Lost height

In my area, Tai Chi for arthritis or balance is offered by the hospital or YMCA. Slow graceful movements. very helpful.

@maine and all... So sorry you are dealing with this height loss. I am right with you. In my younger days, I was 5' 10.5". I am now, at 76, 5' 6". That is a serious height loss.

Yes. It does change many things in our bodies, and is aan entirely new way of living for me.

My posture is naturally changed. I still stand straight and think i'i'm tall, but, my word! Am I wrong.

I first noticed it as a reality when I had no slacks that fit. None. The legs are very much too long now... all my life I worked to find slacks with legs below my ankles.

The pants hang low from the waist as well. That's lovely!

My tops, shirts don't fit well, in fact, nothing does.

Balance is changed. All my movements different.

This is a serious issue, actually. I think several medical problems with which I've dealt are related to less room in my gut area, diaphragm, chest/lungs, and of course, my bones.

I have for decades as I lost height... beginning with early osteoporosis at 35 years old. No treatments, no doctors. AT 79, medical folks are just realizing the craziness of this, I think.

My intestines and stomach were sluggish and screwy fo decades. Leading to IBD, both diarrhea for years and then constipation. Now, with extra doses of probiotics, those issues are relieved some. Digestion is affected. How much I eat, especially in one sitting...

My spine is affected-which came first? Have had several crushed, broken vertebrae, a lot of spine,hip, neck, shoulder, pain.

I've taken steroids for years in varying dosages. Certainly not helping my bones. And, the normal awful changes in our bodies with steroids... the enlarged belly, looking 10 months pregnant!!!! Shoulders rounded, although that isn't a serious issue for me. I worked to combat that.

I took oyster shell calcium for years. Had an IV Recladt infusion. Only one. Will not have the 2nd as recommended. But, I do think it was helpful. Just tough side effects!

All said, we are dealing with some very real issues resulting from bone height loss. Keep that in mind as you go from one to another. My experience with medical staff is they poo-poo height loss as a problem. It's legitimate and the discomfort is as well.

Blessings... Elizabeth

@ess77 and all, I was 6’2” when I got out of the military and at 83 I am now 5’11” 🙁

@johnbishop and all.. Wow! You as well! John, and others, is this due to bone loss or posture changes? Some of us naturally have posture changes with shoulders, etc. So, the internal workings of our body will not be as affected, I suppose? If the loss is due to bone loss and space diminishes, that may affect outer organs placement?

Just wondering... good to hear from you, John. Elizabeth

Hi Elizabeth @ess77, I think my loss of height is from degenerative disc disease and I think I also have Kyphosis but never have talked with a doctor about it. My wife has told me since I was in my early 50s that I walk like an old man and now at 83 I am an old man 🙃.

@johnbishop and all... Well, 'Old Man', at 83 you are allowed to walk like an old man. And, congratulations on being 83! I consider that quite the accomplishment, sir. I hope, I think, to make it to 83... If somehow I am stronger than I am now, or at least still able to function as I am now. Here I go, making demands and requirements I have no control over! Pooh! I'll be ok with whatever I have, whatever time!

I had osteoporosis at 35 and have multiple spine junk, cracks, repairs, smuches, all the things but a lot of them... My muscles surely have something to do with this loss as well. I think an almost 5" height loss is pretty significant, especially since I still stand fairly upright. And, it's still going down...

I feel sorry for my gut and the organs trying to do what they are designed to do with less space to work.

Glad to hear from you, my friend.Keep up your great work helping folks on Connect. You are a trooper whom I look to for real, clear and thoughtful advice.
Blessings, Elizabeth

I was 5" 6" most of my life. No accidents or issues but now 5" 0" and have been diagnosed with multiple moderate to severe compression fractures in spine with no real contributing factor.

Though bone density scan does not support, ortho provider crossed out Osteopena dx from scan and stated I had Osteoporosis due to fractures.

The only treatment she would support was Proila injections every six months. NO OTHER OPTIONS. I freaked when I saw the tremendous list of side effects...she said don't worry.

After first two injections I asked how the benefits would be measured. She said blood work and another DEXA in two years.

I asked what she was looking for in the blood work , she just replied "levels."

Results haven't changed, last DEXA showed me not in Osteoporosis levels ......so what is the benefit if there is no measurement indicating value versus risk

I am not in pain, only experience moderate to extreme tightness in back when standing for more that 10 minutes. Specialists have no input other that "don't fall"

Should I continue potentially harmful Proila injections if there is no indication of improvement or.....

Deb

Hi @grantwriter,

It is important to consider that side effects are not experienced by everyone who takes a medication. While osteoporosis medications can have some big side effects, the number of people they effect may not be as large as what an online community can imply. This is not to diminish those who experience the side effects - it is just to point out that typically members who have had great experiences tend to post a great deal less than those who have unfortunately experienced the negative side effects of an osteoporosis medication.

Did your provider mention how long it would take to see improvement or was the goal to maintain your bone density at the level it currently is to help ward off more fractures moving forward? Have you experienced any side effects?

@grantwriter, @JustinMcClanahan, and all... Justin, you are wonderful. As one who experienced Osteoporosis at a young age and has many spine and bone issues, I can add my observations concerning taking medications. I believe much depends on the individuals system, how they generally respond to new medications.

I have a bunch of autoimmune illnesses. My body tends to act in strange, out of the norm ways to illness, chemicals and medications, foods... therefore, I have found I usually see side effects from most of the meds we decide to use. I am cautious and question my doctors to get the whole picture and make logical, best decisions for my care.

One thing I noticed about Debs message was the apparently lack of information from her doctor. That may not be the case, but I do urge everyone to ask good, thoughtful questions when your doctor and you are face to face. And, get answers. Ask follow-up questions if you have them or need explanations, guidance. We have these experts for a limited time, so be sure to pick their brains and make them help you understand the whys, whats, and such. It made a huge difference in my life when I began doing this and got honest help making decisions.

Blessings all... Elizabeth

@grantwriter If you have had multiple spine fractures then you should be offered an anabolic bone-building drug according to recent guidelines. This is according to the Bone Health & Osteoporosis Foundation BHOF. See the below highly-technical research paper, and also the talk by osteoporosis expert Dr. Lewiecki discussing it.

This are recent 2024/2025 conclusions. Our very-busy doctors are not up on the most recent developments on every subject, and some may even pre-date when your doctor made the recommendations.

See Figure 5 in this technical paper. Some of us have found it useful to bring such research papers to our doctors.
Goal-directed osteoporosis treatment: ASBMR/BHOF task force position statement 2024
https://academic.oup.com/jbmr/article/39/10/1393/7723496
You can start about 30 minutes in to the below video to see just the recommendations that are also from the above paper. But I recommend taking the hours to study this amazing talk and slides. See the link to bigger copies of the slides by expanding the notes under the video.