On 23rd August I celebrated my 66th birthday. I don’t usually worry about the number although I am very proud of being in my mid 60s and certainly don’t try to hide my age. I am mindful though and grateful that at 66 I have outlived the age my Mum lived to (she died at 63) and also my brother who died at 65. My Dad passed away at 67 so you can see that in the previous generation longevity hasn’t been high on the list.
After some worrying health scares in July and early August, where I was brought back to earth with a thud, I was diagnosed with coronary artery disease and hypertension. I did feel a little annoyed and quite vulnerable reviewing the results because I have lived an extremely healthy lifestyle and those pesky genes have come to the fore. On the positive side, if I hadn’t been living well and taking care of my health, my diagnosis might have been a lot worse.
The best birthday gift was from the cardiologist who said I could start running again – I certainly did a happy dance.
There is always something we can be positive about or grateful for.
What’s Been On My Calendar in August?
August was much happier and my calendar fuller than July. So what did I get up to?
Health checks, socialising, eating healthy, daily walks and celebrating another year around the sun. My birthday was low-key this year as my son was in the UK with his family on holiday and my daughter in Sydney for business. I still had a lovely after school tea with my grandsons and Mike made a special dinner for me. We then went out for lunch the next day.
- Health Checks – I had my mammogram and cervical screening so can tick those off the list.
- Daily walks around the lake with the approval of my cardiologist. These have been a godsend as I was going round the twist not being able to run or do any strenuous exercise until all my tests were done. Walking in nature is so good for our mental health as well as our physical wellbeing.
- Social – I caught up with my friend for a birthday breakfast, and Mike and I caught up with some friends we have known for over 30 years who were in Qld on holidays from Melbourne. Sometimes you just have to make the effort to make things happen and as we hadn’t seen them for over 5 years we enjoyed a lovely catch up.
- Sport – Mike and I joined in with the whole country as we got behind the Matildas Women Soccer Team – they did so well and made history advancing further than any Australian team before. 4th in the world is pretty good in my book! The game against France was a heart-stopper!
- Learning – I did a short course and am now an Action for Happiness Volunteer
- Fashion – played with my wardrobe. I received a gorgeous Gregory Ladner Scarf from my godmother and I just love the colours. After being in trackpants whilst I was ill it was nice to have some ‘dress up’ days and put some make up on. I like using the Enhance Pro Age Multisticks because they are quick and easy to use and add colour without going overboard. If you would like to try remember to use the code SUE15 for a discount.
- Reading – read and listened to some fabulous books and shared my top picks for the month for the What’s On Your Bookshelf? link up. (see link to blog post below).
Pressing Pause on the Podcast
Due to ill health I had to cancel most of my scheduled interviews for the WLWA50 podcast. Everyone was very understanding and the time away gave me time to reflect on whether to continue or not. After 3 years and well over 100 episodes, I have decided to ‘Press the Pause’ button for a while. I make record some short episodes with my thoughts on life but interviews are on hold for the moment.
Posts for the Month
Looking back at August I am surprised at the number of posts I wrote for the blog. I put the focus on my health experiences with some advice on maintaining health, bringing back the Sparkle, living well and enjoying life. I wrote about how The Matildas performance in the FIFA Women’s World Cup was the perfect example of Collective Effervesence,- a term I recently heard.
I linked up with
- Gail from Is this Mutton? for the monthly Tell Us About link up – this month’s prompt was Imagination.
- Denyse Whelan for her Wednesdays Words & Pics
- Hosted What’s On Your Bookshelf? with my lovely friends Debbie, Donna & Jo
Altruistic August 2023 – Action for Happiness
Why we lose our Sparkle and how to get it back
Bringing ‘Sparkle’ into life and why a ‘Sparkle’ book helps
Making your health a priority
The Matildas Game was the perfect example of Collective Effervescence
Use your Imagination – it is a key to living well after 50
What’s On Your Bookshelf? – My top ranking books for August 2023
Focus for the week – Finding Your Happiness & Your Happy Place
Dairy Australia’s Healthy Bones Action Week
Overcoming Life’s Challenges & an Update on the Podcast
Quotes for the Month
Well, that’s what’s been on my calendar and I Iook forward hearing what you’ve been up to. I’m sharing my co-hosts’ links as well so remember to pop over and visit to see how their month progressed.
Debbie Harris
Donna Connolly
Jo Tracey
Enjoy your month!
What’s Been On Your Calendar? #WBOYC
What: 2023 Monthly Wrap-Up Link Party.
When: Last Thursday PM (Northern Hemisphere)/ Last Friday AM (Southern Hemisphere). The link will be open for 7 days
Why: A space to share highlights from your past month.
Where: Link Party, Blog, Blog Comments, Instagram or other social media.
Who: This linkup is open to everyone.
How: You can share in the comments, with a blog post, or on other social media of your choice. Include the hashtag so that we can find you and include your link in our posts.
The next #WBOYC will be Thursday September 29th /Friday September 30th. I’m looking forward to seeing and reading What’s Been on your Calendar? during the month.
38 Comments
I’m so glad you’ve been able to get back to what you love…running. You have the best mindset…instead of bemoaning your diagnosis. You’re looking at the difference your lifestyle made. I keep coming back to your sparkle post in my mind whenever I’ve found myself playing the “poor me” game. Thanks so much for the link party!
https://marshainthemiddle.com/
Thanks so much for your kind words and yes I’m trying to take a positive view. I’m so pleased you think of the sparkle post – it can really help. Hope you are okay and have a great week x
Hi Sue, I’m glad to hear your cardiologist said you could start running again. I enjoyed reading what you’ve been up to in August. I agree with you daily walks are so good for our mental and physical health. I hope you and Mike have a wonderful September. I’ll link my post to yours on Friday my time.
Hi Natalie, yes I was quite relieved to receive the okay to resume normal activities. Thanks for linking up with us and have a great September x
Hi, Sue – This is such a great reminder that while we cannot change our genetic history, lifestyle and mindset are also extremely important contributing factors. I did a big cheer when you got the all-clear to run again. Best birthday gift ever! <3
Thanks, Donna. Even though I felt everything would be okay there was still a nagging doubt. It certainly was a great birthday gift! x
You’ve certainly had a busy month IRL and on the blog despite your health scare – good that it’s all under control and you can get back to doing what you love.
It was a busy month, Leanne despite the medical visits I still managed to enjoy life. I’m so happy that I know what I’m dealing with and can act accordingly. x
I’m so glad you’ve been have such a rich and fulfilling time, Sue – and looking after your health. Toni x
Thanks, Toni it has certainly been a worry but I’m glad to be able to get back to normal living. x
Sue, I am happy to see you rebounding nicely from your health issues. Sixty-six looks good on you. P.S. As I mentioned before, that red lip color is perfect for you. I truly admire anyone who can ‘rock’ a scarf like you do!
Hi Suzanne thanks so much for your lovely comment. Re the red lips I rarely wear red but everytime I do I receive compliments – perhaps there is a message there? “We are never too old to wear red lips”. Hope all okay with you as I know your MIL is not doing so well which is stressful for you. x
I am pleased to hear that your life is getting back to normal. Happy belated birthday wishes.
Thanks so much Anne. It certainly was a great birthday gift being given the go ahead to get back to my normal routine. x
Yay for getting to add running back into your lifestyle. I’m sure those health issues were scary and probably felt a bit like a slap in the face but thankfully your healthy lifestyle is probably what is helping you rebound so quickly (even if it didn’t feel all that quick!).
Hi Joanne, I was a bit annoyed at the original prognosis as I’ve tried hard to avoid ill health. It could be worse and as you say living a healthy lifestyle has certainly helped – it could have been much worse xx
Congratulations on reaching 66, Sue! I hope you live many more full years. It sounds like you are working hard to keep healthy and active. You look very fashionable. Do you know my blogging friend Jodie, A Touch of Style. I think you would love her if you don’t already know her.
Thanks, Marsha and yes I hope to be a 90 year old still running! I do know Jodie and follow her. I don’t think of myself as in the ‘fashion bloggers’ league but I do enjoy it when I make the effort to dress up a little – good for the mental health. x
Amen to that, Sue. And I hope you do live to be a running 90-year-old. I always wanted to be a dancing granny. Since I never became a mom, I had to give that dream up. LOL 🙂
You can still keep dancing Marsha and be a Dancing Diva xx
Great idea! Now if I could just dance! 🙂 LOL
It’s never too late to learn, Marsha! x
true dat! 🙂
Happy birthday and yay on the running – and also yay on managing mental health when hit with a physical blow. That’s a big ask, and well done to you. #WBOYC and #WeekendCoffeeShare
Thanks for the birthday wishes, Lydia. I had a lovely birthday and look forward to the coming year. x
Congratulations on your birthday and the positive news on the health front. It can certainly take a toll on our mindset to receive negative health news when we think we have been doing our best to stay healthy. You have certainly turned your mindset around by looking at the positives and being grateful for what you have achieved in life. You are such an inspiration to us all. Thanks for sharing your month.
Thanks so much for your lovely comment, Janine. It is easy to fall into a negative spin if you receive concerning news. However, we are stronger than we think and I was fortunate the outcome wasn’t as bad as we thought. x
What a big month you had Sue and even with all your health issues you’ve managed to inspire us all! Thanks for sharing your reminders about keeping up to date with health checkups, it’s so important. I’m so happy you can get back into your running and things are under control now for you, it is hard when genetics play such a part in your life despite you being so healthy and active. Thanks for being a great co-host and friend! Can’t wait to see you when I visit Qld later this month.xx
It was a huge month, Deb with good news on my birthday. I’m so looking forward to seeing you later in the month. x
Happy belated birthday wishes! So glad to hear that you’re on the mend. I turned 66 August 30 and it was a bittersweet birthday as the love of my life passed away in December. The first of any events without your loved one is so difficult but I managed to have some joyful moments even though I was quite stressed by the whole thing. I live with chronic pain but I try to go for a walk in nature when I can. Nature is such a healing balm for the soul and body and reading is a lifesaver for me.
I am wishing you all the best and bravo to you for keeping up with your running. You’re an inspiration to me. You’re in my thoughts and in my prayers.
Hi Yvonne, thanks so much for your lovely birthday wishes. I’m so sorry to hear of your loss and that is so difficult to come back from, especially if you are also living with physical pain. Nature is a balm and it is good for you to be able to get out and enjoy it all. Take care and sending big hugs to you. xx
So glad you’re on the mend – being able to run again was THE best birthday pressie for you. I’m so behind on reading blogs so I’m not even going to try and catch up, but rather put a line in the sand and be better this month.
Hi Jo, thanks so much for the comment because I do know how busy you are. I’m glad you aren’t putting pressure on yourself to try to do it all. You do what you can and that is all anyone can ask. Take care of yourself first and foremost. Sending love and hugs. x
Happy belated birthday and I like how proud you are of being in your mid-60s! So many people think they shouldn’t celebrate birthdays when they’re beyond 50 or whatever, but I think that’s when birthdays are important and reminders how blessed we are to live because many (like your family) aren’t so lucky.
I’m so glad you’re back running and as you know, I know what it’s like to be diagnosed with scary health issues. It looks like August was filled with good things for you. Take care and enjoy the spring!
Hi Susanne, I’ve never had an issue with my age – it is what it is. I will always celebrate my birthday for the reason you mentioned. Getting back to running was a joy because it is one of my happy places. xx
Love the red hat and scarf!
Glad you’re starting to get back to some fun after being ill. I hope you continue to recover well.
Hi Janet, the hat and scarf were out of my comfort zone but so many people have left lovely comments about them that I think they will definitely be going to Europe with me in November. x
Your post on “Living Well at 66” is an inspiring testament to the vitality and joy that can be found at any age. Age is just a number, and your vibrant outlook on life and your enthusiasm for embracing new experiences and challenges are truly motivating. Thanks for sharing your positive and uplifting perspective on living life to the fullest at 66! 🌟🌈🌸