Do you find that you fall frequently?

Hi, I've had this over a year (68 not an old dear!) culminating in fractured hip & hip replacement, then was referred to a falls specialist clinic in our area, worth a check to see if there's one local to you?

Hi, oh that sounds terrible! I haven’t fallen in a few weeks though having said that I’ll most likely fall soon haha.

I had a succession of falls last year - 78 then - and was sent to the Falls Clinic at the local hospital. No cause found, except for my own carelessness. It's humiliating though, when you fall and have to be picked up by passers-by! Not to mention embarrassing when you're pouring blood all over the pavement.

I think I've tried all the blood pressure pills known to man. All have given me bad side effects.

(Lisinopril gave me a sudden severe abdominal allergic reaction requiring hospitalisation.)

One made my soles very painful.

Two or three of them gave me balance and coordination problems. Do check carefully the known (including rare) side effects of any medication you are taking. Yoga or Pilates helps with balance.

What gets to me now is that I don't bounce any more! When I think of all the times I've fallen on mountains, all the times I've fallen off my bike (on icy mornings, for example), all the times I've knocked off my bike, on stairs at school because I always ran up them, and so on and been just fine, it irks me no end that nowadays parts of me break and that it takes such ages to recover.

I may not be an "old dear" yet (though that is my ambition in due course ?) but aging is definitely having effects. As one would expect.

*been knocked off....

My best friend has always been a faller even when young I remember her son used to say her airbags saved her as she was rather well endowed she always said it was them that overbalanced her She’s had a few bad ones lately which is worrying
I have had a few, probably amounts to one every couple of years or so but never had any handbag trouble
I m usually up before I m down sort of, as it’s embarrassing isn’t it ?
I fell on the beach last week so a nice soft landing I saw a bit of iron sticking up and could have sworn I d avoided it but I didn’t and went into one of those free falls where you get lower and lower over a fair distance until you meet the ground There were a couple not far away on the extremely empty beach but they took no notice and I was up and carrying on as if I d never been down before you could say ‘happy landing’

Oh gosh I like to think that I've got a firm grip of the earth and luckily up to now I haven't had a fall. More aware of where I place my feet though and always looking out for uneven paving stones etc.

I have a dread of falling and breaking a limb or hips. As a child if I tripped up as kids do mum would say " pick your feet up " and that's what I hear in my ears when I'm out

Did you 1.trip up on something including your own foot, or

2. did you loses consciousness before you fell i.e. you fainted or

3. Did you feel weak and drop from fatigue or

4. Do you suffer from vertigo (your surroundings seeming to whizz round and round).

Why are you making fun of falling? You need to see a doctor. Perhaps you need to have different medication.

Would a walking stick help you?

After I'd had those few falls, my sons got on my case and told me firmly to 'Watch where you put your feet, Mum'. And by and large I am much more aware of the state of the pavements than I had been. And mostly I do remember to take my stick with me.

Alexa the woman had a fall, it happens there doesn’t have to be some dire medical reason

Yes, Bluebelle. The woman fell . Somebody falling is not an occasion for hilarity.

It sounds as if you were carrying too much, Handbag.
And there will be other reasons for that fall.
As others have said, ask your doctor to refer you to a falls clinic (unless they're too busy with virus problems.)
I've had several falls in the last 10 years and now have worked out it's mainly because my R leg is shorter than my L leg - R hip replacement. So I always try to walk on the pavement with a left slope.
Also due to medications affecting balance as others have said.
I asked my doctor to refer me for bone density test - if the results are poor they can prescribe meds to help. then you're less likely to break a bone if you fall.
I also keep eyes down when possible to avoid tripping.
There are a few other threads on this topic.

I'm on very large dose of pain killers for my knees, I can't walk outside so use a wheelchair. I can however hobble about in doors but never come close to falling no matter how much pain I'm in.

Thank you all for your responses! I am very sorry to hear of all your horrible falls and I do hope they didn’t hurt too much.

Dear @Alexa,
It was a combination of the ground being wet and me slipping and a jolt of pain through my legs as I often get. There was no horrific diagnosis, just pain in my legs.

<Baggs searches for the "hilarity" that is objected to in one quarter; finds none>

??‍♀️

Fennel please be very careful if you have had hip replacements because after each fall you may have slightly loosened the cement or whatever is holding your new joints in place. You do not want a revision of your hip replacement any time soon.

Thanks Flying Handle. My latest fall has taken a long time to recover from. It was caused by too high a dosage of antihypertensives and consequent sudden low blood pressure on rising from my bed.

I hate to think of anybody suffering chronic pain. I do hope you progress to pain free.

Sorry Flying Handbag

I’ve been prone to randomly falling over for many years. Probably ince I first stood up on two legs.I

Latterly it may have been down to arthritic knees affecting my gait - and ditto the replacement ones as I learned to walk properly again. But it’s been for so long now. Generally averaging three or four times a year. No reason. One minute I’m up and walking normally the next second I’m down.

If I’m walking on rough ground I now take a hike stick. It has helped.

Alexa, sorry to hear about your fall but please don't begrudge anyone their black humour. I can see the comedy in most things including when I fell flat on my face outside Next some months ago. Kind people came rushing, hefting me to my feet when all I wanted to do was to get my b----y breath back thank you very much. Even my GP could see the funny side of it.

Alexa where was the hilarity ?

I slipped on some wet leaves while walking the dog at the beginning of October. Ended up with a ruptured tendon in kneecap which resulted in an operation and physio.
I'm 68 but surgeon said it will never be back to how it was due to my age, so now i need a stick, probably for good.
Take care ladies, you don't realise how much damage you can do as you get older