I have a severe aging phobia. It's getting better now, but I used to get chest pain and hyperventilate every time I thought about it. I thought I was going to shrivel up and lose all my teeth when I turned 40, but it didn't happen!

My husband is 18 years older than me, and seeing how well he does helps me a lot. I keep thinking "if I'm that energetic in 18 years, it really won't be so bad." He's, like, my point man. Every thing I go through, he will have already been through. Silly, huh?

I'm in better shape now than I ever have been, though. It helps that I was never athletic when I was younger. I'm achieving things at 40 that I never dreamed of achieving when I was 30. I keep hoping that, by not being athletic then, I saved all the wear and tear on my joints and saved them up to use later . . . . ya think?

Also, stories like that one about the 84-yr-old lady who still makes a 150-mile bike ride every year on a 1-speed bike in heels and a skirt help. I need all the "inspirational old lady" stories I can get.