<p>OK, maybe the thread needs re-naming? I think many of us are aging gracefully and doing an excellent job of it!</p>
<p>“If you’re worried about looks, just join all of the other hot (or soon to be hot) women (and men) over at the diet and exercise thread.”</p>
<p>Yup, that’s where approximately 1/2 of the hot crowd is hanging out. The other half is doing great in the Weight Loss for dummies thread. :)</p>
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<p>Okay, I haven’t done an actual headcount, but it seems to me that the actual numbers of women posting here who think they are still pretty hot (some even declare their faces look the same-at 50+) outnumber those who claim to be less attractive now . I’ve actually been wondering if the CC crowd is actually more attractive than average, or just in denial 
No matter, I think that’s pretty awesome.</p>
<p>I’m okay with my looks, but there is no way I look the same as I did as a 25 year old. No way, no how, no matter how much my husband says he likes the way I look-it’s fine, but NOT the same. He isn’t either, but I don’t care. </p>
<p>It’s a fact that we age. We get less attractive as time goes by (sorry, but it’s true for everyone) in some ways, but we get more beautiful in other ways, if we’ve made an effort to develop as human beings. I think it’s those who just can’t accept the facts of life and how we evolve who end up being desperate and pathetic. If all you have going for you is your looks, and you don’t work on your inner beauty, spiritual and intellectual growth, emotional intelligence, and interpersonal relationships, you would naturally be terrified of the aging process.</p>
<p>We must be like Garison Keilor’s Lake Wobegone, where everyone is “above average” and good looking. 
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<p>I agree that inner beauty shines through and to me it seems to affect your appearance as you age. I much prefer to see smile lines etched on faces of aging loved ones than frown lines. Beauty is really only skin deep, but inner beauty is very, very deep.</p>
<p>We all should be worried about looks, but we cannot force anybody. The looks are indication of health. If you have lost inch or so, you do have osteoporosis, aside from the fact that you could have lost your feet (we will not go there, but if you lost you feet it might be ano indication that you have diabetese, although it could have been an accident). Sorry again for generalizations, but I would like to cover MOST cases, not some rare (but still unfortunate) conditions and accidents. This is just one example.</p>
<p>For the love of god, Miami, would you kindly not continue to dispense inaccurate information. If a person loses some of their height it might, MIGHT reflect osteopenia or maybe osteoporosis, but to say if you lose an inch you have osteoporosis is ridiculous. And, if you’d go to the doctor and have a physical you can have a bone density test done to see if you are at risk for these processes and get on an appropriate dose of Calcium /Vit D, or if necessary a med in the Actonel/Boniva family to reduce the risk of a bone fracture from reduced bone density. Some people shrink because gravity, over time, can cause our discs to compress.</p>
<p>And if someone waits til they need their feet amputated due to the late effects of untreated diabetes to have it diagnosed, well, heaven help them.</p>
<p>Back to the original post- I’ll bite. I was considered a “pretty girl” in HS and college and for several years afterward. Other than being a good student and being able to easily make friends I did not possess any particular talents/skills. Not athletic,musical, artistic, etc. I was known as a nice, friendly girl who was fairly smart in school and for my looks.</p>
<p>Now I look in the mirror and while I am in good shape and attractive for a middle aged woman, it is not the same. I admit that there are occasional times when I wish that I still looked the way I did back then, but I have also developed into a better and wiser person. I no longer get the attention from guys but I don’t miss that so much (and I have been married for over 30 years). I am scheduled to have an eye lift this fall, I don’t have any illusions that I will suddenly look several years younger or anything. I am just hoping to look like myself at 55, but a little bit better.</p>
<p>Take a look at the effects of chronic UV/sun exposure on this truckers face. This is a real, untouched up photo of a trucker whose left side was continuously exposed to the sun from his drivers window. [Trucker’s</a> face shows effects of UV exposure](<a href=“http://news.ninemsn.com.au/health/8477612/truckers-face-shows-effects-of-uv-exposure]Trucker’s”>http://news.ninemsn.com.au/health/8477612/truckers-face-shows-effects-of-uv-exposure)</p>
<p>FallGirl–agreed. Anyone who relies on their good looks to get them through life is going to discover they’ve lost their only asset by age 55.</p>
<p>I hope we are all getting better, wiser, and more interesting as we age!</p>
<p>I just reread your post miami. Are you saying you would “shrink” if you lost your feet? I suppose that would be true in the literal sense, but the other stuff…</p>
<p>I used to hate looking younger than I was when I was growing up. I was consistently carded til I was 27 (drinking age was 18 when I was growing up). Now I LOVE that I look younger than I am, by about a decade. Yay.</p>
<p>Jym</p>
<p>That was interest photo. I do notice many of my sun worshipping friends have many more wrinkles than the rest of us. </p>
<p>I have had skin cancer removed three times and try to stay out of the sun. That blasted few weeks before my wedding in the tanning bed set me up.</p>
<p>What does it mean when you get taller?? In my late 40s, I’m now consistently measured as 5’-9", where I was always 5’-8 1/2" before. Maybe it’s the running!</p>
<p>^It might mean that you take measurements at different time of the day or using different device. You have ot measure yourself at the same time of the day and using the same exact device. As one drastic example (probably very rare), my D’s measurment between morning and evening used to be about 2 inches different, but she was heavily into sport which could have been the reason. We will never know.<br>
I envy your height though, I would love to be that tall!</p>
<p>I hope I continue to be blessed with my mom’s good genes. We look very much alike. She is almost 80 and looks great. Still has more black than grey hair. She has always been a sun worshipper so she does have some wrinkles, but at 80, who doesn’t?!</p>
<p>Here what is sometimes shocking to me - seeing your kids friends parents (from high school or elementary) that you haven’t seen for a couple of years since graduation - and being SHOCKED at how they have aged! I worked our church festival this weekend and that is often a time I run into people I haven’t seen for a couple of years. I am always STUNNED at how some people change in a couple of years (or honestly, let themselves go). And that always makes me wonder, “are they thinking the same of me???”</p>
<p>re post 173: So yes, if you measure at different times of the day, when gravity takes its effect, you can be “shorter”. Best is to measure in the morning. It doesnt mean you have osteoporosis.</p>
<p>jym–I was carded until I was in my 30s! Then I had 4 kids and aged considerably. :D</p>
<p>I envy people with good skin–it’s genetic, in some ways, I’m sure. (Not talking about sun damage here.) I never had good cheekbones and I’ve lost the baby fat I had for so long in my face. Ugh. Gravity.</p>
<p>I enjoy wearing glasses in my mature years. The various frames are a lot of fun and become a fashion accessory. Plus the frames disguise a lot of what is going on around the eyes from age. Also, if you get the UV coating on the lenses you protect yourself from cataracts.</p>
<p>Finally, I have to say I honestly like my face better now that I’m older. I used to have more plumpness in my face and that just drained away and my bone structure shows more. My mom gained with the passing years; I have not. I think that’s why I don’t have too much extra saggy flesh around my jaw.</p>
<p>I don’t covet youth. I really don’t. I’m glad to have made this far and I look forward to what comes next. </p>
<p>It’s going to be good day!</p>
<p>I think a lot of my girlfriends look better now than 15-20 years ago. They look better cared for and have a lot more confidence (mature). They have more time to exercise, eat better, and frankly, dress better.</p>
<p>The other day I was finishing putting my makeup on in front of the bathroom mirror. My husband came up behind me and gave me a hug from behind. I looked in the mirror as I smiled at him and noticed all of my crow’s feet as my eyes crinkled up. But instead of being horrified I was really surprised to find myself thinking that I actually liked them and the character that they brought to my face. </p>
<p>On another note, I do need to lose about 15 lbs. In about a year, we might be looking at a move to a new location and I’ll need to find a new job in my industry, which is pretty youth oriented. Right now I’m feeling frumpy in my clothes and need to figure out how to change that.</p>
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<p>Technology and information are better available today to look and feel better.</p>
<p>I think that CC tends to draw a lot of Type A personalities that go and tackle the things that they want to take care of.</p>