Who can resist the heading “11 Mistakes Women Make in Middle Age?” Certainly not me. I had to read the article. And I thought they were good enough to share with you, two or three at a time, in no particular order, accompanied by a little commentary, of course. (For the complete explanation of each item, see the post on Health Magazine’s website here.)

Mistake 1: Not realizing you need to change.

Iolaire McKinnon, Glasgow, Scotland, Wikimedia Commons

“The biggest mistake women make is not doing anything at all.”

This one is pretty all-encompassing. As we age, we need to reconsider many of our practices: the clothes we wear, how we style our hair, what make up we use. What we wore and how we styled our hair when we were twenty-three, is likely not to be flattering in our forties and fifties. Not only do styles change with the times, but our bodies changes, too, and with these changes comes the need to revamp our routines.

One of my go-to places for fashion advice is the website Fabulous After 40. Deborah Boland does a terrific job of showing what works and what doesn’t in fashion for the over-40 woman. Some of the topics she has covered are slimming dresses for curvy figures, what to wear to a summer wedding, and how to dress if you have narrow shoulders or a big stomach.

My only complaint about the site is the pictures are of either skinny women or plus size women. I don’t fault Boland, though. She’s restricted to the photos available, and when she sees a woman on the street who doesn’t fall into either the skinny or the plus category rocking her clothes, Boland asks for permission to snap their photo and include it on her site.

Do you have any trend or practice you followed in your twenties, either good or bad, that you still follow today?

Image courtesy of marin, FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Mistake 2: Overdoing anti-aging efforts. “The right skin products (such as those containing retinol) can help diminish fine lines and wrinkles…but don’t aim to look like a teen again.” They warn that “botox face” and “scary lip plumping” don’t look any better than crow’s-feet and laugh lines.

I, for one, hate seeing pictures of celebrities who have obviously had a few injections because their trademark thin lips look like they’ve been stung by a bee. I won’t provide names. They know who they are.

If I had to change one thing on my face–let’s say it was performed by magic so I didn’t actually have to go through surgery, healing, or any other trauma–it would be a hard decision. I’m waffling between a nose job, an eyelid lift, or removal of the double chin! As a teen it was a no-brainer. The nose would go.

Which one thing on your face would YOU change?