Being 74 (We got old)

I write this just after a re-viewing, after many years, of the Monterey Pop film. Also after 12 months which saw so many musicians and other celebrities in their 70s (Donna Jean and Bob Weir - both 78 even) die and also the illness of a uni friend which left him suddenly house-bound and unable to get to a shop. Seeing all those young faces from 1967 - fans and performers - and realising that most are now either deceased or in their 70s and 80s brings it home that I'm getting nearer the time when it'll be my turn to check out.

But the purpose of this is to document my decline into decrepitude. Good news: I still have good mobility and am playing tennis most weeks. Bad news: my tennis is going steadily downhill thanks to an admittedly fairly mild diplopia (double vision) which makes it hard to follow the ball and often results in me completely missing when I swing for even simple shots. My glasses have prisms, which compensate well enough most of the time, but not for a fast-moving ball. I'm tolerated by the group I play with, probably because they are mostly women and are all kind, but it is very frustrating after some years of improving and achieving a reasonable serve and even a passable top-spin forehand.

Another issue, with worse consequences long-term, is my macular degeneration, from which my dad also suffered. The risk was picked up by my optician some 20 years ago but, in spite of 18 years of daily Macushield consumption and increased dietary spinach, red pepper, and broccoli, I now have small areas of blankness in each eye.  Then there are the (unrelated) occasional episodes (lasting no more than 10 minutes and without headache or other symptoms) of visual migraine. 

My hip replacement is now nearly 8 years old and serving me very well. The promised "7 year follow-up" never happened, but last summer, completely out of the blue, I got severe pain in that hip which kept me awake. It only happened once but I was concerned about infection so saw a GP (no mean feat as the new online appointment application process is horrendous and I was timed out the first attempt). The upshot was an X-ray appointment which confirmed that the replacement was all good - but showed "mild to moderate" osteoarthritis in the other hip! News to me! (But since I got that information I have noticed some discomfort there a few nights!)

My teeth have been a considerable strain on finances over recent years: three (or is it four) root canal procedures, an extraction, two replacement crowns and new fillings to replace the old amalgam ones. As well as frequent, seemingly invasive, hygiene work.

I have a constant ringing in my ears, which is probably mild tinnitus but which doesn't bother me. I take ear plugs to gigs in case it gets too loud.

My last blood donation was a bit problematic. An alarm sounded because the flow was so poor, something new as it's been pretty quick in recent years. I'm wondering how long I want to continue donating. 

I've been a subject on the University of Exeter's PROTECT study for around 10 years. This 25-year study is looking at factors effecting the development of dementia. Each year I get a series of online questionnaires and tasks to complete. Some of the latter get increasingly hard until you fail, not a pleasant experience. I have no idea if my scores are getting worse or not, year on year.

There's an occasional twinge in one knee which dates back to 2+ years ago when it suddenly let me down after 3 days of moderate walking. I did the recommended exercises daily for the first year after seeing the GP but sporadically since.

So there you have it: the decline continues. But, since my maternal grandfather lived no more than a couple of years after retiring and his brother-in-law even less than that, I feel very lucky so far.