These thoughtful comments about PN, aging, and self-confidence ccrtainly ring a bell with me. I was supposed to take a flight from LA to NYC this week. I'd planned a six-day stay to get together with my brother, my sister and a couple of friends. Ultimately, I didn't want to face potential craziness at the airports. But I also knew that I couldn't carry my collapsible, packed hiking poles on board the plane. They'd have to be stowed. Would they even wind up on my flight? What if I got to JFK but my poles went on to London? All this is irrational, especially considering that I could easily have bought another pair of poles in New York--and it's not like I use them all the time here in California! I walked five miles without them the other day and managed to stay upright and not veer off the path and into the ocean! But it speaks to your point about occasionally ebbing self-confidence. Next week, the ankle brace I reluctantly ordered finally comes in. I want more than ever not to wear it, but, after a couple of years of PT and exercises, my foot drop is still with me. Haven't fallen lately (well, once, a couple of months ago). My podiatrist said I should think of the brace as something I can save for walking cobbled streets in Europe. Anyway, enough rambling. Ray, I'm so sorry you lost your partner. Thanks for continuing to contribute so thoughtfully to this forum.