Clumsiness, dropping things, breaking things, forgetting where I put things

Synergy

Synergy

New Member
I called the Alzheimer's Assn. to ask if A.D. had physical symtoms. I explained that I was dropping things, putting things in the wrong places (particularly the wrong pouch in my backpack and being unable to find them...like the keys getting lost in the backpack), knocking things over in the kitchen, etc.

Apparently, from what he said, physical symptoms are (probably?) not part of A.D. He suggested I see a physician, but added it might mean getting more sleep. The sleep thing wowed me...for about a year now, I have needed a lot less sleep than every before in my life. (I'll be 74 in a couple of weeks.) Yes, yes, I know the advice to "go to bed at the same time every night." Not possible for me!

Sometimes I go out at night. Sometimes I can sleep in. Sometimes I get up at 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 a.m. for 2-days a week exercise classes I go to. On the nights before my "sleep in" days, I stay up till 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. I take it seriously, now, that I need more sleep. I'm trying that to see if it alleviate some of these physical difficulties. :confused:
 

Oh Darlin' I'll be 54 this year and already I know what you're feeling. Probably lack of sleep, too much on my plate, and vodka. But yeah I understand. My Dad was always like that though. The absent minded professor...you knew he'd be back home, his briefcase, his umbrella, maybe his wallet. Took him awhile out the door. But now in his early 90's still living independently, gofigya.
 
I think a good nights sleep is very important as we get older. I usually take a nip of vodka about 9:30PM....that's about the only booze I take...and by about 11PM, my eyes are starting to close. I hit the sack, and the next thing I know its about 7AM. If I don't get that good 7 or 8 hours of sleep, I can sure tell the difference the next day, and usually wind up taking an afternoon nap.

I have a couple of old friends who say they seldom get a good nights sleep, and they are up at all hours turning on the TV, etc. They are having increasing numbers of issues....sleep IS a very important part of staying healthy.
 

Thank you both, fureverywhere, and Don M. I just indulged again...here it is 10:30 p.m. I wanted to finish the Donna Leon mystery/thriller "Falling in Love." So I finished it. Did I say that last night I went to bed at 6:30 p.m.? Slept this morning till 7:00 a.m. I am very grateful that I do not have the non-sleeping problem a lot of elders do. My dad had that problem. Mother didn't, she told me, and that Daddy always wondered how she managed to sleep so soundly.

Fur: you wrote: "My Dad was always like that though. The absent minded professor.." and also that he'd always forget something at home and have to come back to get it. I think my cats may be tired of me doing just that! I, too, have always been absent minded. Not a professor....just a very creative and intuitive person who is forever cooking up new ideas.

Nowadays, I'm figuring out how to write a poem or a piece to read to my writers group and get feedback to help it be better writing. Or I'm working out a tune in my head or rhythm or something, since I am a musician. When my dad was teaching me to drive when I was 16, he would constantly be telling me "Keep your mind on your driving! Keep your mind on your driving!" I never wanted to learn to drive in the first place, but he made me learn. Later, rather than sooner, I drove on my own.

In my older years, I had a lifetime-renewable driving insurance policy. The company was very upset when I quit driving, as I had had only 2 claims in about 50 years....one for a stolen tire from the back of my pickup truck and one for minor denting another car in a parking lot. But speaking of "keeping my mind on my driving," when I nearly hit a pedestrian, I quit and sold my car. I was 56. AARP used to have a "55 and Alive" driving course. Nowadays they have changed the name to something like "Safe Driving." But 55 years old is STILL 55 years old, no matter how "young we look"! I now take public transit and an occasional taxicab. I forgot I'd just seen a the pedestrian step off the curb into my lane -- I looked around and forgot all about the person, and slowly accelerated! Fortunately I don't have a heavy foot on the gas! So I didn't even come close to the pedestrian. But I decided then and there that my driving days were over.

PS Getting enough sleep last night seems to have helped. My hands behaved themselves today and I didn't drop anything, etc. I always focus my attention and watch my hands when I am going to do something with an object....but then I forget I'm watching and my hand darts out fast and makes the sort of mistake I wrote about in my first email on this thread.
 
You should talk to your doctor about your symptoms. Sure, a good night's sleep is ...well, good. But your doctor could rule out neurological or musculo-skeletal problems, or some other medical issue. I also have motor-skill and memory problems due to spinal stenosis and scoliosis. I saw her for severe back pain and weakness in one leg and both hands, but had no idea these problems were there until my doc ordered an MRI series.
 
Synergy, I am getting that way more and more. I'm 78 and I'm getting to the point where I get mad at myself for forgetting and doing stupid things I never did before. Everyone says it's just old age, but this doesn't help at all. If it gets any worse, I will talk to someone that might help me.
 
I'm 83. I can't remember the last time I did the 8 hour thing. I gave up trying to force it. Now I just do what my body tells me to.
I nap around the clock. Fifteen minutes here, an hour there. I rarely do more than three hours, Get my longest stretch in between 4 and 6:30AM. Its working for me. My bowels are a main reason for not falling asleep. Very slow and intermittent.
As far as the dropping things and forgetfulness, that was pretty bad for me about a year ago, but seems to have gotten much better I've learned to really focus on every activity. I think about activities that used to be second nature.
Well that's enough of that. Time for a nap! :eek:fftobed:
 
Thank you all, FazeFour, Pappy, and Underlock1. I will take into consideration all of your comments. FazeFour, I keep hoping this will get better. I'm training myself to focus more, as Underlock1 is doing. I'm hoping I can train myself. All my life -- reportedly since I was an infant crawling! -- I have been a very fast mover. I hate being slow, slow, slow, now that I am older. I walk like an "old woman" one....step.....at.....a.... time.... -- even though I have no problem walking and even do regular dance exercise.
 
Hi Butterfly! Thank you for your beautiful butterfly icon, too. Here's one thing I do to prevent these losing things problems -- since I have lost my favorite caps too many times to count, plus misplacing my keys, and groping around in my backpack for my wallet. I have put cords on all of them, anchor them with a clip to my backpack. Then when I leave the house, I can fish each one out when I need it. I also put notes on things, log them into a to-do and a "pack this" list every day. And I set important things to take with me right by the front door. I could not function w/o doing all that. Oh -- I set out my clothing for the next day, also if I'm going to take a sandwich the next day, I lay out the waxed paper on the counter, and put the peanut butter in a prominent place next to it, and take the loaf of bread out of the freezer. If I didn't do that, I would have to eat out and I can't afford that very often, plus there are no convenient, decent lunch places near where I go every Thursday.
 
i guess i have a pretty good memory ---i can remember all the kids phone numbers and their cell phone numbers all my pass words on my cp will soon be 84
 
I have a sign above my kitchen cupboards. "Everything must fall".

That way I don't get too upset if something falls and breaks. I don't have a "glass' glass left. Broke them all. Now I use plastic.

Losing stuff? Magicians must have an easy job. I can make stuff disappear without even trying.

It's not a sign of A.D. if you can do mental things like crossword puzzles.

The test we get in our province now for a drivers license over 80 years of age is a written test in addition to an eye test.

Two pages. On one you draw a clock and put the hands at 10 after 11. On the other one you cross out the 'h' in a whole series of lines with jumbled letters.

It's called cognitive recognition.
 
When I asked my doctor about that he said, "When you forget where you put your keys, it's OK. When you forget you have a car, then you can start worrying."

I actually thought about that when I was wandering around the Walmart parking lot today trying to remember where I parked the car. I remembered I had a car....I even remembered what kind of car it was.....but where the heck did I leave it?????
 
My issue is being able to hang onto a thought long enough to act on it, LOL!!!

I sign on to the computer to look up a recipe, check a local news article, etc... and immediately become distracted until after I've signed off or I head for the kitchen to take my pills and come back with a cup of coffee, forgetting all about the pills, etc...

I find myself jotting many random thoughts on the back of an old envelope and use that list to help keep me focused, every few days I toss the old envelope and start a new one.

I believe that in the not to distant future we will have something similar to Google Glass that will help senior citizens stay on track. A pair of high tech granny glasses that can help us retrace our steps, jog our memory to help us perform routine tasks, alert a family member or caregiver that we've forgotten to take pills, eat, bathe, etc...
 
Aunt Bea said:
....
I believe that in the not to distant future we will have something similar to Google Glass that will help senior citizens stay on track. A pair of high tech granny glasses that can help us retrace our steps, jog our memory to help us perform routine tasks, alert a family member or caregiver that we've forgotten to take pills, eat, bathe, etc...
Click to expand...

That is a great idea, Bea!
 
jujube:"When you forget where you put your keys, it's OK. When you forget you have a car, then you can start worrying."
still laughing at that one.....
I actually thought about that when I was wandering around the Walmart parking lot today trying to remember where I parked the car. I remembered I had a car....I even remembered what kind of car it was.....but where the heck did I leave it????

I actually did this once when I was much younger. I was in a large shopping mall and returning to my car only to find it was not where I thought it was. Manly because I had gone in one entrance and came out a different one.
 
Not worried about dropping things or losing anything. I keep a drink glass on the counter next to the faucet. I also use it for my soda drinks. So after drinking the soda and putting the glass back why is the soda bottle sitting there instead of back in the fridge?
 
Well, I'm ADD, so I already had a headstart on what old age would bring. Now I still have all the ADD stuff and the old age stuff is just added on top of that. It kind of sucks! I found my birdseed container (that I used this morning) still sitting on the shed steps...by then it was starting to get dark and a little raccoon had just found the birdseed. Darn! I had set it down this morning when my kitty started meowing at me...then didn't remember to put the bucket away after petting the kitty. I use a plastic cup with a lid and straw to drink from, but constantly leave it sitting somewhere it shouldn't be.
 
I'm 84 in just a couple of months and have lived alone and independently for 20+ years. I began experiencing a marked increase in all of the above just last fall. Doctor just said, "Well, it's time. Deal with it." I made a few lifestyle changes, i.e. moved to be close to - but not with - daughter and hung up my car keys. Hardest adjustment was not driving ... not that I wanted to go that much, it was just knowing that hopping in the car and going on the spur of the moment was no longer an option. My theory is that if I'm lucky enough to live this long, I should accept the changes that must be made. Accept, I can/will do but doing it gracefully is difficult!

For me - lots of notes, lists and visual reminders and having a regular place for things and returning them there. Having to return to a room several times because I keep forgetting why I went there ............. it's just more exercise that I need anyway. Like the doc said, I'm dealing with it. Small price to pay for a longer, still enjoyable life.
 
While I'm only 65 I've noticed a bit more clumsiness. Mostly I'd attribute that to weakening eyesight, causing hand eye coordination problems. Poor hearing also leads to feedback issues. Arthritis causing slight gipping problems is also a factor. As for absent mindedness, I tell myself to just be extremely disciplined. Everything has its place and deviation is where I get into trouble. Do it the same way everytime, park in the same place as much as possible. Don't deviate.
 
jujube said:
When I asked my doctor about that he said, "When you forget where you put your keys, it's OK. When you forget you have a car, then you can start worrying."

I actually thought about that when I was wandering around the Walmart parking lot today trying to remember where I parked the car. I remembered I had a car....I even remembered what kind of car it was.....but where the heck did I leave it?????
Click to expand...

Lots of people have that problem. Once I spent about an hour looking for my car. I knew where I had parked it. Nowhere in sight. Then I remembered. I wasn't driving my car, I was driving my wife's car. :cool:
 
Just dropped my favourite bottle opener on the floor as I went to take
the cap off a bottle of beer. I have had it for years, bought it in Scotland
many years ago. Yes, I am more clumsy than I was.
 

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