topic Re: Well, I'm shrinking again in Wellness

Well, I'm shrinking again

qualitygal — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 11:44:35 GMT

I just looked this up and I guess age, & back issues included, this isn't unusual, just kind of shocking to me. It's my first trip down Old Age Lane. I only get one trip, but it is a learning experience. I'm down 2" now from what I was most of my adult life. I guess it's par for the course.

Has anyone else been shrinking too? I could lose up to 1" more before all is said and done so to speak, according to the article I just read.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

ID2 — Wed, 11 Jan 2017 11:42:41 GMT

I seem to have all the other menopausal/older age symptoms ie. 63 years of age, weight problems, loss of waist. But I'm delighted to say I still have all of my 5'9" of me still intact!

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

Sweet_Serenity — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 12:21:05 GMT

Last year Doctor measured me 5'5 used to be 5"6 1/2 weight gain along with breast cup size larger. No I'm not eating more, Yes do excercise. Thyroid is normal also. My stats are good! No Diabetes or high cholesterol or high blood pressure. Seriously considered breast reduction but! Looked at the risk factor jury is still out. Even my thin twin sister who eats very healthy has gained weight. I'm okay with my body, My problem! Finding a comfortable bra that doesn't make me look like Jayne Mansfield!!💁

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

philogirl — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 12:43:44 GMT

Way to go! I have my check-up next week.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

SeaMaiden — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 13:12:17 GMT

@qualitygal You are not alone. I was 5'10" when younger... now 61 with joint arthritis throughout my body and (4) joint replacements... I measure 5'8" on a good day. It is normal to lose height as you age. Many things come into play. For some it is just very bad posture, for others it is bone loss in the spine and the spine compacting. n

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

Poodlepet2 — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 13:14:59 GMT

Sweet, I can only wish my cups would runneth over: my Living Bra died from starvation!

I lost 80 pounds in my quest to control diabetes, but I have osteoporosis as well and I have lost an inch.

No matter what I do, I can't seem to get my D3 level up. I had my first round of Reclast this past Spring, and in spite of that lovely commercial where that busy Broadway Actress is talking about how easily that fifteen minute infusion fit into her busy glamorous lifestyle....that was not the case for me.

To quote Roseanne Rosanna Danna, "I thought I was gonna die".

This was not the flu, but every joint hurt: ache is not the word. My blood glucose scored into the wild blue yonder. My doc gave me a Solumedrol dose pack, but without insulin, I was not about to take it.

I spoke with my Medico and he promised me I could have insulin my next round. My stomach was in an uproar, but having the sensation of starvation and pain is no fun.

Before my next infusion, I am making a big pot of soup. I had six hours before the side effects kicked in....

My back is also circling the drain and I have pretty severe nerve deficits on my EMG, but I am staying active with yoga and what "I call ""Pilates Posture". It's hard to explain in words, but you "tuck" your pelvis under so that there is no curvature in the small of your back: you lengthen your spine being careful to keep your shoulders down. This is the posture that ballerinas "live" in. It feels odd initially, but it becomes second nature-and that one simple exercise goes a long way.....it has the added plus of making me feel elegant and regal....( not that I could make it through an audition with the Bolshoi)!

Poodlepet2

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

hckynut — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 14:47:01 GMT

Just as there is only 1 option to getting chronologically older, losing height falls into that category also. Gravity, as most of us know, draws things downwards, on everyone. There are many variables as to what level a person falls into over time.

Weight/muscle mass/posture and problematic spinal issues. Personally, I have been 1" shorter, for years now. I primarily assess this to completely being missing 3 lumbar discs and having 3 compressed(crushed cervical vertebrae).

My concern is not my height. I'll keep concerning myself with things I can, to some degree, control. Keeping my desired weight/posture/muscle mass/strength/flexibility/functionality, and mobility.

hckynut(john)

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

PamfromCT — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 14:53:20 GMT

@Poodlepet2, You are so funny! I won't bore you too much with my story, I hope. After seeing every specialist on the planet, and two pain clinics, my PCP referred me to a Physiatrist. He finally gave me a diagnosis of spinal stenosis and a script for PT in a warm water pool, with land therapy as well. After three months, three times per week, I am feeling finally better. The object was to strengthen my core. Also, my hip was out of alignment. I will continue going to the pool on my own now, doing my exercises, which I will have to do forever.

I saw saw so many specialists along the way, and even had two steroid injections in my back. I had a severe reaction to the last injection at a pain clinic and was told at MA General (not where I got injections) that no one should ever put a needle in my back again. No kidding. I would not advise anyone to go this route. You are free of pain for a while, the pain creeps back, but you can only have a few injections a year. Bad stuff.

Would recommend a Physiatrist if anyone is having muscular/joint pain issues in your back. Knees and hips can be replaced. Your back is here to stay.

I am glad your exercises and posture changes are working for you! Keep up your good work.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

hoosieroriginal — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 14:57:31 GMT

I bought a Teeter inversion table about a year ago and it has made amazing results - my back issues are resolved and I definitely stand much straighter. Best purchase ever! I get on it every day, especially after jogging on my treadmill (second best purchase)

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

SeaMaiden — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 15:18:00 GMT

@hoosieroriginal wrote:
I bought a Teeter inversion table about a year ago and it has made amazing results - my back issues are resolved and I definitely stand much straighter. Best purchase ever! I get on it every day, especially after jogging on my treadmill (second best purchase)

I would get an inversion table, but , with joint replacements they are NOT recommended.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

jlkz — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 15:30:36 GMT

@Sweet_Serenity

Believe me, you are not alone: was 5'7" but now 5'6"; weight gain though eating less and exercising; trouble getting up from floor; can't kneel; heel Spurs; need readers. Oh yes, where was the larger bra when I was younger ?

Despite all that, I am still happy and active. If the above is the worst that happens, I am OK with it....I can handle it.

Not bad for 72....

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

151949 — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 15:56:13 GMT

Yes, I have gone from 5'10" to 5' 6 " last time I was at the doctor. That is quite a drop! I have arthritis in my spine that accounts for most of it. I used to need 32" inseams on my pants - now I only need 30".

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

LexPex — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 16:05:04 GMT

I just got weighted and measured since I am having knee replacement surgery later this month. I knew I had lost an inch but now I am 5'5" down from 5'71/2"

Where did those 2 1/2 go? I have been lifting weights for years and my bone density is great. I know my knee is crooked from the arthritis. However, other than the knee, most of me feels good on most days. My DH has also shrunk

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

SilleeMee — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 16:08:48 GMT

Lifting weight will help slow bone loss. I have severe osteo and have not lost height and my BD scans have remained stable over the past fifteen years despite my diagnosis. My mother had the same problem with her bones, too, but she never lifted weight and she got shorter over time and eventually lost about four inches from where she was when she was younger.

Lift weights! Start light and slow. It doesn't take a lot of weight, just something you can pick up repeatedly for about ten times and again twice more.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

151949 — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 16:48:33 GMT

My bone density is fine and I have done weights for years. However, the arthritis in my back is destroying the cartiledge between the bones in my spine and as that disappears I shrink. Not everyone has the same conditions nor does the same treatment work for everyone.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

chlema — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 16:57:25 GMT

In my younger days I measured 5'5 1/2. Ah but now that I am an old old lady, even though when they are measuring me and I stand as tall as I am able I am now 5'3. Bah on that.

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

blackhole99 — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 17:00:00 GMT

Make sure you are being measured accurately, I have only been measured correctly once and I was 5ft3. At 66 I'm still 5ft3 if measured correctly, but I have no skeletal problems. I sometimes think the nurses or techs that measure you don't realize how important taking the extra time to measure accurately is. One time a nurse who was very short and would have had to stand on a stool to measure me just said,"you are around 5ft2 right".

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

LdyBugz — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 19:23:05 GMT

Yep, I'm shrinking. I'm down one and a half inches since high school, which was a gazillion years ago. When I mentioned this to a friend, she said "You're not shrinking. You're just "settling"." Ha!

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

qualitygal — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 20:01:49 GMT

I just went in and sang the Lollypop song that the Munchkins sing in the Wizard of Oz. We laughed!!!

Re: Well, I'm shrinking again

RedTop — Sat, 07 Jan 2017 23:10:25 GMT

My 82 year old mother is shrinking in every way possible. When I was growing up, Mom was about 5' 5" and weighed 130 lbs; she was up to about 145+ when my dad died in 2004. A week ago at her doctor appt she measured 5' 2" and weighed 114 lbs.

I never remember my mom being this tiny, ever. I am suspicious something more is going on, but she made the decision two years ago to stop all testing, and has made it clear thru advance directives she will not treat any serious condition. I do not necessarily agree with her decision, but will support her wishes to the end.