Yeah #rjd - meagre and inadequate independent long term studies, some meds too new for that anyway, a *severely* broken medical system in the US, especially for those of us on just Medicare, a notoriously medically underserved population (older women), lots and lots of contradictory and largely unstudied opinion online about best courses of action, many individual issues with complicated co-morbidities (arthritis, stenosis, degenerative disc disease, fracture, wedge- depression issues, sacroiliac problems, various abnormal curvatures, etc. etc. and that’s just spine and hip) that demand individualized treatment plans, lotsa luck with that, under-reported ‘minor’ intolerable side effects from meds that undoubtedly account for the high dropout rate ascribed to noncompliance, forgetfulness, lack of meds education and the like in the studies, and on the other hand solid numbers for fracture reduction and reduction of bone loss, plenty of cases that are apparently straightforward and successful, and dismal numbers for QOL and life span after falls that break things, it’s a lousy way to go…. teeter totter. So yeah.
A lot if not most of these ailments are common in old age - we humans do fall apart sooner or later and one way or another. But when there may be some reason to fear the treatment as much as the disease (Is there? I honestly don’t know!) it’s crazy making. I’ve done so much research, and that’s the eco-system. I’ve got maybe about 10 years to live, per family history. How to do that well? Serenity prayer frames it pretty well I think. Doesn’t make decisions for you, and knowing what you’re supposed to control and what you need to accept is an elusive wisdom, but here we are. Between the Reclast lady who just basically sailed thru and is still sailing fine and the people in here saying “I wish I’d never, ever taken this med, my life is destroyed”, a crap shoot. For me it starts with accepting that reality.