TREMBLE | THE DAILY POST
It’s not that I’m so terribly old. I may tremble when I walk and need support on rough terrain, but I still remember where I’m going and why I’m going there, at least most of the time. My once solid footfalls are shaky and tremulous, but if my body would be more cooperative, I could overcome this, I’m sure.
My body has developed a very bad attitude. I used to be able to count on my body. It would come through for me. Support my decisions. Help me to achieve my goals. Then, it began to need a coaxing and ultimately, outright bribes.
MIND: Hey, Body?
BODY: Yes?
MIND: I’d really like to go horseback riding.
BODY: I don’t think so.
MIND: If you let me do it, I’ll take you to the spa and get you a massage.
BODY: I will also need chocolate. And coffee. Lots of it.
The years have continued to roll along. Now, there’s no reasoning with that recalcitrant body. It has gone on strike and isn’t coming back to work without a substantial pay raise and vastly improved working conditions.
Like I said: Really bad attitude!
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Categories: #Health, Daily Prompt, Getting old, Humor
SERENDIPITY - SEEKING INTELLIGENT LIFE ON EARTH 
I tried jumping a railing at work when I was 25 and wound up with a delayed back problem that gave me a sharp pain any time I tried to bend forward even a little bit that only went away with a very long nap the next day. Then again, leaping on a homerun ball hit in the bleachers once tweaked my back so bad, that when the pain went away a few days later I discovered the pinched nerve that’d been bothering me had also disappeared. So sometimes it’s good to pretend you’re still young and spry…. though these days, I very, very rarely take that chance…
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Imagine how unfortunate it would be given another 20 years of abusing your back 🙂 The human back is a poorly designed thing. For those serious about Creative Design instead of evolution, this design that should make them question the concept.
I remember — about 10 years ago — when I discovered merely hopping down from the curb into the street caused an a lot of pain.
Backs go early. My granddaughter’s started when she was 15 (gymnastics did it) and my son in his 30s (pushing a car). I did it in my teens (falling off horses) and Garry while working (broken field running while carrying 50 or 60 pounds of TV equipment). Some people don’t even know what happened, but it can usually be laid at the door of work or sports — or both. The creative designer should go back to the drawing boards and improve this one. I’m sure, with new technology, a better design will be easy to come up with. Meanwhile, ibuprofen in large doses? And of course, sleeping with heating pads 🙂
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I love your sense of humour about the changes you’re going through. Best possible option is positive attitude and to laugh, and you have both in spades. Loved this! I know, I’m with you every “tremulous” step of the way.
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Thanks. Pity a sense of humor doesn’t make anything function better.
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Yes, I know this well. All it can do is lessen the moment and those to come. I find personally humour and good music help. That’s about it as what is, is. It can’t be changed much unfortunately.
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You are right, but I do get frustrated, especially on days like this when I can barely more and merely getting up from the sofa requires tooth-gritting determination.
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I know that one exceedingly well. I wrote about a chair I was sitting in crashing to the floor. I did something to my back and have been in excrutiating pain for months. They did a CT scan but lost the results. They gave me morphine and something else, which I won’t take. Walking is unbearable, as is sitting, standing, and laying down far worse. I empathize completely.
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Morphine makes me sick, literally sick, as do all its derivatives. But demerol works ok. It’s not as strong as many other recipes, but it blunts the pain. I can’t take NSAAIDs, and Tylenol is not a real hard hitter in the pain department, but I need something, preferably a real anti-inflammatory, not just a pain killer. I just fuse into a solid painful lump. I take antacids to tolerate the anti-inflammatory. Not optimum, but I have a good doctor and we try to find the best combination with the fewest side effects — for me. It’s really complicated.
On a day like today, it’s also exhausting. Especially because I’m really really really careful about how much I take of anything. It’s not even fear of addiction or overdose. It’s because if you take the largest dose, eventually the largest dose won’t be enough and you’ll need more … but more is dangerous.
I take the absolute minimum I can take of anything where I have a choice about dosage. You can’t mess with dosages on all medication. All the heart/BP medication, I have to take all of it. On time. Every day.
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I can’t take anti-inflammatories cause my blood pressure is too high. It is exhausting, pain is exhausting no other way to put it.and Yes I agree, eventually you’ll have to up the amount because your body gets used to it.
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I have the same problem AND I have a long and ugly history with ulcers, but pain killers — opioids, even NSAAIDs — don’t provide any real help. They just give us some temporary respite from the pain, or more to the point, knock it down a few notches. If inflammation is the real problem — and for me, it’s about 60% of the problems — I had to find some way to do it. This particular one has — so far — not raised my BP (and remember, i’ve got a lot of heart issues AND a replacement mitral valve AND a pacemaker) — or taken out my stomach. I have to buffer it with a heavy dose of antacids, but it helps more than I thought it could. Sometimes, you have to do the best you can with who you are. When you have enough medical issues, something’s gotta give. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than nothing.
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I never thought of antacids. I will have a go with that. I’ll know more when they FIND the ct scan then did and lost.
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Your body is tactful in not reminding you that because you jumped the fence all those other times, it’s ill-advised today. Mine has a tendency to force upon me cause and effect relationships….
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Mine just gives me the figurative finger. It’s actually pretty damned eloquent.
However, your Honor, I’d like to raise an objection. We got broken being active. Mostly horses for me. For Garry, it was all the things he did while working. If we had sat around being careful, we’d ALL be in better shape. We are paying for the grave sin of getting too much healthy exercise? You really can’t win, you know?
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I don’t think we’re paying. When I couldn’t walk because of my hip and I was in terrible pain and teaching, one of my students — who, like me, liked running trails — looked at me very worried one day. “Professor,” he said, “I need to know. Was it worth it?” I actually got misty; I hadn’t thought of it that way at all, and suddenly, for me, it was all OK. I said, “Yes. I wouldn’t change a minute.” ❤ But nothing is free, not even life's rollercoaster.
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Stay away from fences Marilyn.
Leslie
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Yes. And horses who like jumping fences.
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Them too!
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I think your body may have secret conversations with mine, it is a conspiracy. Walk legs – why – and so they just move, I would not longer call it walking. But life goes on. If you can read and write and compose – then whats the problem. Ask the body when it began to slow down and I would bet it cannot remember.
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My right shoulder has gone kaput and I was trying to have a civil discussion with it. It was very rude. it told me to shut up and stop trying to use my right arm. When I pointed out, rightfully, that I’m a rightie, my shoulder said it did not care.
I think my body has gone beyond slow to pretty much on strike. And oh, Garry’s back is out, too. We are now officially “the lame and the halt.” I don’t know who is lamer and who is halter.
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You see, Mr. Swiss is continuously complaining about his lumbago. I love the German word for that, it just suits the person that has it “hexenschuss” which literally translated means “witches shot”. And honestly it really has nothing to do with me.
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Yes, Garry complains about his arthritis and other aches and pains more or less all the time. But he is in a lot better shape than me, mostly. it’s a husband thing. They require equal time for complaining. It’s what powers them to keep doing the stuff they do. They are particularly proud of pointing out how they do all this stuff despite the pain. Manly men doing manly man stuff 🙂
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I just decided to sell my motorcycle. It sort of fell over, in slow motion, one day while I was backing it out of my driveway. Trying to pick up almost 500lbs of machine proved more than my body wanted to do. Luckily a younger neighbor sensing my plight, came to my rescue and, like it was nothing, stood it right up off the ground. While I love riding it.., What if that happened to me while out on a ride, and help wasn’t so readily available? I say too those who feel they have lost their sense of balance “balderdash!” what you’ve lost is strength as you get older. Your balance may be fine but your body’s ability to compensate for a possible fall is seriously compromised.., not to mention your bones have become a little more brittle.
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I haven’t lost my balance, but I’ve lost a LOT of strength (heart surgery can do that to you) and my spine is really degenerated … and that affects everything else. I remember when my brother gave up riding after a a car nearly killed him. He was a very good rider and a lot younger than us, but he decided one accident like that was enough. The traffic had gotten so bad and cars don’t pay attention to bikes. They don’t leave enough room, don’t see them in their mirrors, think they can stop of a dime.
I applaud your decision. Even though I am saddened, too.
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I will, however, keep my Vespa scooter. Scoots are a lot less complicated to ride and I do like touring around seeing new places on it. Plus there isn’t as much power to make you think you can do impossible things, so you tend to keep away from the traffic.
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Scooters are also cleaner and carry spare tires. Lots of senior citz ride scooters. I wish I had one.
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Only the older vintage models carry spares. These days modern tires are far more durable and resilient reducing the need to carry a spare. That being said, I have experienced a flat on both my motorcycle and my scooter. It usually requires complete replacement of the tire no matter where the puncture is. Two wheel riders are far more careful when it comes to things like that as keeping upright is really, really important.., not to mention that one tire is 50% of your ride support.
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I think of a spare as a way to get somewhere safe to get the “real” tire replaced. Even on cars, flats are rare and usually mean the tire is a goner. Yeah, I know. Two wheels makes you more vulnerable. Then, there’s flying and boating and horseback riding. Personally, I am living with many of the extremely painful results of horses.
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