Why do we perceive time as accelerating as we get older?

Old age, a terrible dream of many people, is one of the natural processes of life. However, old age is a period when many interesting physiological and psychological changes take place in a person’s life. Undoubtedly, one of the interesting situations that arise in old age is a change in the perception of time. You’ve probably met older people who complain that “time flies too fast.” For example, a week ago for a small child is a very, very distant past, but for an elderly person it is defined as “just yesterday”. Okay, but why? Why do we perceive time as accelerating as we get older? Let’s find the answer to this important question together…

Looking into the past creates the feeling that time is passing faster

For this reason, the further you look into the past, the faster time flows. For example, when an 80-year-old and an 8-year-old think about the year they spent, an 8-year-old remembers that year as a long time ago. But for an 80-year-old man, the year flew by in the blink of an eye …

According to scientists, one of the most important reasons for this interesting situation is the past years! The longer a person’s life, the days, weeks, months and years that he lives will inevitably be similar to each other, and after a while every day will seem the same. At this point, the human brain begins to combine days spent in exactly the same way. For this reason, an 80-year-old man has difficulty distinguishing days. He gets the feeling that he is experiencing the same things every day, and at a tremendous speed. Because one of the most important things that change and regulate the perception of time in the human mind is the various actions that are performed daily, the various events and situations that occur …

According to scientists, another thing that causes changes in the perception of time is routine.

Professor Adrian Bejan of Duke University in the US argues that the human brain is designed to record changes. Young children engage in a variety of activities throughout the day where they are constantly experiencing new things. For this reason, young children’s perception of time is shaped by the notion that “a lot can fit in time.” Accordingly, young children grow up with the feeling that “time passes slowly” until the age of one.

Of course, the feeling that time passes slowly can be observed in adulthood, and even in old age. However, to do this, you often have to face new situations in your life and add new routines to your life. In short, a person’s perception of time is formed in accordance with new events, new situations and new routines in his life.

The physiological state of a person also greatly affects the perception of time.

Of course, the physiological state of a person is closely related to his age. In youth, the human brain records much more than in old age. The more things are recorded in the brain, the longer it is perceived as days, weeks, months and years. In other words, time moves much more slowly than in old age!

However, in adulthood and old age, there are noticeable changes in the ability and quality of cognitive activity. Our brains can store much less data about everyday life than during adolescence. As a result, our perception of time changes dramatically. Days, weeks, months and years are getting shorter, time flies much faster!

Many seniors complain that time flies fast, but there are ways to “slow it down”!

Scientists say that in order to get rid of the feeling that time flies very quickly in old age, it is necessary to experience something new. For example, traveling to places never seen before, acquiring new hobbies, or enrolling in a new course. Because the way to slow down time is, in fact, to add variety to life.

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