The ProAge Pulse

Happy, Vital, Active, Joyful.....Ageless.

“ What was the best day of your life?” the moderator asked me as a room full of executives waited for my answer during one of those – get to know each other- moments at a recent retreat. My first impulse was to regale the room with stories from my amazing days of family, career, life experiences (and perhaps throw in a few accounts of my not so amazing days) but as I thought about the real answer to the question and how I’m looking forward to the future I realized the truth is simple, even with a lifetime of amazing days to choose from....I believe the best is yet to come.

You see, although I am about to end another turn around the sun with enough birthday candles to burn down my kitchen, I do not believe society’s view of aging. I do not believe the myth that aging is an inevitable decline from the vitality of youth down some slippery slope to the frailty of aging and that there is nothing we can do about it.  It is simply not true.

We can be healthy, vital, active, joyful, ageless until our last days, if we choose to.  It is a matter of action and attitude.

Sometimes, we look to the future of aging with fear and uncertainty, pining for our younger inexperienced years and trying to find a “cure” for what is in reality one of nature’s most important processes.  From the minute of our conception, to the minute of our death aging is the most natural path of LIVING.  What matters is how we live, that we live MORE every moment and believe that we are worth the daily investment in our health.  

 Sounds great, but how do we live MORE every moment and create a future that is healthy, vital, active, joyful and ageless? As an orthopaedic surgeon I have the amazing privilege to care for people when they come to me with pain or injury and by fixing them, save their mobility.  But for me it has always been more than simply the mechanical task of surgery or designing treatment plans.  For me, saving mobility means saving people from the ravages of 33 chronic diseases that are directly improved by mobility and thus helping people return to the lives they envision.  As a younger surgeon, more than 20 years ago, I decided to go further than just fixing people to perform research, write books, speak from every open podium and post on every platform to teach every smart savvy woman (and a few smart savvy men) how to live MORE in the 1440 moments we have every day.  

Teaching people that they are worth the daily investment in their wellness, to take action by creating strategic plans for their health, by harnessing the new science of aging, which now allows us to build actionable precision plans for our longevity, by working with individuals to design lifestyle plans just for them and by helping to pivot mindsets to face the future with anticipation is work worth doing and despite having clocked more than 20 years as a surgeon, I am not done yet.

My latest work adds to the foundation I have laid to harness the new science of aging into Precision Longevity Experiences for small groups who come together in luxury locations for 2 days of remarkable education, empowerment and the designing of  actionable longevity plans for optimizing your health span and living MORE.  

I’ve also come to understand that it is not just enough as a surgeon and scientist to change the way we physically age in this country, but it is critical to change the narrative around aging.  We cannot progress forward in pursuit of the best in life by constantly looking backwards to our youth. The fullness of life comes with experience and the price of rich experience is aging.  

In thinking about my own living (aging) I kept thinking...what is the future?  I realized that no matter what I had accomplished in the past, all the good and all the bad days I had experienced were all in preparation for the best days of my life.  I am not done yet.  I am just getting started exploding the myth that aging is about decline and that at a “certain age” a light bulb just goes off.  I don’t even clearly know what I’m supposed to be at my age....but what I do know is that I am living ageless- not defined by a number, that I am living authentic- being exactly who I am in a way that did not feel possible when I was younger and had less experience, and I am living indefinable- meaning I get to define my future and not buy into the myth placed upon women with experience in life.   

We have the advantage of experience. We can be healthy, vital ,active, joyful...ageless...if we choose to.  The best is yet to come.

Vonda Wright, MD, MS

Instagram: @drvondawright

If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

-African Proverb

I truly believe that a strong community is vital for success, but it's just one piece of the puzzle; much more is needed to achieve our personal and professional goals.

My concept for The ProAge Influencer Alliance incorporates a comprehensive approach; providing essential tools and resources in addition to community support; all needed to transform our passion projects into successful, thriving enterprises.

This is an exclusive Alliance and only those dedicated to its core values need apply; community, connection, collaboration, kindness and authenticity.

Watch for more information in next week’s ProAge Pulse…..

Warmly,

Meri

The Pro-Age Woman

@theproagewoman.com

Click the pillar link in bio for more information and to apply..