How old is elderly?

I will never forget the resident we met when looking at prospective care homes for mum. She was 87 and could still get her foot above her head like a ballerina and apparently speed walked around the quad 100 times every morning. I wish !!

"Elderly is a few years older than you are now"

I can follow that reasoning Blackeyedsusan that might just be my new mantra!

my great grandmother was climbing trees in the orchard at over 80. my mum has been banned from clinmbing trees though.. but only in the last couple of years when she has looked elderly. she is now 84

elderly is a good few years older than you are now.

I knew someone ver a hundred who did not consider themselves elderly and were pretty spritely looking after the old people who were probably twenty years younger

This discussion reminds me of a petite friend who years ago was delighted to become pregnant for the first time at age 40 (this was before women started leaving it later to have children). She came back from her first hospital appointment most miffed saying she'd basically just been told she was an elderly pregnant dwarf!

I think 80 and over is 'a good age', but that is not the same thing as elderly. To me elderly is linked with being frail. It sounds morbid, but if someone dies when they are 80 or over, I think they did well to live that long.

You can kid yourself as much as you like, but once you hit your late 60s, you are old. You can still be young at heart until the day you die though.

I'm not, but my knees could be .....

You're not 79 are you, rose?

It's only my knees that are elderly.

my youngest granddaughter solemnly informed me she wouldn't be inviting me to her wedding because she is sure i'll be dead by then!
lol grannyqueenie

Someone I know climbed the mast of the SS Great Britain at age 80

Oops, sorry, she was only 79 and got annoyed when everyone said wasn't she marvellous at 80!

ps it wasn't me, I have no head for heights.

Nooooo! I might be "older", I've just turned 65, but I'm not ready to be old or elderly any time soon and definitely not ready to be classed as one of "the elderly", that expresssion really is my pet hate.
As others have said it's as much about attitude as anything. Obviously health issues impact on what any of us can do day to day but those with a positive outlook seem to cope with these issues too and still keep going!
Having said all that, recently my youngest granddaughter solemnly informed me she wouldn't be inviting me to her wedding because she is sure i'll be dead by then! She's only 6 so hopefully I've got time on my side !

I'm on mumsnet too - loads of older women ( 45+ ) over there. I'm sure their answers will be similar to the ones on here.

Any of you dare to pop over to Mumsnet to ask the same question? I bet the answers would be very different from ours!

So much of 'age' is in the eye of the beholder.
On Saturday, one of the guests at DS2's wedding, who I'd never met before, came over to say goodbye and thank you to me for a lovely evening, and told me that I reminded her of her grandma. I'm only 54 ffs, but I can only conclude that to her (probably in her late twenties), I am 'old'!

Btw, in case you are wondering how I responded to her would-be compliment, I just smiled sweetly, put on my best 'old lady' voice and said, 'Oh, how sweet!' The family laughed their heads off when I told them about it later

You only have to look at the thread with photos to see that 70 is not elderly.

70 plus.

older sounds so much better to me than old. Daft I know but hey

'Scuse my French.

It feels bloody relevant to me at the moment.

'Old' is a fact of life, not an opinion. I we assume a life span of 90,and it is certainly coming, you are young until you are 30, middle aged until 60 and old thereafter.

What you think or feel you are is irrelevant.

I've always thought of elderly being not as old as 'old', roses. But I actually don't want to think of myself as either...oh dear!

I have, so far, talked myself into silent reflux, and very easily injured ribs. not to mention grey hair and wrinkles.

Shame on me.

Do we call ourselves old?We are not middleaged really are we? so old in our sixties and elderly from 75? It's just a word.

My Dad just celebrated his 93rd birthday. He drives, shops, cooks, cleans etc. He would be most affronted to be called elderly!
I completely agree with MOnica .... Elderly is a state of mind. We have friends in their early 70's and they are talking themselves into old age. My Dad could run rings round them! I hope I take after him!

My father lived to 92, he was certainly old, but he was never elderly.

I am in my 70s and consider myself to be old, but I certainly do not consider myself elderly.

No M0nica. It's not. It happens. Whatever your state of mind.