It’s Not Your Age, It’s What You Believe About Ageing
How to reset your mindset, your brain, and your future
Your brain might be ageing you faster than your biology. No, seriously.
Cognitive passivity is precisely what speeds up mental ageing.
Not because you’re actually too old, but because somewhere along the way, you may have started to believe you truly are. You internalised your own ageism and turned it against yourself.
Learned helplessness isn’t just a psychological theory from the 1970s. It’s become a quiet pattern in how many of us relate to our own ageing. And if we’re not careful, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that accelerates both mental and physical ageing.
What Is Learned Helplessness?
Coined by Martin Seligman (1972)1, learned helplessness is a state where someone believes they have no control over their circumstances, even when options for change exist. Originally observed in dogs who stopped trying to escape shock after repeated failures (Seligman & Maier, 1967)2, the theory quickly found traction in understanding depression and trauma in humans.
But what does that have to do with ageing? Everything!
How It Shows Up in Our Thoughts
Learned helplessness can take subtle forms:
“It’s too late to start over.”
“My brain just doesn’t work like it used to.”
“No one wants someone my age.”
These aren’t facts. They’re conditioned beliefs. And they’re corrosive. They strip away agency and shrink our sense of what’s possible.
Chronic helplessness has been shown to reduce activity in the prefrontal cortex (responsible for planning and decision-making) and heighten amygdala response, which is linked to anxiety and fear (Maier & Seligman, 2016)3. The result? Less motivation. More anxiety. Lower resilience.
The Real Cost: Your Health and Brain Function
Learned helplessness isn’t just a mindset issue. It’s a physiological one. Studies have shown:
Passive coping increases cortisol and systemic inflammation (Lupien et al., 2009)4
Lack of perceived control in elderly populations predicted worse health outcomes even with the same behaviours (Rodin & Langer, 1977)5
Low self-efficacy accelerates cognitive decline; high self-efficacy protects against it (Lachman et al., 2010)6
When we believe we can’t influence our lives, we disengage. We stop learning. We stop seeking challenge. And that cognitive passivity is precisely what speeds up mental ageing.
Reclaiming Agency in Midlife
Midlife offers a rare neurological opportunity. Yes, hormonal shifts can heighten our sensitivity to stress, but they also coincide with a natural phase of reflection, re-evaluation, and recalibration. And the brain remains more adaptable than we’ve been led to believe.
Agency is a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets.
What Thriving Actually Looks Like
Saying, “I don’t know. But I’ll figure it out.”
Starting something new, even if you’re terrible at it.
Writing your future without recycling outdated beliefs.
Learned helplessness is not your fault. But unlearning it? That’s within your power. And neuroplasticity is real7.
Motivation is trainable.
Agency is reclaimable.
Stop outsourcing your power to age. The Bright Minds Challenge kicks off next Monday. Don’t miss this chance to shift your mindset, upgrade your habits, and age with power👇
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Seligman, M.E.P. (1972). Learned Helplessness. Annual Review of Medicine.
Seligman, M. E., & Maier, S. F. (1967). Failure to escape traumatic shock. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 74(1), 1–9.
Maier, S.F., & Seligman, M.E.P. (2016). Learned helplessness at fifty: Insights from neuroscience. Psychological Review, 123(4), 349–367.
Lupien, S.J., et al. (2009). Effects of stress throughout the lifespan on the brain, behaviour and cognition. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10(6), 434–445.
Rodin, J., & Langer, E.J. (1977). Long-term effects of a control-relevant intervention with the institutionalised aged. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Lachman, M.E., et al. (2010). The Relevance of Control Beliefs for Health and Aging. Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences.
Park, D.C., & Bischof, G.N. (2013). The aging mind: Neuroplasticity in response to cognitive training. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 15(1).
Learned helplessness is indeed a common problem with older people. Not surprising when you consider the ageist messages that we get daily. Thanks for this new idea.