Candice Bergen's Illness She Kept A Secret For 6 Years
Editor  plus50women

Candice Bergen recently confessed to having a stroke in 2006.  She kept her illness a secret, because as she told New York Magazine,  "She didn't want it to become a liability".  Who doesn't understand that wisdom?

It's hard enough as we age to stay vibrant, motivated and in the loop of current events, without labeling ourselves a stroke victim.  As we age, our value is continually downgraded until we have little or no worth to society.  It's unfair, it's maddening and it's called age discrimination.  But it is also a very real fact of life, that on the other side of 40, you start the decent in to old age. 

Not having a stroke (yet), I find my memory waning.  I have always kept a journal of daily appointments, conversations and job duties I need to perform.  I feel very blessed to have developed such strong organizational skills in my youth, as they are invaluable to me in middle age.  If you have never kept a journal, I highly recommend you start.  Where we reboot our computers my defragmenting the hard drive, we can refresh our memories by reading our journals.   

Candice Bergen recently made the statement that since her stroke, her memory isn't what it used to be.  Who's is?  There are days I feel that a name tag attached to my shirt would be an appropriate fashion accessory.  It's easy to make jokes about our fading memories, but honestly, I do worry about dementia or Alzheimers robbing me of my life; my past and my future. 

This is why eating healthy meals, exercising (both our brains and our bodies) becomes the key to remaining as sharp and in focus as we can possibly be.  Too, many of us take short cuts in our lives.  We eat fast food - verses healthy home cooked meals. We take the elevator - verses the stairs.  We watch TV - verses reading a good murder mystery.  There are so many activities we can participate in that will enhance and prolong our lives.  Healthy lives that can be fully enjoyed for years to come.

I was a big fan of Candice Bergen in the 70's (Murphy Brown was ground breaking on so many different levels) and I'm still a huge fan of her's now.  In fact, I find her even more amazing, after living a life rich in experiences.  This is the best kept secret of aging; how truly knowledgeable and interesting we have become.