Do you feel old?

[Doomlord_uk]

Yup sirree! I feel old... gently raises shaky hand...

I definitely feel like the end is nearer than the beginning, especially if I discount my first 18 years on Planet Earth. 32 years into a largely squandered adulthood and I'm not looking the best for it. Definitely shooting for another 32 years at least though, and feel - with a little good fortune (ha!) and a lot of effort - that I could see 100 years on earth. OTOH, whether I'd really WANT to see the future five decades from now is another matter...

 

[whm2074]

Yup sirree! I feel old... gently raises shaky hand...

I definitely feel like the end is nearer than the beginning, especially if I discount my first 18 years on Planet Earth. 32 years into a largely squandered adulthood and I'm not looking the best for it. Definitely shooting for another 32 years at least though, and feel - with a little good fortune (ha!) and a lot of effort - that I could see 100 years on earth. OTOH, whether I'd really WANT to see the future five decades from now is another matter...

Especially if it mean being in a wheelchair and living in a nursing home in five decades.

 

[Doomlord_uk]

I want to add to that... it's definitely a feeling, and it's one I think we can all take charge of. being healthy becomes more important as we age, as the accumulated cost of NOT being healthy when we were younger (raises hand - guilty as charged) begins to show a toll. I do firmly believe that, as hard as it may be to do it, we can get back a decent standard of health and live a happy life, notwithstanding the barrage of lemons life hurls at us like a never-ending storm. There's an eye in that storm, and that's where you make lemonade. So age is in a way an attitude of mind. Let's be clear - I'm not done yet!

 

[Doomlord_uk]

Especially if it mean being in a wheelchair and living in a nursing home in five decades.

Yeah, maybe that's the end point. Far worse if you spend five decades IN a nursing home... at least any of the ones I've seen.

 

[JasterMereel]

It is fun to look at a glass of water and then you have to go pee.

 

[SuperDave]

It is fun to look at a glass of water and then you have to go pee.

Oh, you are so spot-on with that.

 

[Vince-RA]

A spine-aligning pillow is a thing of incredible beauty.

I have this shoulder-saving monstrosity, sometimes you have to prioritize.

 

[Defenestrar]

I read too quickly and read shoulder-shaving monstrosity and wondered what kind of pit hair growth caused sufficient weight for back pain.

 

[Vince-RA]

I read too quickly and read shoulder-shaving monstrosity and wondered what kind of pit hair growth caused sufficient weight for back pain.

My hair does seem to be migrating downward from my head, but I am thankful it’s not reached that level yet

 

[Tom Foolery]

So, to paraphrase my mother, "You are only as young as you feel."

I feel like a teenager, still.

(What Mom actually said was, "ACT YOUR AGE!" but I really feel like my interpretation is more profound, so yeah.)

 

[SuperDave]

So, to paraphrase my mother, "You are only as young as you feel."

I feel like a teenager, still.

(What Mom actually said was, "ACT YOUR AGE!" but I really feel like my interpretation is more profound, so yeah.)

I logged 5 hours in what my watch considered "workout time" yesterday, "Feeling young" is the reward for an investment, and the only way is to invest.

 

[Bardon]

A friend told me "Old is defined as someone 20 years older than you are".

So at 10, 30 is OLD
At 40, 60 is OLD.

It tracks...

 

[Doomlord_uk]

Marry a younger partner and you will always feel young

 

[Justin Credible]

I look old. I ache like I'm old. I sleep like I'm old. I see, eat, hear like I'm old.

So yes, I feel old.

 

[Leaping Gnome]

I have this shoulder-saving monstrosity, sometimes you have to prioritize.

Seriously though, that looks pretty helpful. I have been having arm / shoulder pain from sleeping on my side and something like this could work well. How is it for you? I am a hot sleeper and would worry about it getting very warm.

 

[Vince-RA]

Seriously though, that looks pretty helpful. I have been having arm / shoulder pain from sleeping on my side and something like this could work well. How is it for you? I am a hot sleeper and would worry about it getting very warm.

It's helped a lot for me. I always tried to sleep on my back but invariably ended up on my side in the middle of the night, shoulder smashed under me. I'd say I'm on the hot sleeping side as well and it's never been an issue. It wasn't clear to me when I bought it, but all three pieces of the contraption come with a removable/washable pillowcase - so no need to order more unless you want spares. There are some downsides to it:

• It's expensive (but I believe you can use FSA/HSA funds to purchase, and it's often "on sale"). And really, no regrets here, I've had it for a few years so cost per sleep is minuscule at this point. It and the covers seem well-constructed too, no sign of things breaking down so far.
• It takes up a lot of room in the bed
• It can be difficult to extricate yourself from if you're settled in. This is fun with the other "do you feel old" thing of having to get up to pee in the middle of the night.
• The body pillow only works for sleeping on one side - if you roll over to the other, you'll want another pillow to put between your knees for that side. I just use a standard queen-sized foam pillow for this purpose and it works fine.

 

[Auguste_Fivaz]

Back in 2021, we went to the symphony and were among the other gray hairs in our county.

 

[Bardon]

It's helped a lot for me. I always tried to sleep on my back but invariably ended up on my side in the middle of the night, shoulder smashed under me. I'd say I'm on the hot sleeping side as well and it's never been an issue. It wasn't clear to me when I bought it, but all three pieces of the contraption come with a removable/washable pillowcase - so no need to order more unless you want spares. There are some downsides to it:

• It's expensive (but I believe you can use FSA/HSA funds to purchase, and it's often "on sale"). And really, no regrets here, I've had it for a few years so cost per sleep is minuscule at this point. It and the covers seem well-constructed too, no sign of things breaking down so far.
• It takes up a lot of room in the bed
• It can be difficult to extricate yourself from if you're settled in. This is fun with the other "do you feel old" thing of having to get up to pee in the middle of the night.
• The body pillow only works for sleeping on one side - if you roll over to the other, you'll want another pillow to put between your knees for that side. I just use a standard queen-sized foam pillow for this purpose and it works fine.

For a "between the knees" pillow I've used this for years and it's been absolutely fantastic!

 

[Leaping Gnome]

It's helped a lot for me. I always tried to sleep on my back but invariably ended up on my side in the middle of the night, shoulder smashed under me. I'd say I'm on the hot sleeping side as well and it's never been an issue. It wasn't clear to me when I bought it, but all three pieces of the contraption come with a removable/washable pillowcase - so no need to order more unless you want spares. There are some downsides to it:

• It's expensive (but I believe you can use FSA/HSA funds to purchase, and it's often "on sale"). And really, no regrets here, I've had it for a few years so cost per sleep is minuscule at this point. It and the covers seem well-constructed too, no sign of things breaking down so far.
• It takes up a lot of room in the bed
• It can be difficult to extricate yourself from if you're settled in. This is fun with the other "do you feel old" thing of having to get up to pee in the middle of the night.
• The body pillow only works for sleeping on one side - if you roll over to the other, you'll want another pillow to put between your knees for that side. I just use a standard queen-sized foam pillow for this purpose and it works fine.

Thanks for the details, I'm glad to hear it doesn't run hot. I might just have to try it out, $250 is a small price to pay for good sleep night after night.

 

[timstorey1]

Well, after an evening trip on Wednesday to the local E.R. due to food lodged in my esophagus, a 4 hour wait before they told me they were keeping me overnight and that I would get an endoscopy in the morning, I finally got home about 11:30 Thursday. Friday, I walked over ( about 2 1/2 miles) and brought my truck home (couldn't drive Thursday due to sedation). Every abdominal muscle seemed to hurt, and my throat was really sore all day yesterday. Today the sore throat is mostly gone, various parts of my body are starting to work again. I can't wait for a follow up endoscopy in a month. I'm old.

 

[Yagisama]

++

Things that make me feel most old: hurting myself while sleeping, having to hold stuff far away from my face to focus on it.

No kidding. I woke up today with such a pain in my neck that is still hurting. No issues when going to sleep, woke up and it was a pain shaving. Driving was a paint too. Thanks a lot this getting old business.

 

[rtrefz]

I went to a SCA event yesterday and spent most of the day in a concrete auditorium. I'm feeling very sore today.

 

[Vince-RA]

I just started my colonoscopy prep, so you're goddamn right I'm feeling old today

 

[NoMoreSecrets]

I just started my colonoscopy prep, so you're goddamn right I'm feeling old today

I just had my first one last year. My wife is a colorectal surgeon, so she approves!

 

[jbode]

Apologies for the necro, but I didn't want to create a whole new thread just for this.

Had to have surprise eye surgery last week for a detached retina due to "age-related breakdown of the vitreous humor." Seeing the patch taped over my eye in the mirror just made me look and feel geriatric. Like all those old people I always see in the doctor's office with various bandages, canes, slings, boots, etc.

I'm also collecting new doctors like Pokemon as various body part crap out. I can hear my grandmother's voice as I start listing off which doctors (plural) I need to see next.

 

[nquinnell]

Two months isn't a Necro. Its just a fine aging.

 

[UserIDAlreadyInUse]

At our age? Two months may as well be two days.

 

[CrackFraggle]

"surprise eye surgery" sounds like one of the worst April Fool's pranks.

(seriously, that sounds borderline terrifying, and I hope you are heling quickly and completely)

 

[Technarch]

I don't know if I feel old so much as tired. I'm tired of working, I'm tired of having to do stuff, I'm tired of the bad guys winning all the time. Healthwise my worst issues are foot tendonitis and some sudden astigmatism in my dominant eye. Annoying but if that's the worst of it I can manage.

 

[jbode]

"surprise eye surgery" sounds like one of the worst April Fool's pranks.

(seriously, that sounds borderline terrifying, and I hope you are heling quickly and completely)

We'll find out tomorrow. Not the healing process is anywhere near complete, that's several weeks off, but we'll at least know if it's going the right direction.

Yeah, last Sunday I noticed a shadow in the corner of my eye, went to the ophthalmologist Thursday morning, who immediately referred me to a retina specialist that afternoon, who set up surgery for the next day.

So we drove into Seton Ascension Friday morning, I got knocked out around 09:00, woke up around 12:30 looking 20 years older with the damn eyepatch.

Bonus, this procedure accelerates the development of cataracts (of which one was already developing in that eye), meaning I'll need another round of surgery in a year or two.

I've had to lie face down for at least 45 minutes out of every hour for the last week, hopefully won't have to do that anymore after tomorrow, but I am blind in that eye for several weeks until it's fully healed. No driving or anything else that requires adequate depth perception (power tools are right out).

 

[adinar]

I passed the half-century mark a few years ago and up until recently, didn't feel old or look old (thanks to my Asian genes). Have stayed pretty healthy and fit for the most part. But the last couple of years I feel like my body doesn't heal as well or as quickly as it once did. Had to deal with a frozen shoulder a while back and now treating a pinched nerve. My self-induced mtn bike injuries no longer heal as nicely. So yeah, it's happening. But I will keep up the good fight and do what I can to stay active.

 

[Danger Mouse]

At some point, you realize that you're not "horny" for sex, but instead for a decent night's rest or great digestion.

There's one mukbanger I watch, who devours enormous amounts of food, but it is still thin and pretty athletic.

She eats in one meal (several hours long) what I might devour in a year.

I envy that ability to eat/digest that kind and amount of food.

She's kind of legendary for people thinking it's fake and then someone gets to watch her devour food for hours on end in person. The 2 liters plus of sodas and others that she drinks along with the food would be amazing by itself.

 

[IncrHulk]

Marry a younger partner and you will always feel young

Or old... my partner is 10 years younger than me, and sometimes the difference is noticeable. We've been together 11 years and sometimes, even after all this time I'm oh... yeah, you didn't grow up with that. I had a short-term GF a couple of years back who was closer to 20 years younger, and man, the cultural references sometimes.

I don't feel old, mentally. At least most of the time, but the T2 diagnosis made me feel mortal for the first time in a tangible manner. Wrenching on my Jeep? yeah I feel that at the end.

 

[Doomlord_uk]

watch her devour food for hours on end

Having seen a demonstration of what that does to your stomach - think balloon stretched to literal bursting point - I couldn't watch or condone it any more. I did like watching some of those eating competitions (Man Vs Food??) but just the sheer amount you distort your stomach and insides, and a doctor's response being 'yeah no', put me off.

 

[jbode]

At some point, you realize that you're not "horny" for sex, but instead for a decent night's rest or great digestion.

My sex drive fell off a cliff some years ago, and since she went through menopause my wife isn't missing it that much either; a solid foot rub usually does the trick. I just want a comfortable night's sleep without a sore neck or arm.

BTW, the eye is healing well; I don't have to stay face down all day anymore, so I can get back to work (-ing from home) Monday. Still effectively blind in that eye, so no driving, and once it's healed I'll need new glasses.

 

[waqar]

I just do all the weird exercises involving flapping my arms around and doing squats 50 million times a hour that the tiktok weirdos recommend and I now have a body with the mobility from 56 years in the past. Wearing diapers and just about sitting up.

 

[Defenestrar]

Bonus, this procedure accelerates the development of cataracts (of which one was already developing in that eye), meaning I'll need another round of surgery in a year or two.

While nobody wants extra eye surgery, you can do a fun experiment before and after a cataract operation. Set up a prism where it's hit by sunlight and make a mark on how far into the violet you can see before and after the operation. There's a decent chance they'll use a material that will let you see deeper into the ultraviolet than mark 1 human eyeballs.

 

[UserIDAlreadyInUse]

While nobody wants extra eye surgery, you can do a fun experiment before and after a cataract operation. Set up a prism where it's hit by sunlight and make a mark on how far into the violet you can see before and after the operation. There's a decent chance they'll use a material that will let you see deeper into the ultraviolet than mark 1 human eyeballs.

"Ah, me eyeballies are good as new, me droogs! The cats outta me bag and the viddy's clear as a church bell's chime. It's the Mark II, droogs, Mark II, and I'm now ready to look into a bit of the old ultraviolet!"

 

[Defenestrar]

It won't be as far into the UV as it used to be (i.e. when they removed and did not replace the lens), but there should still be improved color vision range. Just a small silver ultraviolet lining.