Make Decisions to Protect Your Health

@th1, Thanks for starting this discussion. I recently found out how important it is to wear protective clothing. Being 77 with a few autoimmune conditions and poor balance. Normally I am pretty careful walking but I got a little careless trying to carry to much and tripped and fell. I ended up scrapping my elbow really good even though I was wearing a heavy sweatshirt and a winter coat. I pulled off a section of skin and was bleeding a lot and it reminded me just how thin my skin is. I'm good about wearing protective clothing in the winter but not so much in the summer. This has been a reminder to me that I need to make some changes to better protect myself. You list some excellent points and sound advice!

@th1 this is a great discussion. Something I have done daily for 5 years now is wear sunscreen every single day on my face and neck and my entire adult life I have worn sunglasses whenever I am outside unless it is overcast. These are two ways I am protect myself daily in those two areas.

@johnbishop Good luck John, from BB who has poor balance and fell on April 1 while walking in the park and fractured her arm. I have to readjust my "mental orientation" to "I must be very care when walking"! No carelessness for me now! 🙂

John, it is Heel to Get OLD! I was putting the watering hose away yesterday and it got hooked around the bush! Went ot get it untangled and a branch just brushed me and put a two inch gouge in my wrist! Three bandages and Iodine and it has stopped bleeding!
Sundance(RB)

Amanda, very true. The other thing we need to care for is our neck and face! A ball cap does very little good in direct sun, even in altitude, I'm at 5280' here in ABQ!
Best protection is a Brimed hat!
For both your neck and face and ears!
Sundance(RB)

Something that also is important is excercise! By that I mean is there are many online Zoom classes offered by Silver Sneakers and StayFit. Mine used to be at the "Y" now it is on Zoom! I take one that is called Flex and Balance and the other is silver Sneakers Yoga!
Both are of Great Help to me.
It's so easy not having to get in the car and drive to a gym or other location.
Just go on line and I'll bet you'll find one in your area!
From, The Land of Enchantment!
Sundance(RB)

Thanks for your comments, I appreciate protective clothing, too - my grandson is an ocean lifeguard and EMT, and my son-in'law has had a big part of upper arm skin removed and treated for melanoma.

Cheryl

Cheryl! I am so Sorry! A GOOD Lesson for all of us to heid!
Sundance(RB)

Reply to John Bishop, Barb B, and others with balance issues: The SINGLE most important thing you can do is find a vestibular therapist (a PT with special training to teach better balance), listen to what he/she tells you, and practice exercises every single day.

As we age, we all lose some balance--that is, our inner ear, our primary balance system, doesn't work as well. The natural thing to do when your balance is compromised is to use your second balance system, vision, but that's the worst thing you can do. Every time you move around or even move your head, you lose your focal point and, thus, your balance. Using vision is why many docs recommend night lights for older folks, but that simply teaches you to rely on vision instead of what your feet feel. Get rid of the night light and walk through your house at night with all the lights out (assuming that you've checked for anything loose on the floor that the cat placed to trip you). A vestibular therapist can teach you to use your third balance system, proprioception, which is the feeling/information you get from your feet, ankles, knees, hips, etc. Simply put, if you stand on a windy point, you will automatically lean into the wind just enough to stay balanced: that's proprioception. You need to learn to pay attention to what your feet can tell you. Yeah, I know...who ever thought your feet know anything!!

The good news is that a month or less of really working on VRT (vestibular rehab) will definitely improve your balance and your eye/hand coordination. In addition, VRT isn't hard and can be done anywhere without special equipment (although there are some simple things you can use at home). The bad news is that you need to do some VRT every day for the rest of your life. Yes, every day, no matter how busy you are. A mere 5-10 minutes a day will make a huge difference in your life. You'll feel confident moving around because you'll know where you are in space. You'll be able to reach for the pen or pencil on your desk without "homing in on it" by spreading your fingers and closing them until you touch the object. You'll stop slicing your fingers instead of the veggies!

In addition to your primary inner ear balance system becoming less effective with age, you also may lose some sensation in your legs and feet, so you'll need to work to reestablish your ability to "feel" with your feet. Even though I had done daily VRT for over 30 years (after I lost hearing and balance function in one ear), when I went bilateral I scheduled a "brush up" visit with a VRT specialist. I learned that the old exercises weren't working as well because I'd lost a fair amount of sensation in my lower legs and feet. For me, the best exercise is to walk the quarter mile on our gravel road to reach the mailbox...with my eyes closed, for the most part, concentrating on what my feet can tell me. When I start to veer away from the driving surface, my feet can feel the loose gravel along the edge, warning me that I'm no longer on the main road surface. Lots of VRT exercises can be done while just living life, like adapting my daily walk to the mailbox. It's good to turn out all the lights at night before bed, finding your way by "listening" to your feet. Sometimes, it's good to work on a specific skill, like stepping up and down, eyes closed. I have a small platform that's about 6" high that I made for this, especially useful because we have no stairs in the main part of our home to give me regular practice on stairs. Even though I'd done some VRT daily for decades, a month of additional work really made a huge difference in confidence. At 78, I hike in rough country without trails and wade rivers. When I'm in a wilderness situation by myself with no cell reception, I am more careful than I was at 40, but I'm not fearful.

So, tune up your balance system by learning to "listen" to your feet. You'll be surprised at how much more comfortable you are moving around. You'll be able to know where you are in space, and it's a very good feeling. Stairs or a steep drop-off alongside a trail will be a challenge instead of a source of great fear. If your dog or cat walk across right in front of you or surprise you by being right behind you when you start to step back, you won't almost fall but will be able to recover easily. Try it!

Thanks for the great advice @joyces. If my feet were talking I would definitely be listening but unfortunately I have small fiber peripheral neuropathy and my feet are not playing nice most of the time...which is why I try to be really careful. I always wear socks at night so that I have some limited protection if I have to make a trip to the bathroom. I've also placed small plugin night lights in a few outlets for night time.

I do some balance exercises I've learned and last year I picked up a Sand Dune Stepper that I use for balance exercises along with a chair or a walker. https://www.sanddunestepper.com/