Unit 4 Development Through The Life Stages Essay
Unit 4 Development through the life stages
P4 Explain the two theories of ageing
P5 Explain the physical and psychological changes which may be associated with ageing
M2 Discuss two major theories in ageing in relation to the development of the individual
M3 Discuss the effects on self-esteem and self-confidence, of the physical changes associated with ageing
D2 Evaluate the influence of the two major theories of ageing on health and social care provisions.
P4.
Disengagement Theory
This theory is based on the fact as we enter into the elderly stage of life; relationships begin to fall off as a result of diverse situations. Examples of diverse situations could be:- * Loss of a spouse, friend or relative and maybe a reduce number …show more content…
of close relationships held with anyone. * Illness or injuries or maybe natural deterioration of the body * Retirement, not being in contact with colleagues or not being as social as you were in work. * Children marrying and moving away from home then not seeing the parent as much as they did when they were at home.
As the elderly individual experience these situation, a sense of loss places a gap between him/her and society, Symptoms could be withdrawal as they may become less involved with their formal circles and family. They may not venture from home as much as they used and visits outside is not as frequent as before. Simply said, the individuals start to disengage from life.
Activity Theory
Activity theory on the other hand, sees a positive correlation between keeping active and ageing well. Growing old can mean different things for different people but this theory believes that if an individual was active when they were younger that middle adults will remain active as older adults. But they believe those who were less active when they were younger are more than likely to disengage as they age.
Activity theory shows that older person independence is maintained that that they have a choice in what they want to do as well as value them as an individual. However the disengagement theory encourages very little independence, give older people little choice and treat everyone the same which is wrong as people have different needs to be met so cannot be treated the same.
London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. p 95.
P5.
Physical Changes
Hormones/ Menopause
During puberty, a hormone activates our sex characteristics in result making us how we look and sometimes in result, how we act.
However, as a women grows older they go through the menopause which is when the female hormone oestrogen which ends the woman from menstruating also the production of eggs that come from the ovaries (this means that woman are no longer able to have children) During the menopause, there are some symptoms and some changes in physical appearance such as:- * The skin becomes thinner * The lack of oestrogen can affect a woman’s bladder and may find that you need to urinate more than before. * A slight risk increase in getting a stroke or heart disease after the menopause is over. * With the oestrogen levels going down, can be more undesirable changes such as cholesterol to high or the fat levels in the blood being high too, which has underlying effects with your heart.
Men can also go through a slight menopause which is usually cause by the hormones not being produced or being slowly produced. However, even though sperm does not continue to produce as much as it used during the men’s younger days – they are still able to father children. http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/menopause.htm#ixzz2QdWT2Se8
London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. p
91.
In ageing, hormones can target organs; an example of this is the hypothalamus which is located in the brain produced hormones that control other structures in endocrine; even the hormones stay the same – the endocrine change as we age.
The thyroid gland produces a hormone that can control metabolism but this usually slows down with age thus making it easier people for older people to either gain or lose weight; in some cases this may affect an older person’s appetite thus only having minimal nutrients a day. Another example of hormones affected by ageing is the Parathyroid; the hormone that it produces increases when we age which can cause a decrease in calcium and in some cases can cause osteoporosis. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004000.htm. Cardiovascular System
As we grow older, the heart rate decreases because we lose pacemaker cells. Electrical pathways may develop fibrous tissue and fat tissue that can make abnormal heart rhythms more commons; through this the amount of blood the chamber can hold may actually decrease because the heart wall thickens. In response to stress or exertion, older people compensate for their lower maximum heart rate by increasing their stroke volume to maintain cardio output. However, takes longer for the heart rate and blood pressure to return to normal resting level following stress. http://www.ageworks.com/information_on_aging/changeswithaging/cardio.shtml
With chronic heart disease, there are arteries that supply the heart with oxygen and nutrients but atherosclerosis can narrow this which in result, reduces the supply of blood and oxygen going to the heart, mostly during when the heart has to be used more example – during activities (sport) http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/in_depth/heart/aboutheart_index.shtml Respiratory system
As you age, the elastic tissue deteriorates throughout the body and reduces the lung ability to inflate and deflate. The rib cage does not move as freely because of arthritic changes – this is in combination with the changes in elasticity which causes reduction in chest movement that limits respiratory volume. http://www.aahf.info/sec_exercise/section/respiratory.htm
Some Individual may develop emphysema as people may lose 1 square foot of a respiratory membrane and chronic disease may develop with age. Emphysema happens when the air sac that is located in your lungs are eventually destroyed; in result makes an individual have shortness of breath. Emphysema is a disease which is known as COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) Emphysema eventually worsens if not managed well; which turns the air sacs into big holes in their inner walls – which lessens the surface are of the lungs; in result also reduces the amount of oxygen that goes into your blood stream. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/emphysema/DS00296 Muscular
As we grow older, our muscle loses its size and strength which could make an older person get tired quicker, feel weak and feel less enticed to exercise. This is because the muscle fibers reduce in numbers and get smaller; this could be a result of the muscle tissue taking more time to be replaced – however it’s not always replaced with the original tissue – it can be replaced by a tough fibrous tissue which makes it difficult to move around with. Another age related factor of the muscular system is that the nervous system can cause muscles to have weakened tone and make it harder for the muscle to contract.
In the muscular system, we have a skeletal system and the main organs is the bones which are a living tissue. As we grow older, our bone structure may change and in result we could lose some bone tissue. We may loss some bone mass which causes older people become weak and liable to get their bones broken. Some of the reasons why we may lose some bone mass maybe because we may lead an inactive lifestyle which causes some bone waste or a main factor could be hormones; women who go through the menopause may lose some minerals in their bone tissues. Other issues could be poor diet that an older person may have and that they are not getting the valuable nutrients they need to maintain a healthy skeletal system.
Bones do not join directly to each other, a joint will come in between them both and they are protected by cartilages that line the joints. As we age, our joints can become stiffer and less flexible because the lubricating fluids that are located in your joints start to deteriorate in result making the cartilage thinner. Ligaments can decrease and become smaller, lose the flexibility that they once had which can also make the joints stiff.
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Ageing_muscles_bones_and_joints
Nervous System
The nervous system can go through a number of changes as we grow older. Our brain and spinal cord can start to lose the nerve cells and weight in result making it slower for the nerve cells to deliver messages to the brain. In old age, we can start collecting waste products in our brain such as plaques and tangles to form – also a fatty brown pigment called lipofuscin can increase in the nerve tissue. If we lose enough nerve cells, we could lose reflexes or you may find it hard to do them as well as you used to.
As we grow older, its normal for some people to forget things as it’s a normal process of ageing. However not everyone is the same and some people may have diseases or illnesses that could affect an individual’s memory skills such as Alzheimer’s disease which doctors believe is because of the plaques, tangles and fatty brown pigment. Some of the symptoms for Alzheimer’s are severe memory loss, irritability and confusion.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004023.htm
Skin
As we grow older, our skin changes and it may feel like it isn’t as smooth as it used to be or as tight; it may also feel a bit drier. You may find that you can bruise a lot easier that you use to; this is because there is not much support around blood vessels walls as you get older in result making it easier to hurt yourself.
Your face can look a bit thinner in old age; this is because you lose fat in most of your face so it changes your appearance a bit. You could develop lines on your face which can be because of the expressions you make and the skin becomes less lose in results making some parts of your face droop e.g. eyebrows, eyelids.
Ageing isn’t the only factor that could change your skin; it could be because of smoking or sun exposure. If you spend too much time in the sun, the UV can damage the fibers in your skin (elastin) and give the skin a stretchable appearance but this could make the skin easier in getting bruised easily; it could also take a while longer to heal properly. Smoking however can make your skin develop more wrinkles and the worst case scenario of smoking is skin cancer. http://www.webmd.com/beauty/aging/effects-of-aging-on-skin Psychological
We go through some life events that may improve or decrease our confidence or our self-esteem such as retiring from your job may mean you can spend more time with your family and having the ability to experience things such as holidays you may never been before may make you feel better about yourself. However not every individual is the same, some people may find once they retire they have no friends because the only people they ever communicated with are people from work; maybe working maintained financial security and pension may not pay out as much as you predicted in result making the older individual stressed and losing any self-confidence or self-esteem they had. Another example could be a loss of a partner may make someone feel really depressed and lose their self-worth as they may have done everything together; or their partner was the one who did everything for them and they may not have the appropriate skills to do it themselves. However, some people may feel that they can live independently and being able to do things themselves such as sort their own bills out and being able to learn to do DIY or gardening.
In old age, they may have increased leisure time and they could be able to do things they never did before and meet new people; learn new skills and able to make new friends so that you can arrange days out with them. This gains a person’s self-confidence being able to do things they want and gaining new skills. The few negative points I have about more leisure time is that they may not be able to afford it or they find it hard to get to that area without someone helping them i.e. due to mobility issue or illnesses.
We all have different beliefs, cultures and religions that we believe in but may find it harder to embrace it in old age. They may have mobility issues or are disabled in result making it harder to travel to religious monument to worship and some cultures believe in donating money to a good cause; some people’s pensions may not pay well for someone to spare money. However, some older people may find it more comfortable to be able to worship in their own home and still continue to pursue their religion, still be a confident person.
We may have a change of role in our life time, an example that I am going to use is a grandparent – however some people may find it a good thing as they could spend more time with the child and offer to babysit to make it more convenient for the parents to go to work. This could gain an individual’s self-worth as they are communicating with the family and be able to feel loved and involved. In other cases, a grand parents will not want to spend all their time with their grandchild because they want some leisure time and not feel like a babysitter which in result causes eruptions and in worst case scenario the parents can seclude the grand parents from their grandchildren which makes them feel isolated that they cannot spend quality time with their family.
Ageism however is something that can decrease someones self confidence and self esteem because some of the comments or stereotypes that they get may make them feel that whatever the person is true, example:-“you’re past your time, your useless now” When you grow older, you lose some of your senses and abilities to do things that you feel that people are saying true things about you. Some carers can use ageism against older people as they may feel that they do not make appropriate choices and talk a lot of nonsence that they end up disempowering the individual from making their own choices. This could make a person feel isolated and lower their self confidence.
Rasheed, Elizabeth; Irvine, Jo; Hetherington, Alison. BTEC Level 3 National Health and Social Care. London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. p 94.
References
London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/menopause.htm#ixzz2QdWT2Se8 http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004000.htm. http://www.ageworks.com/information_on_aging/changeswithaging/cardio.shtml http://www.aahf.info/sec_exercise/section/respiratory.htm http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/in_depth/heart/aboutheart_index.shtml http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/emphysema/DS00296 http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Ageing_muscles_bones_and_joints http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004023.htm
http://www.webmd.com/beauty/aging/effects-of-aging-on-skin
P4 Explain the two theories of ageing
P5 Explain the physical and psychological changes which may be associated with ageing
M2 Discuss two major theories in ageing in relation to the development of the individual
M3 Discuss the effects on self-esteem and self-confidence, of the physical changes associated with ageing
D2 Evaluate the influence of the two major theories of ageing on health and social care provisions.
P4.
Disengagement Theory
This theory is based on the fact as we enter into the elderly stage of life; relationships begin to fall off as a result of diverse situations. Examples of diverse situations could be:- * Loss of a spouse, friend or relative and maybe a reduce number …show more content…
of close relationships held with anyone. * Illness or injuries or maybe natural deterioration of the body * Retirement, not being in contact with colleagues or not being as social as you were in work. * Children marrying and moving away from home then not seeing the parent as much as they did when they were at home.
As the elderly individual experience these situation, a sense of loss places a gap between him/her and society, Symptoms could be withdrawal as they may become less involved with their formal circles and family. They may not venture from home as much as they used and visits outside is not as frequent as before. Simply said, the individuals start to disengage from life.
Activity Theory
Activity theory on the other hand, sees a positive correlation between keeping active and ageing well. Growing old can mean different things for different people but this theory believes that if an individual was active when they were younger that middle adults will remain active as older adults. But they believe those who were less active when they were younger are more than likely to disengage as they age.
Activity theory shows that older person independence is maintained that that they have a choice in what they want to do as well as value them as an individual. However the disengagement theory encourages very little independence, give older people little choice and treat everyone the same which is wrong as people have different needs to be met so cannot be treated the same.
London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. p 95.
P5.
Physical Changes
Hormones/ Menopause
During puberty, a hormone activates our sex characteristics in result making us how we look and sometimes in result, how we act.
However, as a women grows older they go through the menopause which is when the female hormone oestrogen which ends the woman from menstruating also the production of eggs that come from the ovaries (this means that woman are no longer able to have children) During the menopause, there are some symptoms and some changes in physical appearance such as:- * The skin becomes thinner * The lack of oestrogen can affect a woman’s bladder and may find that you need to urinate more than before. * A slight risk increase in getting a stroke or heart disease after the menopause is over. * With the oestrogen levels going down, can be more undesirable changes such as cholesterol to high or the fat levels in the blood being high too, which has underlying effects with your heart.
Men can also go through a slight menopause which is usually cause by the hormones not being produced or being slowly produced. However, even though sperm does not continue to produce as much as it used during the men’s younger days – they are still able to father children. http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/menopause.htm#ixzz2QdWT2Se8
London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. p
91.
In ageing, hormones can target organs; an example of this is the hypothalamus which is located in the brain produced hormones that control other structures in endocrine; even the hormones stay the same – the endocrine change as we age.
The thyroid gland produces a hormone that can control metabolism but this usually slows down with age thus making it easier people for older people to either gain or lose weight; in some cases this may affect an older person’s appetite thus only having minimal nutrients a day. Another example of hormones affected by ageing is the Parathyroid; the hormone that it produces increases when we age which can cause a decrease in calcium and in some cases can cause osteoporosis. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004000.htm. Cardiovascular System
As we grow older, the heart rate decreases because we lose pacemaker cells. Electrical pathways may develop fibrous tissue and fat tissue that can make abnormal heart rhythms more commons; through this the amount of blood the chamber can hold may actually decrease because the heart wall thickens. In response to stress or exertion, older people compensate for their lower maximum heart rate by increasing their stroke volume to maintain cardio output. However, takes longer for the heart rate and blood pressure to return to normal resting level following stress. http://www.ageworks.com/information_on_aging/changeswithaging/cardio.shtml
With chronic heart disease, there are arteries that supply the heart with oxygen and nutrients but atherosclerosis can narrow this which in result, reduces the supply of blood and oxygen going to the heart, mostly during when the heart has to be used more example – during activities (sport) http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/in_depth/heart/aboutheart_index.shtml Respiratory system
As you age, the elastic tissue deteriorates throughout the body and reduces the lung ability to inflate and deflate. The rib cage does not move as freely because of arthritic changes – this is in combination with the changes in elasticity which causes reduction in chest movement that limits respiratory volume. http://www.aahf.info/sec_exercise/section/respiratory.htm
Some Individual may develop emphysema as people may lose 1 square foot of a respiratory membrane and chronic disease may develop with age. Emphysema happens when the air sac that is located in your lungs are eventually destroyed; in result makes an individual have shortness of breath. Emphysema is a disease which is known as COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) Emphysema eventually worsens if not managed well; which turns the air sacs into big holes in their inner walls – which lessens the surface are of the lungs; in result also reduces the amount of oxygen that goes into your blood stream. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/emphysema/DS00296 Muscular
As we grow older, our muscle loses its size and strength which could make an older person get tired quicker, feel weak and feel less enticed to exercise. This is because the muscle fibers reduce in numbers and get smaller; this could be a result of the muscle tissue taking more time to be replaced – however it’s not always replaced with the original tissue – it can be replaced by a tough fibrous tissue which makes it difficult to move around with. Another age related factor of the muscular system is that the nervous system can cause muscles to have weakened tone and make it harder for the muscle to contract.
In the muscular system, we have a skeletal system and the main organs is the bones which are a living tissue. As we grow older, our bone structure may change and in result we could lose some bone tissue. We may loss some bone mass which causes older people become weak and liable to get their bones broken. Some of the reasons why we may lose some bone mass maybe because we may lead an inactive lifestyle which causes some bone waste or a main factor could be hormones; women who go through the menopause may lose some minerals in their bone tissues. Other issues could be poor diet that an older person may have and that they are not getting the valuable nutrients they need to maintain a healthy skeletal system.
Bones do not join directly to each other, a joint will come in between them both and they are protected by cartilages that line the joints. As we age, our joints can become stiffer and less flexible because the lubricating fluids that are located in your joints start to deteriorate in result making the cartilage thinner. Ligaments can decrease and become smaller, lose the flexibility that they once had which can also make the joints stiff.
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Ageing_muscles_bones_and_joints
Nervous System
The nervous system can go through a number of changes as we grow older. Our brain and spinal cord can start to lose the nerve cells and weight in result making it slower for the nerve cells to deliver messages to the brain. In old age, we can start collecting waste products in our brain such as plaques and tangles to form – also a fatty brown pigment called lipofuscin can increase in the nerve tissue. If we lose enough nerve cells, we could lose reflexes or you may find it hard to do them as well as you used to.
As we grow older, its normal for some people to forget things as it’s a normal process of ageing. However not everyone is the same and some people may have diseases or illnesses that could affect an individual’s memory skills such as Alzheimer’s disease which doctors believe is because of the plaques, tangles and fatty brown pigment. Some of the symptoms for Alzheimer’s are severe memory loss, irritability and confusion.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004023.htm
Skin
As we grow older, our skin changes and it may feel like it isn’t as smooth as it used to be or as tight; it may also feel a bit drier. You may find that you can bruise a lot easier that you use to; this is because there is not much support around blood vessels walls as you get older in result making it easier to hurt yourself.
Your face can look a bit thinner in old age; this is because you lose fat in most of your face so it changes your appearance a bit. You could develop lines on your face which can be because of the expressions you make and the skin becomes less lose in results making some parts of your face droop e.g. eyebrows, eyelids.
Ageing isn’t the only factor that could change your skin; it could be because of smoking or sun exposure. If you spend too much time in the sun, the UV can damage the fibers in your skin (elastin) and give the skin a stretchable appearance but this could make the skin easier in getting bruised easily; it could also take a while longer to heal properly. Smoking however can make your skin develop more wrinkles and the worst case scenario of smoking is skin cancer. http://www.webmd.com/beauty/aging/effects-of-aging-on-skin Psychological
We go through some life events that may improve or decrease our confidence or our self-esteem such as retiring from your job may mean you can spend more time with your family and having the ability to experience things such as holidays you may never been before may make you feel better about yourself. However not every individual is the same, some people may find once they retire they have no friends because the only people they ever communicated with are people from work; maybe working maintained financial security and pension may not pay out as much as you predicted in result making the older individual stressed and losing any self-confidence or self-esteem they had. Another example could be a loss of a partner may make someone feel really depressed and lose their self-worth as they may have done everything together; or their partner was the one who did everything for them and they may not have the appropriate skills to do it themselves. However, some people may feel that they can live independently and being able to do things themselves such as sort their own bills out and being able to learn to do DIY or gardening.
In old age, they may have increased leisure time and they could be able to do things they never did before and meet new people; learn new skills and able to make new friends so that you can arrange days out with them. This gains a person’s self-confidence being able to do things they want and gaining new skills. The few negative points I have about more leisure time is that they may not be able to afford it or they find it hard to get to that area without someone helping them i.e. due to mobility issue or illnesses.
We all have different beliefs, cultures and religions that we believe in but may find it harder to embrace it in old age. They may have mobility issues or are disabled in result making it harder to travel to religious monument to worship and some cultures believe in donating money to a good cause; some people’s pensions may not pay well for someone to spare money. However, some older people may find it more comfortable to be able to worship in their own home and still continue to pursue their religion, still be a confident person.
We may have a change of role in our life time, an example that I am going to use is a grandparent – however some people may find it a good thing as they could spend more time with the child and offer to babysit to make it more convenient for the parents to go to work. This could gain an individual’s self-worth as they are communicating with the family and be able to feel loved and involved. In other cases, a grand parents will not want to spend all their time with their grandchild because they want some leisure time and not feel like a babysitter which in result causes eruptions and in worst case scenario the parents can seclude the grand parents from their grandchildren which makes them feel isolated that they cannot spend quality time with their family.
Ageism however is something that can decrease someones self confidence and self esteem because some of the comments or stereotypes that they get may make them feel that whatever the person is true, example:-“you’re past your time, your useless now” When you grow older, you lose some of your senses and abilities to do things that you feel that people are saying true things about you. Some carers can use ageism against older people as they may feel that they do not make appropriate choices and talk a lot of nonsence that they end up disempowering the individual from making their own choices. This could make a person feel isolated and lower their self confidence.
Rasheed, Elizabeth; Irvine, Jo; Hetherington, Alison. BTEC Level 3 National Health and Social Care. London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. p 94.
References
London, GBR: Hodder Education, 2010. http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/menopause.htm#ixzz2QdWT2Se8 http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004000.htm. http://www.ageworks.com/information_on_aging/changeswithaging/cardio.shtml http://www.aahf.info/sec_exercise/section/respiratory.htm http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/in_depth/heart/aboutheart_index.shtml http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/emphysema/DS00296 http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Ageing_muscles_bones_and_joints http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004023.htm
http://www.webmd.com/beauty/aging/effects-of-aging-on-skin