different circumstances, often leads to depression for women in this age group. Change is stressful and so is a feeling of being isolated, so you must see that your support systems are in place and that you are well looked after.

There is also a certain amount of freedom that comes with retiring from the working world – you can now dictate your pace, choose the lifestyle you want, spend time only with those you enjoy and enjoy time with your family or closest friends. You now have the time, and if you're lucky, the money, to pursue dreams and interests.

Making peace with the idea of your own eventual death is part and parcel of this stage in your life. Women tend to live longer than men, so chances are that you could outlive your spouse. Shying away from the idea of death basically means that you pass your responsibility onto your relatives, who may be placed in a difficult position of having to make decisions on your behalf, should you be in an accident or have a stroke or something of the kind.

Make a living will, in which you stipulate under which circumstances you no longer desire treatment if there is no hope of recovery. This means that you make the decision yourself under which circumstanced you do not wish to have your life prolonged, rather than leaving the difficult decision to family members to make.

What you make of these years in your life largely depends on you, how well you look after yourself, the extent to which you make an effort to remain involved in social and other activities. A positive attitude is the best attribute anyone can wish for during these years of your life – and only you can make that happen.

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