jeanie99, I'm sorry to hear about your diagnosis, it must have been a shock to you.
I have had it since my thirties, a combination of hereditary factors, long term steroid use and rheumatoid arthritis. I had the hip of a ninety year old woman in my thirties! I was initially in tears and pictured myself in a whheelchair for the rest of my life!!
The females in the maternal side of my family all suffer from it.
I fractured my spine in two places in my forties and walked about for six months, before it was diagnosed, despite my history. (I have a very high pain tolerance). Also I have had so many stress fractures in my foot, that the bones are crumbling away, which makes walking very painful.
I was so fortunate to a have an experimental vertoblasty procedure, where cement was injected into my spine to hold it together. It has lasted twenty years and allowed me to continue working, otherwise I would have been in a wheelchair.
I have yearly Dexa scan and now have an annual infusion, as I cannot tolerate alendronic acid pills any more. However, as I have literally no vitamin D, I also have to take huge doses of vitamin D prior to the infusion. This is despite a healthy diet and taking prescription strength Vitamin D.
However, recently I have had heart problems, which are being investigated and may be linked to excessive calcium in my arteries.
It does affect my life (and sleep) , walking is difficult, but I try not to let the condition rule it. Obviously there are days when I'm in considerable pain, so I make the best of the days when I'm not. I managed to work for thirty years after being diagnosed, despite numerous fractures and constant pain. I tried not to dwell on what the future might hold for me.
I'm so fortunate in the care I have received over the years but, understand others have not been so fortunate.
jeanie99, I think it's great that you have lived to 74, without any problems, so perhaps your healthy lifestyle has played a part in you being diagnosed late in life.
Try not to worry, treatments are improving all the time. When I first started taking Alendronic acid, I had to fast for twelve hours before taking it. Many a time I got up early on a Sunday morning, made a cuppa when I was half asleep and then remembered I should have been fasting!! It was a real bind remembering and it gave me terrible stomach problems.
I'm sure that now you have a diagnosis, the doctors will be doing everything to support you. I wish you well.