Being old can be the pits

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It is not just the elderly that fall, but it can be especially bad for them. Not only do they fall, but they get various infections as well. One reason I know is because of things that have happened to family members. Another reason I know some of this is that I worked in nursing homes for a while. My aunt, years ago, fell, broke her hip. She had it repaired. . . but someone was not careful in the hospital helping her in and out of bed, and it rebroke. A blood clot formed and went to her brain and she died. Random clots after a bone break happen to the elderly often. Last November my step mom fell. She broke her femur. They did a good job with surgery and rehab. She is weak and frail, but she survived. My dad fell while his wife was in the hospital. They discovered that he had pneumonia and one of his lungs had sepsis. They did not think he would survive, but he did. Maybe it was lucky for him that he fell. They learned he was confusing his meds, and taking some he did not even need. I think he probably got pneumonia because without his wife at home he only sat and did not move around. He was taking pain pills and sleeping pills and mixing them, so he moved much less than his body needed. That is also a problem for the elderly and disabled both at home and at care centers. It is important that they get up and move, but avoid falling. Where I worked, the first thing they did if residents had mood changes and started falling was to look for infections, like urinary tract infections. Those are common because some people lose their sense of thirst and forget or refuse to drink. They may get dizzy and fall or become weak. They may become angry, combative, and confused. Being old can be the pits. It can also be a joy. It depends on how you are treated and how you relate to others in your life.