Project Nuestra Hogar Eishel

The Third Age is a social term that refers to the last decades of life, in which one approaches the maximum age that the human being can live. In this stage of the life cycle, there is a decline of structures that had been developed in the previous stages, such as physical decline, cognitive, emotional and social. The specific age varies from country to country, depending on socio-cultural, institutional, economic and political factors. For example, the third age in Spain is considered to be from 65 years, while in Colombia, Mexico and Peru it starts at 60 years of age.

In Japan, old age is a status symbol; it is common for travelers checking in to hotels to be asked their age to ensure that they will receive the appropriate deference. In contrast, in the United States aging is generally considered undesirable.   Historically disciplines that address this stage (Geriatrics) deal with prevention, cure and rehabilitation of diseases in the elderly.

Historically, psychology used to be a science focused on alleviating mental illness until martin Seligman came up with the notion of Positive Psychology.  While classical psychology focuses on what can go wrong, Positive Psychology is designed to look at what can go right.

Many countries have “nursing homes” which are institutions that, sometimes with the inclusion of specialized gerontological services, care for the elderly, The emphasis is in curing and caring for the infirm elderly.   Today, thanks to the emphasis on Positive Psychology, More and more nursing homes are offering programs fostering well-being in the elderly.

Programs such as The Art of Happiness, The Mental Fitness Program for Positive Aging and other have shown very positive results. They have shown an improvement over time for subjective happiness, decreased mood state of tiredness, and mindfulness constructs of non-judging and non-reactivity, stress, and satisfaction with life.