Dear LPG readers,  

Something I read recently on your pages reminded me about a bit of a situation I got myself into not so long ago  (►►►).  Although that article was all about an attachment to an old chair, the links that the writer shared at the bottom of his message included lots of information about what you can do to make getting up and out of a chair easier on your legs and back as those muscles and bones get older.   

I am in my mid-eighties now and that is when, in my experience, your legs are not quite as able to compensate when you find yourself on a sudden downward trajectory.  For the most part mine are fairly able to get me to the other end of my intended journey (to the shops, those social clubs, your friends’ houses for a visit or even getting around the house) but every now and then, together with the help they are used to receiving from your ear’s sense of balance, it all goes a bit wrong and we oldies can get a lot nearer to the ground a lot more quickly than expected.  

And worse than the problems caused by getting up from sitting, are the ones that we can have when we manage to find ourselves at ground level (literally).  It is something that I think we are more likely to have more experience of at either end of our lives.   

I don’t remember much about the education process that got me to perfecting the art of putting one foot in front of the other successfully, but I spent a lot of time as a mum watching the ups and downs of my children’s walking journeys, or at least the steps that allowed them to get going.   When they are toddlers, experimenting with what is needed to graduate from moving around on all fours to dedicating movement to the two lower limbs, is a much safer prospect.  The rest of their bodies have a relatively short journey back to terra firma, not to mention muscles and bones which are more equipped for such sudden downward trips, but as we get older it is quite a different story. 

Our older bones don’t appreciate being jolted and the consequences usually take a lot longer to even out.   The internet tells that 1/3 of UK people aged 65+ fall at least once a year and I am one such person.  It really did not have much to do with getting out of a chair but no matter the circumstances, when you are down, you are down, and the big question is how to get up again (particularly if you are alone at the time).   

My close encounter with my kitchen floor left me with a few bumps and bruises and a need to be ready if it happens again, but it could have been so much worse.  After the experience, I did a bit of serious research.  What I read reminded me of how easy it can be to find yourself horizontal at the lowest possible level, and reading about that chair inspired me to share what I found.  

I know that sometimes all the background knowledge in the world won’t help, but I think it might be an idea if readers take a look at the links I have asked LPG to add below my message, because there are a few pointers which might come in handy if it happens to you… 


SE, Croften Park,  

 

 

SE offers us the wisdom the internet offered her re getting up again…

 

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