What causes depression in older people? The three main causes in older people are poor physical health, social isolation, and loss in old age. But what is the relationship between age and depression? Studies have identified age differences in the prevalence of depression and anxiety. Younger adults, 16–29 years, are more likely to be affected by depression and severe anxiety than older adults.

So, for older adults, of which I am one, if you are suffering from depression, it is not necessarily caused by your age. There are other debilitating factors at work.  So, let’s look at ageing and how we can better deal with inevitably getting older.

Recently while expounding on my aversion to ageing and bemoaning my body didn’t function as it used to, my bored companion said: “Oh stop whining about getting old. It’s not a right. Think of all the people who never had the privilege.” Well, that stopped me in my tracks. Who do I know who would have liked to grow old?

I suppose my younger brother would happily swop with me; he died aged 36. My father died of a heart attack on his 70th birthday. I’m sure he still had unfinished business. And what of the famous people who died during my lifetime? Take John Lennon. How many un-composed hit tunes went to the grave with him, (… and now he lies there, decomposing …)? Would he have liked a few more years? I Imagine he would.

In a previous life in London, I lived next door to the phenomenal English Formula 1 motorcycle champion, Barry Sheen. Sadly, he died at 52, losing a battle to cancer of the stomach and throat. He was a successful, amazing, delightful human; how distressing he didn’t have more time to be amazing.

I also knew James Hunt, “The Shunt”, 1976 Formula 1 motor racing world champion, having played squash with him. In 1993, at a mere 45, he died of a heart attack. What would he make of people complaining about getting older? Think of people in your own life who would be appalled by you complaining about getting old. A sobering exercise.

Ernest Becker in his 1974 Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Denial of Death, says: “We human beings develop strategies to fend off awareness of our mortality and vulnerability, to escape into the feeling we are immortal.”

So, while pretending we aren’t going to die, we get irritated with ageing because it is a constant reminder we are going to die. But have you ever considered: knowing you are going to die, far from being a damper, can be a huge motivating influence?

If death wasn’t certain, we would have to contend with numerous complications. “What happens if I don’t die — will I have to get into super shape to live forever? Do I stay with the same partner for all time? Or will marriage become, ‘Till death or 20 000 years do us part ….’ Won’t partners get bored? Five hundred years from now, will my job still exist? Won’t I eventually know everything and become boring? Will my knees last? Will they still make beer?”

Knowing you aren’t going to live forever (in this life anyway) you don’t have to answer those questions. Knowing you have a finite time means you can decide the things you would fit into that period; places you would like to see; things to do, to achieve, to experience, food you would like to eat, and the money you will need to earn.

Ultimately, death is the only thing that gives us perspective on the value of our lives. Because it’s only by imagining your non-existence that you can get a sense of what is most important about your existence. MARK MANSON

Knowing roughly how long you have; means you can decide to enjoy it to the full. Not knowing means you must wonder how much energy to put into any one moment just in case you end up with more moments than you have energy for. Often, we are held back by fear of failure. Knowing you are going to die means you should not have any fear of failing. I mean, are you going to be dead regretting you failed?

And keep reminding yourself, getting old is not a right – it is a privilege.

So, start tackling those challenges and you will avoid getting depressed about getting old. In his book, Your Erroneous Zones, Dr Wayne Dyer asks: “How long are you going to be dead for?” The answer is infinity. Compared to infinity, our lives are miniscule drops in the ocean. Which is why we shouldn’t take getting old, or too much else, too seriously. An interviewer once asked South African author Wilbur Smith what his life philosophy was. He answered: “Most things don’t matter, and those that do, don’t matter very much.”

That made me consider how I am responding to ageing. Am I making the most of it? Am I achieving what someone my age can achieve in every sphere of my life? Instead of whining and being a victim of something no-one has ever been able to avoid, (…no one gets out of here alive), shouldn’t I rather savour the joyous privilege of it all, and get on with living the rest of my time to the hilt? Shouldn’t you?

Scottish comedian Billy Connolly tells of working in the shipyards in Glasgow, where on a day he had to collect an item from stores. Waiting for the storeman to serve him, he noticed the guy had a hacking, rasping cough of Olympian proportions. As the storeman served him, Billy couldn’t resist and said, “Good cough Jimmy.”

“Is that so young Billy?” the storeman snapped. “Well, let me tell you, there are plenty of people in the graveyards of Glasgow who bloody wish they had my cough.”

And remember when next you find yourself complaining about having another birthday; it is those who have the most birthdays that live the longest.