Mobility

Ken Anderson

Ken Anderson

Greeter
Staff member
Mobility issues can be considered a health or medical problem, and for some of us, they may be more of a medical issue than an age-related challenge. It's a bit of both, I suppose. I think many of us consider that a certain level of mobility decline is simply a part of aging.

I can walk pretty well, and often walk 10-15 miles at a time, and routinely walk that many miles during the course of a day. However, I have fallen a few times without any discernible reason. In the old forum, I know that I've posted about the first time that happened. My wife had dropped me off about ten miles from home, and I was going to walk along a defined hiking trail and then walk home. Rather than walking home along the road, I decided that it would be far more interesting to walk home through the woods, using a combination of trails and logging roads that led generally in that direction. I knew that I'd be able to find my way home. I did have my hiking pole with me.

Along the way, I came across a logging road that was heading toward Route 11, and I had calculated (guessed) that I had walked far enough that this would put me out near Millinocket. I was walking along that road, which was among the smoothest trails I had been on that day, after having walked through trails with roots, rocks, and wet areas. Without warning, I fell to the ground, cutting the side of my face and hurting my right hand. I thought I had broken it because it immediately began to swell badly.

I had a signal, but I wouldn't have been able to tell anyone where to find me because I was guessing where I was, so I just kept walking. Sure enough, I came out on Route 11 about a quarter mile from the hospital in Millinocket, so I checked myself in and found that nothing was broken.

However, I didn't trip, feel dizzy, pass out, or have any idea why I had fallen.

I started paying more attention to my walking and noticed that when I stepped with my left foot, it rotated outward rather than straight, unlike my right foot. I mentioned that to my doctor, but she wasn't impressed and seemed to think I was being a hypochondriac, so I didn't bring it up again. I have noted that when I force myself to step more straightforwardly with my left foot, it feels unnatural and is something I cannot maintain without constant vigilance. Even on the elliptical machine, my left foot rotates outwardly. Maybe I have always walked that way, as I had never had a reason to pay attention to that before.

Since then, I have similarly fallen two more times, but without significant damage.

Then, there is the problem of winter. The central part of my house has a steep incline, but we have a metal roof there, so no one has a reason to climb up. However, the back part of the house (which used to be an exterior porch, since roofed over and enclosed) has shingles. Shortly after moving in here, we found that this part of the house was badly in need of a roof, so we had new shingles put on. When we had a metal roof installed years later, we didn't have that part of the house done because we had re-roofed it not long before. I wish we had because all the snow that comes off the back part of the main roof ends up on that shingled roof, where it remains. This will lead to ice damming and leaks if left there.

That part of the house has only a slight incline. I used to get up there after every major snowstorm and shovel the roof, and that wasn't much of a problem. However, for the past three winters, I have been afraid to walk out onto the roof. I keep telling myself that it's not reasonable to assume that I am going to fall, since I have been onto that roof many times before without incident. Nevertheless, as soon as I start to step off the ladder onto the roof, I panic.

I have never had a fear of heights, and the back part of our house isn't even that high, although it would hurt to fall, particularly if I landed on something other than snow. Still, I can't bring myself to step out onto the roof.

I hate hiring someone to do it because they charge us a bunch of money for something that I know, having done it many times, should take no more than about fifteen minutes if it's not really heavy or packed snow. Plus, they always dump it down onto the driveway, the back entryway, and paths, so I have to go behind them with a shovel. Nor can I talk my wife into getting up on the roof.

I have a roof rake, but unless the snow is unusually light and fluffy, I can't get enough purchase from the ground to pull enough snow down. I can get some of it from the ladder, but the ladder is too heavy for me to move around, given my hernias. I'm considering getting a second ladder, leaving both ladders in place permanently. That probably still wouldn't allow me to move all of the snow from the roof, but it would allow me to get to most of it.
 
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How strange about your falls, Ken. It still annoys me when the doctor's assistant asks me if I have fallen in the past 30 days but I guess it's pretty common at our age. So far I have remained upright.

I have discouraged my husband from any ladder-related tasks. Now he stands on the ground and annoys whoever we paid to do the climbing job.

Would a leaf blower work to remove snow from that section of roof? They make those extension things so they can reach to clean out gutters.
 
Beth Gallagher said:
How strange about your falls, Ken. It still annoys me when the doctor's assistant asks me if I have fallen in the past 30 days but I guess it's pretty common at our age. So far I have remained upright.

I have discouraged my husband from any ladder-related tasks. Now he stands on the ground and annoys whoever we paid to do the climbing job.

Would a leaf blower work to remove snow from that section of roof? They make those extension things so they can reach to clean out gutters.
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1. I hate those questions too. They always assume that a fall is due to senior infirmities. I walk through the woods sometimes, over roots, logs, rocks, and uneven ground. Falls happen. Of course, the ones I was talking about in the OP are something else.

2. I'm okay on ladders and was able to clear about a third of the roof from the ladder. Getting off the ladder onto a slanted roof is where I have turned into a wuss recently.

3. I don't think so. That would work only for newly fallen, light snow, and I can get that with a roof rake. Generally, where I have a problem is after it has been snowing all night, and the snow is wet , heavy, or packed.
 
Ken Anderson said:
Mobility issues can be considered a health or medical problem, and for some of us, they may be more of a medical issue than an age-related challenge. It's a bit of both, I suppose. I think many of us consider that a certain level of mobility decline is simply a part of aging.

I can walk pretty well, and often walk 10-15 miles at a time, and routinely walk that many miles during the course of a day. However, I have fallen a few times without any discernible reason. In the old forum, I know that I've posted about the first time that happened. My wife had dropped me off about ten miles from home, and I was going to walk along a defined hiking trail and then walk home. Rather than walking home along the road, I decided that it would be far more interesting to walk home through the woods, using a combination of trails and logging roads that led generally in that direction. I knew that I'd be able to find my way home. I did have my hiking pole with me.

Along the way, I came across a logging road that was heading toward Route 11, and I had calculated (guessed) that I had walked far enough that this would put me out near Millinocket. I was walking along that road, which was among the smoothest trails I had been on that day, after having walked through trails with roots, rocks, and wet areas. Without warning, I fell to the ground, cutting the side of my face and hurting my right hand. I thought I had broken it because it immediately began to swell badly.

I had a signal, but I wouldn't have been able to tell anyone where to find me because I was guessing where I was, so I just kept walking. Sure enough, I came out on Route 11 about a quarter mile from the hospital in Millinocket, so I checked myself in and found that nothing was broken.

However, I didn't trip, feel dizzy, pass out, or have any idea why I had fallen.

I started paying more attention to my walking and noticed that when I stepped with my left foot, it rotated outward rather than straight, unlike my right foot. I mentioned that to my doctor, but she wasn't impressed and seemed to think I was being a hypochondriac, so I didn't bring it up again. I have noted that when I force myself to step more straightforwardly with my left foot, it feels unnatural and is something I cannot maintain without constant vigilance. Even on the elliptical machine, my left foot rotates outwardly. Maybe I have always walked that way, as I had never had a reason to pay attention to that before.

Since then, I have similarly fallen two more times, but without significant damage.

Then, there is the problem of winter. The central part of my house has a steep incline, but we have a metal roof there, so no one has a reason to climb up. However, the back part of the house (which used to be an exterior porch, since roofed over and enclosed) has shingles. Shortly after moving in here, we found that this part of the house was badly in need of a roof, so we had new shingles put on. When we had a metal roof installed years later, we didn't have that part of the house done because we had re-roofed it not long before. I wish we had because all the snow that comes off the back part of the main roof ends up on that shingled roof, where it remains. This will lead to ice damming and leaks if left there.

That part of the house has only a slight incline. I used to get up there after every major snowstorm and shovel the roof, and that wasn't much of a problem. However, for the past three winters, I have been afraid to walk out onto the roof. I keep telling myself that it's not reasonable to assume that I am going to fall, since I have been onto that roof many times before without incident. Nevertheless, as soon as I start to step off the ladder onto the roof, I panic.

I have never had a fear of heights, and the back part of our house isn't even that high, although it would hurt to fall, particularly if I landed on something other than snow. Still, I can't bring myself to step out onto the roof.

I hate hiring someone to do it because they charge us a bunch of money for something that I know, having done it many times, should take no more than about fifteen minutes if it's not really heavy or packed snow. Plus, they always dump it down onto the driveway, the back entryway, and paths, so I have to go behind them with a shovel. Nor can I talk my wife into getting up on the roof.

I have a roof rake, but unless the snow is unusually light and fluffy, I can't get enough purchase from the ground to pull enough snow down. I can get some of it from the ladder, but the ladder is too heavy for me to move around, given my hernias. I'm considering getting a second ladder, leaving both ladders in place permanently. That probably still wouldn't allow me to move all of the snow from the roof, but it would allow me to get to most of it.
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I keep telling Jake he needs to be more careful doing everything himself here, he takes too many chances, they don't call it an ' accident' for nothing, not as if someone plans to go hurt themselves.
 
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Ken, I know a man who fell, and his doctor said he had something called drop toe. He referred him to some kind of therapy where they taught him how to walk. He said he had been walking all his life. ☺️ But they showed him how to put his heel down first then move forward to his toes. It worked.
 
I was once a big walker, and have hiked many miles over the years, as well as backpacking. I have also had several ladder falls, mostly from carelessness rather than instability. My big fall in 2014 changed my life forever and nearly ended it due to medical mishandling. I walk around our property in good weather, but use a stick if I go for distances longer than a few hundred yards as the terrain is uneven. I try to use grocery carts as stabilizers when walking in stores, but don't really need them. I need a reminder to stand and walk straight now, as my back muscles are still weak (and were cut during surgery) and will cramp if I am not careful. I aged a decade after that fall.
 
Don Alaska said:
I was once a big walker, and have hiked many miles over the years, as well as backpacking. I have also had several ladder falls, mostly from carelessness rather than instability. My big fall in 2014 changed my life forever and nearly ended it due to medical mishandling. I walk around our property in good weather, but use a stick if I go for distances longer than a few hundred yards as the terrain is uneven. I try to use grocery carts as stabilizers when walking in stores, but don't really need them. I need a reminder to stand and walk straight now, as my back muscles are still weak (and were cut during surgery) and will cramp if I am not careful. I aged a decade after that fall.
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Don I use shopping carts to steady my walk, since I don't have my walking stick, it may be I need them or I just got used to something to hold onto, I think it is both.
 
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