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How old are you ...

(91 Posts)
b1zzle Wed 03-Jun-20 11:38:18

... before you look in the mirror?

(I just don't understand why there's always this old woman of 72 looking back at me. In my head I'm always 35!

SillyNanny321 Thu 04-Jun-20 12:10:48

I sit reading & listening to heavy rock & feel about 35+. Then get up to make a cuppa & catch sight of my Mum in the mirror. Then realise its 75 year old me. Oh well back to the book & the music & forget how old I really am.

BlueSky Thu 04-Jun-20 12:20:09

BladeAnnie agree about Britt Ekland, Barbara Dickson looks much better without trying too hard to look like a teenager!

Patticake123 Thu 04-Jun-20 12:25:32

I’m around 45 in my head and I used to think I didn’t look too bad in the mirror and then came the advent of zoom. Now when I see myself on the full computer screen, the lines, patchy skin, flabby throat and grey hair reflecting back and I’m finding the truth hurts!

Destin Thu 04-Jun-20 12:46:44

My yoga instructor has the best piece of advice about ageing - she always says .....’you are as old as your spine’. When you look around at how older people walk and hold their shoulders and their upper body in general it’s certainly so true. So when I look in the mirror and get a bit disheartened about the wrinkles and sagging jaw of this 77 year old face I quickly swivel sideways and check out the strong straight back and straight square shoulders of a 45 year old and feel so much better!

TheFrugalPiggy Thu 04-Jun-20 12:57:38

I'm 55 but I don't identify with my own age group at all. In my head I'm between 35 and 40. When I catch sight of myself in the mirror I'm my mother.

Buttonjugs Thu 04-Jun-20 13:02:33

@MaryXYX I like that - apparently I am 38! In reality I am 56, in my head 46, and my body feels like 76. Last night I ordered a stool for the shower because I managed to pull something trying to wash my lady bits! ??‍♀️

janipans Thu 04-Jun-20 13:06:49

I remember visiting my mother in hospital, the day before she died, when she was just 59 and wondering why she was on a geriatric ward. Then I looked at her properly and realised that she actually was an "old lady". I am 65 now and every time I look in a mirror I am thankful that I look much younger than my age. Modern hair and skincare and a young attitude to life is the way to go I think!

Kartush Thu 04-Jun-20 13:10:47

Im 65 , my head says I’m way younger than that but my body says I’m well into my 100,s. Haven’t looked in the mirror in ages cos I’m sick of seeing the short fat ugly woman who lives inside it.

SheilsM Thu 04-Jun-20 13:12:42

Happy Birthday Peterpan x

Greciangirl Thu 04-Jun-20 13:34:21

I hate my wrinkly arms as well. I am quite thin, so don’t have very much flesh to plump them up.

My décolletage is slightly wrinkly also, but that’s probably from sun exposure. I do make sure to moisture that area very regularly. Again, being on the bony side, I don’t have a cleavage.
I am nearly 75, and since this lockdown, I feel as if I’m giving into old age.

Nodj Thu 04-Jun-20 13:34:25

The zoom meetings and FaceTime chats are really scary... I scare myself! ?

Sparklefizz Thu 04-Jun-20 14:01:14

Zoom is horrible shock It wasn't until I did my first Zoom that I understood why celebs have work done to their faces if they have to keep seeing themselves in that sort of close-up.

Happysexagenarian Thu 04-Jun-20 14:47:04

In my head I am still 17, I still jive vigorously to 50s music and drool over Harley motorbikes. I'm still drawn to the styles of clothes I wore back then but have to remind myself they wouldn't look so good now as I've gained over 4 stone since then. The face and figure I see in the mirror is probably in its sixties, apart from the white hair which is my choice. I'm happy with that, I'll be 70 next week. Someone once told me "You'll never be old, you're young at heart", I hope they're right.

Skweek1 Thu 04-Jun-20 15:20:31

72 - think 20, feel 150!

Kim19 Thu 04-Jun-20 15:40:46

BA, agree with you on BE. She used to be so beautiful.

Anniel Thu 04-Jun-20 16:47:19

They say age brings wisdom but I am still waiting at almost 86 but I certainly have to keep telling myself that I am officially old! I think I feel about 50 and I still have a very enquiring mind. Our bodies let us down a bit but keeping our minds to me is the most important thing.

CBBL Thu 04-Jun-20 16:53:29

I'm 72 in reality. My face is OK, but my hair is really fine, and I keep looking at adverts for wigs! My body now is a real disappointment. I was skinny (even underweight) for most of my life, but come the menopause - I gained weight and just continued to get heavier and heavier! In my mind, I'm still about 25, and I still like the kind of clothes I could have worn then. I'm glad of the lockdown, as I don't want to be seen anymore!

dahlia Thu 04-Jun-20 16:56:25

I noticed during a shopping trip (obviously months ago!) that friends, etc., seemed to have aged overnight. Then I realised I had on my "distance" glasses, usually worn only for driving, and that my poor eyesight had been protecting me from reality. Then I thought: that's how I would look to others! I think I will give the specs a rest from now on, and see everyone behind a slightly blurry screen. I am 72, feel about 45 when dancing at home to rock music, at least 75 first thing in the morning, and definitely only 60 most of the time. A smile makes us all look younger.

Joesoap Thu 04-Jun-20 17:16:34

My bathroom mirror must be wrong, wrinkles? it cant be me, feeling 50 but actualy 78. Young at heart, arthritis in my hip, but making the most of things,and glad to be alive.

sodapop Thu 04-Jun-20 17:26:28

That resonated with me Joesoap definitely I must make the most of things and I'm certainly glad to be alive.

Catterygirl Thu 04-Jun-20 17:48:03

I look a little younger than my 68 years, perhaps 60, kind friends lie and say 50, blame Estée Lauder, but I would love more energy, sadly lacking. A long swim or walk isn't a problem, but the gym type exercises makes me feel ill for days aftwards.

AlisonKF Thu 04-Jun-20 18:02:18

Wait until you reach your eighties! I have few wrinkles from avoiding the sun since my thirties, but lower face has dropped suddenly in the last two years and I am 83. All I need is a face lift, but that is unlikely on grounds of cost and ridiculous vanity. My neck held up through most of my seventies as well. Now it's all a lost cause and Zoom meetings are a horror show. HOWEVER, I still,cling to skin care and doing my makeup, for fear of something worse. I wonder how many film actresses have had work done into their eighties.

GreenGran78 Thu 04-Jun-20 19:07:47

My feet and legs are still the same as they always were. Short and chunky. However, although they are 80 years old they show no sign of a varicose vein or bunion.
I used to think that my face and neck looked quite good, for my age, but since I shed 30lbs my skin looks more saggy. Maybe I should put the weight back on again.
As for my body - having four children has left me with that dreaded tummy overhang which nothing but a tummy-tuck would shift. Likewise, my boobs have been heading downwards for quite some time.
Looking on the bright side, though, my inner workings are in fine fettle, which is far more important than my exterior features.

varian Thu 04-Jun-20 19:22:49

I was 28 for many years until I realised that I had a daughter older than me. She has just turned 50.

PinkCakes Thu 04-Jun-20 19:23:32

Timetogo2016 Thanks, I'll try that. I always seem to get sunburnt there, too, so that won't help.