Embodied experiences may also affect intimate relationships. For example, midlife adults may experience psychological distress if they believe that their bodies do not meet cultural ideals ( McLaren & Kuh, 2004) or they may physically push their bodies beyond reasonable limits in order to avoid feeling “middle-aged,” as Slevin (2010) found in a study of later life men (men age 60 and older). In this context, midlife individuals’ experiences of their bodies have important implications for mental and physical well-being. At the same time, ageism has emerged as an embodied form of oppression ( Calasanti & Slevin, 2006 Laws, 1995): Western culture worships youthfulness and youthful bodies ( Calasanti & Slevin, 2006), frames both mid and later life bodies as characterized by decline in terms of youthful energy, vitality, virility and physical attractiveness ( Gullette, 1998 Marshall & Katz, 2002), and emphasizes that individuals have a personal, moral responsibility to prevent physical decline (in terms of health, functionality, and appearance) ( Gott, 2005 Hurd Clarke, Griffin, & The PACC Research Team, 2008 Katz & Marshall, 2003). Bodily functioning and appearance have become increasingly important for individual identity and social and moral worth in Western societies ( Calasanti & Slevin, 2001 Giddens, 1991 Shilling, 2012 Turner, 1996).
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