This is a thread for ILXORS IN THEIR 50's

Now I frequently break down in tears.

If it's anything like the same as me, that sounds like deep grief breaking through that you've never had a chance to acknowledge or express because feeling the grief feels like it will break you and you're too necessary to allow that.

Been there. It is fucking hard!!! <i raised you a couple of bangs!

cheers Aimless. We haven't always been on agreeable terms on here, but thanks for raising the couple o bangs!

I think I mentioned this upthread, but I get semi-weepy over really maudlin, sentimental things these days, feel like it's a byproduct of reaching the warm September of my years

HAHAHA LOL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh8iXc2d71U

(always wrings a tear or two out of me this one)

and the clinicians keep using the term "at your age".

I don't even want to go to the doctor anymore. I could go in there with my kneecap slid down to my ankle, and they'd probably just go, "Well, you are in your 50s now..."

I go in with that mindset of 'Hey, I am the age I am' and it makes such visits relaxing, really.

I am super bummed because I just got a note that my doctor is retiring. I've been going to her for nearly 30 years (except for the period I moved away, but signed back up with her when I got back). She's probably 8-10 years older than me so I guess not a surprise but now I gotta start all over with somebody.

I keep wondering about that re my dentist. Had him only for about ten years, but that was on the recommendation of my sis, who has been seeing him since 2000!

I was super bummed when our awesome old dentist retired, have still not found a new one but I need to for my end-of-year cleaning

Sick of having to remember the name of all the damn pills I have to take now.

My husband doesn't even try.

Something my mom did for my dad was she got one of each pill he needed and glued them all to a big piece of posterboard and created a legend for them all, with their names, what they were for, and when he should take them

That would be wall sized for my wife. But a great idea!

Hi Tracer!

I've tried making lists, but he doesn't look at them. I just give him the pills morning and night, and sit with him during doctor's visits.

The Health app on my iphone is actually pretty good for this, you can put icons for the pill type, reminders and wether its daily or weekly etc (I take 3 meds daily + ozempic weekly + pain relief on demand). Despite all that I keep forgetting the names of things. Why they all gotta be called Bloxypoopalaminase or whatever.

Ok I am officially here now. Entry level. I promise to respect seniority.

I had a receipt from my local market that had a Senior Discount on it. Savage way to save money.

I joined AARP as soon as I could, Sarah they’re great on urban planning issues

And congrats

I think they are slow on sending me the paperwork… thank you Boring!

I just left my fifties in the summer. If I can offer some unsought for advice - pace yourself and relax. In my case I had a major panic that I was rapidly running out of earning years, and worked like a demon in my fifties. But I suspect this did a lot of harm to my psychological health, relationships/friendships, and basic enjoyment of life.

Ok the AARP envelope came in the mail yesterday…it’s official!

Welcome to the Midcentury!

I'm in people. Turned 50 last Wednesday. I've been off the grog since Christmas so did it sober and happily so. I got my bowel cancer screening letter the very next day. I look forward to sending some of my shit in the post.

I struggle with thresholds, so I'm mostly glad I'm through, as it were. I'm not going to pretend I'm 100% happy with the milestone but my loins are girded and, frankly, bring it on.

As someone about to hit 54 in a month, it's its own thing.

happy birthday
time for your shingles vaccine

just posted some shit today as it happens

so six months into my fifties - a month ago I was on holidays and feeling very fit and reasonably sprightly - but now work is back I am struggling to get enough exercise and stay away from the bad foods, a tale as old as time (or at least as old as my thirties)

toying with the notion of trying anti-anxiety meds for the first time - my work can be pretty stressful and I regularly go through crippling agonies of self-doubt - maybe I am at the point when I have to accept that I'm not going to bootstrap myself out of this one? & that my quality of life (and my family's) would be better if I could switch this stuff off a bit.

Today's the day. This is where I live now.

Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome!

Happy birthday. Park your frame at the door on your way in.

I got my 'test yerself at home' bowel cancer kit today. Good to be alive.

xxp Happy Birthday

I am struggling to get enough exercise and stay away from the bad foods

I'm finding this particularly difficult in this bitterly cold (for South East England) late winter.

I'm finding this particularly difficult in the bitterly cold Minnesota winters! Not to mention the bitterly(?) hot summers.

I ache. I wake up too many times in the night and if I see biscuits, I eat them.

my doctor gave me a big bottle of gabapentin for some reason, he didn't really explain what it's for... but my lord that's a powerful sleep aid; you don't really dream, you don't get up to pee, you just sleep super hard...

xp I've literally just been stuffing my face with biscuits.

my doctor gave me a big bottle of gabapentin for some reason, he didn't really explain what it's for... but my lord that's a powerful sleep aid; you don't really dream, you don't get up to pee, you just sleep _super hard..._

yeah, 600mg! a horse pill... maybe I can split it in half, I've only taken them a couple times tbh

but what if you do have to pee.

we're in our 50s! It's just a dribble anyway

the results of my shitposting were clear, will be happy to have a two year break from mailing faeces

My college kid got a summer job at the place that runs the poop-by-mail scheme. Wisconsin!

My brother turned 50 today. I texted him:

Happy birthday. 50 is the beginning of your DGAF era. You may think you were a DGAF person before, but you have no idea. From now on, anybody under 35 is gonna sound like Charlie Brown's teacher to you. I've never felt more free than the last 3 years.

I really felt in my 50s last night when I was trying to remember the name Janeane Garofalo but kept coming up with Johnette Napolitano

I really felt I was 50 when I was at a concert and heard it dismissed by someone as something mostly for people in their '50s and '60s.

Best to take that as recommendation rather than dismissal

as if you need another reason (I did mine last year)

Taking advantage of a unique public health policy in the UK, a new study has found that receiving the shingles vaccine reduces dementia risk by 20%. The findings bolster a growing body of research linking the vaccine to lower numbers of dementia cases...

So I'm 'mid 50s' and have never had a colonoscopy... I see that some people start in their mid-40s

So I got the courage up and reached out to my HMO primary physician.. I asked if the home tests ('poop on the paper') are sufficient, or if I should go in for my closeup... here's what he responded:

Hi Andy the Grasshopper,

At 55, it is recommended to begin regular colorectal cancer screening. A colonoscopy is the most comprehensive method, allowing for direct visualization and removal of polyps. However, stool-based tests, such as the fecal immunochemical test (FIT), are also effective for detecting early signs of colorectal cancer. These tests are less invasive and can be done at home. If the FIT results are abnormal, a follow-up colonoscopy would be necessary. Sometimes a colonoscopy would be indicated with patients who have a more family history of colon cancer as well. Please do let me know if there's any history of this.

I've done the home test every year for awhile, and always got back a 'normal' result.. What do you guys think? Should I push for the real deal, or let it ride?

I have a family history so I get the knockout jelly-finger. My cousin is a butt-doctor and according to him a colonoscopy can detect precancerous things that won't show up on a poo test. If you have any reason to suspect that your chances of cancer are higher than average I would go all in. Family history? Drinker/smoker? They can also tell you if you have any noncancerous butt issues.

I am not yet 50, so take that with a grain of salt.

Here's where I stand/sit. When I turned 47 my primary care told me that they've started to recommend earlier screenings, because iirc treatment for colon cancer is relatively successful if caught early. (Fwiw around the same time I had a friend treated for colon cancer, though she was in her '50s.) Anyway, you get the option of poop in a box or the full deal. I went with the poop in the box, which is easy. But (heh) the previous year, my wife went with the colonoscopy, and while they didn't find anything cancerous or anything, they did find a couple of polyps, which can become problematic, so they got rid of them. Subsequently I read that, per Cow_Art, the poop in the box test is only relatively accurate when it comes to detecting anything, and if detected, you have to get a colonoscopy anyway, and insurance often categories and charges for them differently, prevention vs treatment. Also, the poop in the box is recommended every three years, but colonoscopy only every 10. So it's now been three years and I am now 50, and I got a reminder about the poop in the box, but this time I am going full colonoscopy. I figure, if I'm going to do it, I'm going all-in (so to speak), for peace of mind.

Downside is I couldn't get an appointment before September. I'm also getting an upper endoscopy, because I have low iron, for some reason.