{"id":4504,"date":"2025-06-26T05:11:56","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T05:11:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.villages.com.au\/?p=4504"},"modified":"2025-06-26T05:12:21","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T05:12:21","slug":"how-to-take-care-of-your-health-as-you-age","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.villages.com.au\/retirement\/how-to-take-care-of-your-health-as-you-age\/","title":{"rendered":"How to take care of your health as you age"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"4504\" class=\"elementor elementor-4504\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-8e36283 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"8e36283\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1d41e2e\" data-id=\"1d41e2e\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f7f180e elementor-drop-cap-yes elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"f7f180e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;drop_cap&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.15.0 - 20-08-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>W<strong>hy advance care planning matters<\/strong><\/p><p>As we age, it becomes even more important to think ahead \u2013 especially when it comes to our health.<\/p><p>Advance care planning helps you take control by making your preferences for future health care known. If one day you can\u2019t speak for yourself \u2013 whether due to serious illness or injury \u2013 this plan ensures your wishes are understood and respected.<\/p><p>It\u2019s not just about paperwork. It\u2019s about peace of mind \u2013 for you and your loved ones.<\/p><p><strong>What is advance care planning?<\/strong><\/p><p>Advance care planning allows you to:<\/p><ul><li>Decide what kind of medical care you do \u2013 or don\u2019t \u2013 want in the future<\/li><li>Share those decisions with your family, friends, and doctors<\/li><li>Appoint someone you trust to make decisions on your behalf if needed<\/li><\/ul><p>This information is usually captured in an Advance Care Directive (ACD), and supported by naming a substitute decision-maker.<\/p><p><strong>Most Australians aren\u2019t prepared<\/strong><\/p><p>Despite its importance, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.advancecareplanning.org.au\/about-us\/our-research-and-publications\">new national study<\/a> by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.advancecareplanning.org.au\/\">Advance Care Planning Australia<\/a> shows only 1 in 3 Australians (33%) have taken any steps to plan their future health care.<\/p><p>Other key findings:<\/p><ul><li>Just 19% have talked about it with someone else<\/li><li>Only 13% have formally appointed a substitute decision-maker<\/li><li>Just 6% have completed an Advance Care Directive<\/li><\/ul><p>Most conversations (60%) happen with a partner or spouse \u2013 very few involve health professionals. Only 12% have spoken to their GP, and just 7% to a lawyer.<\/p><p>Dr Catherine Joyce, National Manager for Advance Care Planning Australia, says the results reveal a big gap in basic health care.<\/p><p>\u201cWe often think of advance care planning as just filling out a form, but it&#8217;s much more than that,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s about making your wishes clear, so when the time comes, you\u2019re cared for the way you want \u2013 and your loved ones aren\u2019t left guessing.\u201d<\/p><p><strong>So, what\u2019s holding us back?<\/strong><\/p><p>While awareness is low (just 35% of Australians are familiar with the concept), interest is high \u2013 with 73% saying they\u2019re open to having the conversation.<\/p><p>But common barriers include:<\/p><ul><li>Not knowing where to start<\/li><li>Feeling uncertain or overwhelmed<\/li><li>Concerns about cost or how complicated it might be<\/li><\/ul><p><strong>Ready to take the first step?<\/strong><\/p><p>It\u2019s easier than you think.<\/p><p>You can call the National Advance Care Planning Advisory Line on 1300 208 582 (Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm AEST\/AEDT) for free confidential advice.<\/p><p>They can also send you a free starter pack to help begin the conversation and understand your options.<\/p><p>Planning ahead isn\u2019t just a medical decision \u2013 it\u2019s a gift to your family.<\/p><p>Make your wishes known today, and take control of tomorrow.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Why advance care planning matters As we age, it becomes even more important to think ahead \u2013 especially when it comes to our health. Advance care planning helps you take control by making your preferences for future health care known. If one day you can\u2019t&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4505,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retirement"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4504","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4504"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4504\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4509,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4504\/revisions\/4509"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4505"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}