Table 2.
Results of the qualitative content analysis
| Domains | Excerpts in Saint-Hyacinthe | Excerpts in Kingston |
|---|---|---|
| Absence of ADL disability | [Aging well] It’s keeping your physical autonomy, not being dependent on others. (SH064) | For me to age successfully and to have quality of life, that’s really important because my mother in law really suffered a lot in her last years since she was bedridden, she could not do anything, she was living with us, and looking back on it… “oh my god, what an existence!” (K120) |
| Absence of mobility disability | Aging well, it means to be able to… well I hope that it never happens, but we never know… being able to move around and to continue your activities. (SH388) | Oh I think the most important thing is I often say… you know, when you mention “rheumatoid arthritis”, people often say “oh gee that’s too bad, you poor thing” I say “hey, as long as I can walk, I am happy” that’s the way I feel, you know. […] As long as I am mobile, I am happy. (K409) |
| Good health | Aging well is not having health problems like I do at the moment. If I go out I always have to think about bringing what I need [to deal with urinary incontinence]. (SH284) | I have got lung problems, so I find that I have to stop and get my breath and that’s annoying. […] And I think my eye condition [macular degeneration] really limits me. (K038) |
| Absence of pain | When I try to lift something, my elbow hurts. That’s because I fell this summer and my elbow got the worst of it. Since then, as soon as I make any effort, the pain comes back. (SH006) | I have got a bad back and right now my shoulder is bothering me because I fell. I fell down the stairs outside a month ago now. […]It’s better today, but I had a hell of a day yesterday with it. Just pain all the time. (K143) |
| High cognitive function | That’s something about aging that scares me, to become dependent at some point… we often talk about Alzheimer and senility, about aging problems that lead to you becoming dependent. That scares me; it’s the part that concerns me the most. (SH201) | So you asked me the question of what it means to age well, it means to be able to do intellectual things, which have been part of my make up and continue to be that way, and so to have my faculties. (K115) |
| Good mood | [Aging well] is to be in good health, good mood, sharp mind, knowing to socialize with others, exchanging, sharing. And also taking time to relax and enjoy oneself, but also to be of service and having leisure time. (SH056) | I got really down this fall because I turned 70… in October. That was a downer because to me it’s, you know, the beginning of the end. I mean it sounds old. And at the same time three of my friends were diagnosed with cancer. […] Anyway… so I got really down with that. (K051) |
| Engagement in productive activities | The most important for me is still work, it’s still that. […] Yes, work still occupies a great place, very great place. (SH172) |
I: Would you say that’s the most important activity to you? P: Volunteering? Absolutely. That is my social outlet, my creative outlet, everything. (K183) |
| Good social relations | To be actively seeing people, meeting people, not always be enclosed in your house and talk to no one. […] I have good contact with my children as well, we talk regularly on the phone and they come see us, we go. Our network of family is… close. (SH127) | Being with family. Yeah, that’s the most important. […] We had five kids, fairly close together, pretty close together and they grew up together and done all kinds of things together, traveled and done this and done that and everything else. The family is the big thing. We just love being together. (K294) |
| High life satisfaction | At least in my life, we have been married for 49 years my husband and me, and there’s never been problems between us. I am not saying that we always agree on everything, no one does for their whole life. Overall, we are very happy. We have a beautiful life, compared to a lot of people, yes. (SH 127) | It’s kind of spooky to think of that, because this is really… a really nice existence, when I look at all the really neat things in my life, like the wife I was married to and the kid we had – we only had the one… her life, what we have here, all of this is paid for and my pensions are pretty good. (K120) |
| High self-mastery | If we were not able to travel at all, we’d be bored a little, but we expect it anyways. It would bother us quite a bit, but myself that’s how I am, once it’s over, it’s over. I do not ruminate, I accept the past. When I look back, I see the good sides, and I forget the bad ones. (SH321) | I hope I can still keep going, I am going to try anyway. Just do not let little things like aches and that sort of thing stop you. Just keep going as well as you can. (K006) |