Question: what do you call a woman who has been through midlife and menopause but would rather pull her grey roots out one by one than be called old?
Welcome to the brave new world – and rather confusing territory – of the New Inbetweeners. Forget the coming-of-age TV comedy about teenage adolescence, this is at the other end of the life scale. A coming-of-old-age, in fact, when you feel neither one thing nor the other.
Surely an old person is someone who is really old. I’m talking Zimmer frames, Velcro slippers, stairlifts and those chairs that elevate and tip you out, as advertised during Midsomer Murders.
According to my thesaurus, ‘old’ is another word for ancient, decrepit, aged, tired, enfeebled, impaired, geriatric, broken down, grizzled and debilitated. Great! So much to look forward to. By common consensus, old is the catch-all word used to describe anybody who has seen 60 or more wonderful orbits around the sun. And that would be me.
The past few years have seen a vibrant, energised and, at times, angry revision of how 40-plus women are seen by the rest of the world. Thanks to Davina McCall, Mariella Frostrup and a host of former glossy magazine editors fed up with the embarrassed silence around menopause, it is now cool to be middle-aged. Hot flushes have become hot.
But there is a silent void about what happens next. I have contemporaries who still optimistically describe themselves as midlife – although I think I need to break the news that we are unlikely to be blowing out candles on our 122nd birthday cakes.
Esta historia es de la edición April 18, 2022 de WOMAN - UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición April 18, 2022 de WOMAN - UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
'We started the day WITH A 10am MARGARITA!'
A League of Their Own team captain Jamie Redknapp on the show's latest far-flung adventure
'Bill Roache is VERY SEDUCTIVE'
Comedian Helen Lederer on starring in Corrie and the return of Ab Fab
The burden of BEING THE FAVOURITE CHILD
Clare O'Reilly knows all too well that being the golden child comes with a lot of pressure
He lured our sons to THEIR DEATH
Claire Throssell is determined that no other child should be put in danger like her sons were
Could you be SILENT for 12 hours?
Many of us crave a quieter life, according to research, so Monica Cafferky put a silent retreat to the test
What NOT to lie to your GP about
While many of the questions we ask can seem downright nosy, there are plenty of reasons why you should tell the truth...
Your sex taboos SORTED!
We've got the solutions to the worries you're often too timid to talk about
'I've found my PURPOSE AGAIN'
Jane McDonald on love, loss and looking towards the future
HARRY AND MEGHAN WERE BACK WITH A BANG ON THEIR FIRST 'ROYAL TOUR'
After keeping a low public profile for the past year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex visited Nigeria with all the hallmarks of a presidential visit.
We do EVERYTHING together
Lindsey Mungall and her twin sister can't bear to be apart