I get stopped often. Complete strangers will come up to me
and tell me “I read your column in the newspaper.” It really does happen a lot
and I’m grateful that people find something of value in my words in this space.
I guess if there is a target audience for what I’m trying to
say here, it would be active individuals. Or parents of athletes. Hopefully
those that are trying to get healthier.
But I do tend to cover a lot of topics.
In 40 years (it’s official now), I’ve covered everything imaginable.
If you’re paying attention, you will notice that I stay away
from politics and religion. This is not the place for that. My choice.
I just let people decide for themselves where I stand. I am
spiritual and I am, I guess, political. Political in that I believe we should
all vote and participate in the practice of democracy.
I am an active participant in the legislative process,
visiting Nashville and Washington DC often. It’s pretty much always about
physical therapy and health care issues, advocating for our patients. There’s a
saying in the legislature that “you’re either at the table or somebody is
eating your lunch.” I choose to be at the table. Have been for a long
time.
I find myself advocating for the needs of senior citizens
more and more. Maybe it’s because I’m now in that demographic, but it really
might be more because I see shortages and inequities in the health care we
provide our elder citizens.
And what made me think about those seniors today is that it
seems like that is more and more the population that reads my column. At least those
are the folks that mention it. So this one’s for you.
It doesn’t seem like younger folks read newspapers much. My
kids haven’t reached for the printed version in years and I now find myself
reading the online version pretty much every day. Welcome to today’s world, I
guess.
I really do miss the actual newspaper, printed on paper.
Sunday morning with a cup of coffee and my Sunday paper was divine. But us
senior citizens have to adapt. So, I read my online edition.
And since it seems like the geriatric set is a large part of
my readership, today’s message is all about you.
More specifically, about falling. Everyone fears falling,
with good reason. Of those that fall and break their hip, about a fourth die
within the year. So, you don’t want to
fall. But there’s hope--balance can be
trained up. Many falls can be prevented.
There are lots of things you can do. Staying active helps. Going for a walk every
day is important. Moving your body is crucial.
There are some specific exercises you can do. First, find a flat surface, clear of
obstacles, and within arm’s reach of something you can grab to stabilize
yourself. If you feel insecure, have someone stand nearby. Stand on one leg.
Stand on the other leg. Stand on one leg with your eyes closed. Stand on one
leg and swing your arms around.
Stand on one leg and reach out and step on spots around the
floor with the other foot. Try standing
on a pillow. The variations are endless. Now here’s the thing—you’ve got to do
it every day. Maybe even a couple of
times per day.
And strength training. You simply must do it. Without it,
you just get progressively weaker. I don’t care how active you are or how much
you hate it—you’ve got to do it.
It just makes sense that if you are stronger, you are going
to be more stable, more able prevent falls. Strength training not only
stabilizes the core, but it strengthens the bones. And if you do fall, maybe you’re less likely
to break a bone. ‘
It’s just common sense if you think about it. Those systems
that can keep you from falling (balance, strength, focusing on your
surroundings) can be learned. At any
age. And if these strategies can keep
you from falling, you’ve won.
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