FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sara Sgarlat, Publicity Director
434-296-2772, ext. 49
ssgarlat@hrpub.com

The likelihood of living to age 100 is becoming a reality.
And medical advances will extend life expectancies so much that
many of us may easily reach 120 years of age! 
How will you live your next fifty years??

     Pamela D. Blair, Ph.D. has written The Next Fifty Years: A Guide for Women at Midlife and Beyond (ISBN 1-57174-439-8) to address the fact that midlife women have never before had so much productive time ahead of them. Dr. Blair shares more than 150 short essays exploring topics relating specifically to women and their “ripening,” but also of interest to all of the 35 million Americans who are now over 65, as well as to the 70 million Americans who’ll be over 65 by 2030! The variety of chapters deal with practical issues such as parenting grown-up children, giving money to your kids while you are still alive, distance grand parenting, and using public transportation and liking it. And sad issues, too, such as: Is It Sadness or Depression? When Friends Die, When the One You Love Is Ill, Being Vulnerable.

     Some essays deal with fears: Fear of Being a Burden, Fear of Dying, Fear of Asking for Help, Fear of Being a Bag Lady. And lots of other areas of life are covered, including friends, family, work, play, finances, health (Coffee and the Pee-Pee Dance), creativity, spirituality (Liberation from Material Things,) living spaces, self-image (Myths Not to Live By, Reactivating Dreams,) relationships (Dating after 50, Dancing from a Wheelchair,) and mind and body changes. Blair empowers with wisdom regarding everything we might have ever thought to worry about, and inspires us about issues we never even considered. So many possibilities ahead! So many new ways of doing things!

     This is a great book! It’s all about thoughtfully evolving with integrity, and not just aging. Most importantly, readers will realize that they are not alone. Each essay is followed by questions with space to write ones thoughts, and worksheets for reflection on issues often ignored. The book can be used as a personal journal, as a reading-group discussion tool, or as a written legacy that when completed can be handed down to a daughter or other younger woman who will also cherish it.

     Dr. Blair is a resident of Hawthorne, New York, she vacations in Maine and plans on retiring there. A major portion of this book was written in Maine.

September 2005 • Self-Help • ISBN 1-157174-439-8 • Trade Paper • $19.95