Promised Land or Purgaatory

             Is it great that we are going to live to be one hundred years old? Sure, if we can stay healthy that long. My Grandpa lived to be about eighty-five years old. But did he enjoy all eighty-five years of it? In my opinion he didn't. When he was younger he was just like every average person out there. He enjoyed playing sports and he eventually started his own business. With age it weakens our minds as much as our bodies, severely challenging our ability to remain mentally acute and emotionally positive (Johnson 10). I think he had a great childhood and a great family. But the last couple of years of his life he was just miserable. He wasn't his same old self. He ended up getting cancer and died. Through the pain I saw him go through I can see why some people might resort to going to Jack Kevorkian to end their lives. I totally disagree with that choice, but I have never suffered the pain that some elderly people go through. Researchers have found that a sick or !
             disabled senior who is surrounded by friends and family will tend to characterize his or her life as satisfactory (Johnson 12). I agree with that statement, the more you visit with them and make them feel special, the more they enjoy living.
             Elderly people being sick is not the only thing that makes their lives miserable. Depression is another key factor. The elderly suffer very high rates of depression compared with rest of the population. Snapping out of depression by means of self generated positive illusions get harder, because with advanced age, positive illusions become difficult to sustain. No one knows precisely why this is so, but researchers believe that agerelated changes in the serotonin system play a key role. People with low levels of serotonin are more likely to feel depressed, anxious or angry (Johnson 10). Serotonin is the neurotransmitter most closely linked to feelings of happiness, con
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