Adolescence and Adulthood

Adolescence that period of time in between childhood and adulthood where the zits come out

The next major changes you body undertakes occurs during puberty (the period of sexual maturation where people become capable of reproducing)

I am not going to delve that deeply into puberty (that is what health class and late night cable TV is for), but rather the changes that you are experiencing fall under two major categories.

Primary Sexual Characteristics The body structures that make sexual reproduction possible.

Secondary Sexual Characteristics Non-reproductive sexual characteristics- changes that occur during puberty - but are not necessary for babies deepening of the make voice, body hair, breasts, widening of the hips

Adulthood After puberty, physical development begins losing its excitement.  The good news is that your senses (like vision, hearing and smell) tend to peak around the age of 27. 

The bad news is that after your 20's everything begins to deteriorate. Slowly at first, but around the early 60s, you see a RAPID decline in the senses. 

The one major physical milestone in adulthood is menopause, which is when a woman stops releasing eggs, thus stops having their periods. Men will never experience anything like menopause.

A common problem we see today in aging adults is Alzheimer’s Disease a progressive and irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, language and physical functioning

We are not sure of what causes Alzheimer’s Disease but we know it is linked to the deterioration of a natural chemical that our body produces called Acetylcholine (ACH for short).

Physically, the story always ends the same way- we die. 

Psychiatrist Elizabeth Kubler-Ross said we go through 5 stages before dying unless you fall into a tree shredder and death happens way to quick to think about.  Swiss-born psychiatrist Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross has counseled hundreds of patients and their families through her research into death and dying. She described the classic pattern of the coping strategies of patients who know their diagnosis is terminal.

Denial: no way this is happing to me The first stage is denial. Upon hearing the diagnosis, the patient reacts with a shocked, "No, not me." According to Dr. Kubler-Ross, this is a healthy stage, and permits the patient and the family to develop other defenses.

Anger: How dare god let this happen!!! Next comes anger or resentment. "Why me?" is the question asked now. "Why my child?" Blame, directed against the doctor, nurses and God often is a part of this stage. This outcry should be accepted, unjudged.

Bargaining: Just let me live to see my son get married. The third stage is bargaining. "Yes me, but-" "If you'll just give me five years, God, I'll . . ." This Dr. Kubler-Ross calls a period of temporary truce.

Depression: I cannot deal with this, what is my family going to do without me. The fourth stage is depression. Now the person says, "Yes, me," with the courage to admit that it is happening; this acknowledgment brings depression. (Note: The family often goes through all the stages, along with the patient.)

Acceptance: I am ready, I do not want to fight this anymore. Finally comes acceptance, a time of facing death calmly. This is often a difficult time for the family, since the patient tends to withdraw, to be silent.