Healthy ageing starts long before old age

SURFCOAST Women’s Health Group is encouraging women to think proactively about healthy ageing, with a growing focus on supporting women through every stage of life.

The group offers integrated care including GP services, women’s health physiotherapy, Pilates, dietetics and mental health support.

Healthy ageing was front and centre on this week’s episode of the Women Out Loud podcast, where hosts Amy McElgunn, Dr Niamh Logue and Courtney Weybury sat down with Geelong artist Lorraine Archibald to discuss what helps women age well.

The 83-year-old artist and former jeweller reflected on a lifetime of change and said women of her generation were rarely encouraged to think proactively about ageing.

“There was never anybody saying to me, ‘One of these days, you’re going to be 80. What are you doing to preserve your health for when you’re 80?’ Nothing,” Archibald said.

Instead, Archibald said, much of the health advice directed at women in their 30s and 40s centred around fertility and motherhood, despite her decision not to have children.

“That was the health advice,” she said.

The discussion explored how women can better prepare for ageing through movement, nutrition, social connection and preventative healthcare.

Archibald said one of the biggest contributors to her own wellbeing had been refusing to become “self-limiting”.

“I get to 83 and I realise I have never considered not doing something because of my age,” she said.

She credited decades of regular movement with supporting both her physical and mental health, saying exercise had always been part of her life through sport, dance, yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi.

“If you don’t keep moving, you will slow up and you will become frailer,” she said. Dr Logue said many of the conversations now happening around menopause and women’s health are ultimately about preparing women for healthier ageing.

“If we’re all lucky enough, we live to be 85,” she said.

“But there’s a difference between living and kind of existing or surviving.”

She encouraged women to think about healthy ageing early by focusing on strength training, nutrition, bone health, continence care, vaccinations and maintaining social connection.

The episode also highlighted the importance of purpose and community in later life.

Archibald continues to paint from her studio at Ashmore Arts and sings regularly in a community choir, which she described as one of the most valuable parts of her routine.

“There is something about singing with a group where you’re breathing in the same time, the same energy,” she said.

She also spoke candidly about the emotional realities of ageing, including losing friends, reduced independence because of vision loss, and the need to continue building social connections later in life.

“You have to work at it,” she said.

The conversation extended to caring for ageing parents, with Archibald encouraging families to have open discussions early and listen carefully to what older relatives actually want.

“Don’t dismiss them as old farts because one day you will be there yourself,” she said.

Surfcoast Women’s Health Group said supporting healthy ageing is a growing part of its community-focused approach to women’s healthcare, with services designed to help women remain strong, connected and independent through all stages of life.

The latest episode of Women Out Loud is available on major podcast platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

The episode encourages women to think proactively about healthy ageing, highlighting the importance of movement, social connection, creativity and preventative healthcare in supporting quality of life later in life.

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