Psychology of old age

The psychology of old age is the basis of old age, which is the final period of the life cycle. Harmonious development of the personality in old age ends with a calm summing up and satisfaction from a correct, usefully lived life. However, many people do not find this harmony in old age, both with themselves and with the world around them. The reason for this is that throughout life, a person is exposed to various destabilizing, destructive factors, which in old age only deepen the level of dissatisfaction of the personality. The most serious among individual stressful moments are those that are perceived as uncontrollable, independent of the will of the person, fatal and not amenable to correction (for example, separation from children, the death of a spouse or retirement). Especially in the case when they occur suddenly, without the person being able to somehow prepare for them, in psychological terms, to carry out "grief work" or "mourning the loss." This is why in old and senile age, when general tolerance to stress decreases and the number of stress factors increases, the proportion of depression and suicide increases sharply. Physical aging and a decrease in personal potential contribute to the formation of frustration (lack of satisfaction of vital needs) in the "third age". Withdrawal from social contacts, weakening of interpersonal ties, and a decrease in subjective satisfaction with life (quality of life) further increase the feeling of one's own uselessness and abandonment.

The psychology of old age has another problem - loneliness. Many older people, especially widowed ones, live alone. At the same time, there is a significant breakdown of previously established stereotypes of life, behavior, communication.

Old people suffer from poor health, decreased self-awareness and self-esteem. The feeling of worthlessness, insignificance, uselessness increases, self-doubt, insecurity in one's strengths and capabilities appears. Depressed mood prevails, especially in connection with illness, loss of loved ones, loneliness, irritability over trifles often occurs. They become selfish and egocentric. The result of such a combination is a violation of the most important human function - mental activity, which is expressed by the development of neurosis-like conditions, senile dementia, delirium, depression.

Depressive syndrome includes a classic triad of symptoms: melancholy, depressed, gloomy mood combined with mental and motor retardation. Characteristic somatic (vital) manifestations are "precordial" melancholy, a feeling of emptiness and heaviness in the chest, epigastrium, mediastinum. Additional symptoms include delusional ideas, suicidal ideas and actions.

The psychology of old age has its own characteristics, which are based on various types of depression, among which the most common are anxious, dysphoric, stuporous and asthenic depressions.

Of the syndromes of clouding of consciousness in old age, delirium is most often observed. The leading symptoms of delirium are: disorientation in time, situation, surrounding environment while maintaining orientation in one's own personality, confusion, detachment from the real situation, an abundance of visual frightening hallucinations in combination with auditory and tactile disorders. Mandatory signs of this condition are: emotional stress (anxiety, fear), acute, sensory delirium, hallucinatory-delusional excitement. Partial amnesia is noted, both of real events and of hallucinatory and delusional experiences. Vegetative-visceral symptoms often appear.

Total feeblemindedness (global dementia) - is characterized by a gross violation of higher and differentiated intellectual functions: comprehension, adequate manipulation of concepts, the ability to judge and draw conclusions, generalize, limit, etc. Thinking becomes unproductive, extremely poor. Memory for current and past events suffers sharply. The psychology of old age is characterized by a decrease in initiative, activity, impoverishment of emotions, disappearance of motives for activity. A complete disintegration of mental activity begins, the ability to communicate is lost, interests and motivation for activity disappear (mental insanity).

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