Warmth of the Heart Prevents Your Body from Rusting: Ageing without growing old

About the Author Marie de Hennezel is a respected psychologist and a psychotherapist, and is responsible for the mission of palliative care awareness at the French Ministry of Health. She is also the author of two ministerial reports about caring for those with terminal illnesses. She has also written nine books about the end of life. She lives in Paris. Product Description In this eloquent meditation on ageing, Marie de Hennezel guides us through a true art of growing old . She recalls her encounters as a clinical psychologist with extraordinary people who 'grow old gracefully and through her experience shows us how to make the most of this time in our lives, to avoid depression and to stay happy. She believes that wherever we grow old and whatever our circumstances, if we can maintain energy in our hearts and believe in the power of joy and human warmth, this can transform us and the way we look at the world. This is a wonderful book with a powerful message that applies to everyone no matter how old they are. 'Timely and admirable... her essential idea - that old age should be a stage of life as full of potential as any other - will appeal to oldies who have no intention of just fading away' Mail on Sunday 'A beautifully written meditation on ageing. Author Marie de Hennezel argues that looking positively at ageing helps us make the most of a very previous time' Yours Review 'As Bette Davis succinctly put it, old age is no place for sissies. French psychologist Marie de Hennezel would probably agree; despite being a specialist in ageing and palliative care, her own 60th birthday brought with it a powerful wave of depression. The experience made her all the more determined to write positively and reassuringly, if unsentimentally, about the ageing process, offering a new way of thinking for those baby boomers who, like her, now find themselves in their `young old age'. The result is this surprise bestseller. Taking its title from a song sung on the Japanese island of Okinawa, whose inhabitants are famed for their longevity, de Hennezel claims we can all enjoy a `radiant old age' - with a bit of hard work. For a start, it's imperative to face our fears about growing older. In part this involves the acceptance of our changed physical appearance (no easy feat in a society that idolises youthfulness), concentrating instead on our inner self. Savour the moment, keep your curiosity and an open heart, and try to enjoy the pleasures that slowing down can actually give. Not always the easiest of reads, but an inspiring one.' --Daily Mail