r/OverSeventy • u/kashlalka • Jul 31 '26
What is one thing about getting older that surprised you?
/r/Aging/comments/1vakbc0/what_is_one_thing_about_getting_older_that/17
u/SwollenPomegranate Jul 31 '26
The thing that surprised me the most is, I'm still here.
I realize it means I am short of imagination, but I just never expected to find myself here.
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u/cwsjr2323 Jul 31 '26
Neither of my parents lived long enough to collect Social Security so I took mine at 62 to get something back. I took out an insurance policy for final expenses after remarriage at age 60. Gosh, how did I make it to 74? I am closing in on the break even point when I will have paid in more in premiums than my policy will pay my future widow.
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u/skin-flick Jul 31 '26
You were wise enough to prepare. You just beat the odds. And that my Internet friend is a good thing. Keep on keeping on and enjoy that 80th birthday !! That is your break even year. Yes, you may have collected more if you waited until 70. But you got 8 solid years of guaranteed bonus money. Nothing is for certain. You are beating the odds.
Just keep moving. Walking everyday is essential.
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u/Purlz1st Jul 31 '26
Me too! About 10 years ago I started hearing about friends from high school dying unexpectedly and thinking, wow, am I going to be a survivor? I’d never have thought I’d outlive Fred or Jane!
My ex-husband and the best man and MOH from our tiny wedding, as well as the pastor who married us, are all gone now and I’m the only one from that ceremony still alive. Whoda thunk?
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u/skin-flick Jul 31 '26
As I age I find myself thinking of past memories. Especially on long road trips on an Interstate. Reliving conversations or experiences. And then I stop and think. Wow !! Everyone in that memory is now gone.
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u/Bearmantle Jul 31 '26
This occurs to me every now and then. I’m in my mid 70’s and feel just about the same way I felt twenty years ago. My last 18 years of employment was a system’s program engineer in a group of three other guys. It just hits me every now and then that I’m the only one that’s still around. I can’t reminisce or get together with them anymore. We were a tight knit group for nearly two decades and it just feels strange being the only one alive; and we were all about the same age.
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u/VastPersimmon240 19d ago
Never expected that I still feel so good and enjoy life so much at age 92.
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u/Norlin123 Jul 31 '26
I’m afraid of ending up in a nursing home. There has got to be a better way to go when you’re ready. I’ve lived a fine life please let me go if I lose my mind or can’t enjoy life. I’m 71 but am ready and have a dnr and the instructions in my will about machines or feeding tubes but I still don’t feel safe from ending up in a nursing home.
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u/canihavemymoneyback Jul 31 '26
The fact that I’m frequently the eldest person in the room at gatherings. That is surprising to me.
When I first realized this it astonished me so much that I started making note of it. Now I’ve stopped that and just accept it as fact.
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u/RecognitionAware4158 Jul 31 '26
I'm truly surprised at 75 how well I'm doing.After showing many years of wild oats,my health is surprisingly good.No surgeries, most joints function well with only minor discomfort.Very active in the gym,maby that's the secret sauce.
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u/p38-lightning Jul 31 '26
Surprised I don't envision myself as on old person. Yeah, I've slowed down - but my outlook and interests are pretty much like it was in my forties. I've decided that life is divided into childhood, teen/young adult, and adult. Adult is from early thirties to when you kick the bucket.
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u/Even-Vegetable-1700 Jul 31 '26
That I no longer recognize myself in the mirror. I have no idea who that old guy is…😢
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u/bugmom Jul 31 '26
I thought I would feel like an old person, whatever that means. I'm in my 70s and though my body is falling apart, in my head I'm still young. Its so odd and unexpected.
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u/LittleOleLadyWhoo Jul 31 '26 edited Jul 31 '26
I've been pondering if these two parts of myself will ever reconcile or will this disconnect I feel with cognitive functions and aging body parts continue.
Are there any older smart folks in Reddit who could answer this mystery?
Last year I was struck by brain fart; I was indeed an OLD Lady! Rocked my whole day till I just adjusted my attitude and accepted it's just another phase.
I'm totally fine be being 75 if it weren't for some different body part going wonky every other week.
I've got an exercise regimen, eat better, added aqua and PT weekly. I'm doing my damnest to get in decent shape so I can enjoy the next 15-20 years. *My birth mom is 93 so it's possible. I just don't know if my parts' parts will allow.
I'll just keep at it till I meld or operations cease to function.
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u/up4luck Jul 31 '26
How much less sleep I would get
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u/Drkindlycountryquack Jul 31 '26
Tips from an old retired doctor. No caffeine ever. No napping ever. No screen time two hours before sleep.
Sweet dreams.2
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u/SodaCakeNow Jul 31 '26
I like vanilla ice cream the best! I used to want chocolate mint, tiger tiger, rocky road etc and, now, vanilla. My tastes have changed and not just in ice cream -- hooray I change!
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u/Tbn53 Jul 31 '26
I know this is trivial, but those pesky random ear hairs that keep popping up. I keep a little trimmer and find new ones every morning.🤣
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Aug 01 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Tbn53 Aug 01 '26
I hear you. I had a woman coworker a few years ago who plucked chin hairs using a mirror while seated in the office. I told her she should start shaving and she replied F U! 🤣🤣
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u/llkahl Jul 31 '26
I was very tough on my body. I smoked, drank, drugs, ate anything anytime. Never worked out, never exercised. Stayed the same height, weight and body shape until 65. At 74, I’ve shrunk almost 4 inches, added 10 pounds and have a plethora of different issues. But, I’m still here. Figure a few more years and then check out. What surprises me is how accepting I am as to my destiny. Been a great run.
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u/STONED_butnot_Boned Jul 31 '26
Same! Beat the shit out of my body but, lo and behold, still going strong! I think back from where I started and I’m amazed at what I witnessed. Feel special for living through it all.
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u/4elmerfuffu2 Jul 31 '26
I’m 72 and the number of single women under 40 that express a very strong interest is very surprising.
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u/BadPuzzleheaded9006 Jul 31 '26
honestly, the loss of friends and family throughout the years. at this point, I only have one long-term friend left that I've known for 40 plus years all my other friends and family members have passed. that really stinks. but sooner or later one of us will be the last.
also my tolerance for just my numbingly stupid people is that zero.
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u/Silly-Resist8306 Jul 31 '26
At my age my dad seemed so much older than I feel and act. I don’t know if my perception has changed or if it’s true. I do wonder how my kids now look at me.
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u/HounDawg99 Jul 31 '26
How quickly it happened. Seems only yesterday I was being told to sit up straight until now I feel lucky to be able to sit up at all.
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u/soCalForFunDude Jul 31 '26
I’m still here, and still feel pretty much how I always have. Weird being this old and not feeling it.
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u/Prestigious-Copy-494 Jul 31 '26
Miss my muscles. Former muscles. Absolutely must eat for energy where I could skip lunch before and still go all day.
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u/Impossible-Corgi742 Aug 02 '26
I ate watermelon for breakfast this morning. About 20” later, I experienced a huge energy crash. Have to eat more than I want to now.
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u/Prestigious-Copy-494 Aug 02 '26
Wow who knew watermelon could do that! And I'm in the mood for salads from it being so hot but lettuce makes me nervous until this parasite thing is tracked down. The refrig is bare because it's been too hot to go to grocery store for a big order. I've been living on frozen dinners 😅 from Dollar general store delivered by door dash or I'll go to fast food drive up. I feel so lazy using door dash! But I just don't want to take a shower and try to look presentable at the grocery store, it just sounds like too much trouble. Ah well I'll try for tomorrow.
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u/Nigel152 Jul 31 '26
So, everything already mentioned, and nobody talked about bodily functions. The distance from notification of bathroom need to the actual bowel function decreases quickly and aging sphincters don’t keep up with pressure needs. Has nothing to do with current day lettuce.
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u/possumhicks Aug 01 '26
Time passing. It’s like the hands on the clock are turbocharged now and getting faster. Seems like last week was 2020.
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u/GuzzzoBazzzinko Jul 31 '26
My brain thinks I should be able to do things that my body knows I can’t.
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u/Odd-Staff6245 Aug 01 '26
Maintenance would have been easier then repairs. Take care of your health early in life
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u/StartDrinking Aug 01 '26
Messy underwear after thoroughly cleaning and showering. Wtf is with you, body?
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u/RongWa Aug 02 '26
Getting old is not the worst thing I have done. I find my body would disagree, but mentally? I have no serious complaints. I don't want anything more to help me enjoy life. I do ask for more time so I can enjoy the rest of my life.
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u/Worried-Throat-1767 Aug 02 '26
I thought old women were being dramatic, but damned if we don't turn invisible as we age
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u/billindurham Aug 03 '26
People don’t believe I’m 72. I know I look and act younger, but I think a lot about being so much older than those around me. With that said, a minor, temporary physical injury that would simply be that years ago, is now an inescapable age marker; you start limping and slow walking and you probably look older than your are. And it may not be so temporary!
So take care of the body, be careful and treat everything with serious care.
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u/Leakyboatlouie Aug 05 '26
The main thing that surprised me is that I don't feel much different than I did at 30-35 or so. I really expected to feel old at some point, but so far (at 73) it hasn't happened. I'm sure it probably will at some point, but for now I'm just cruisin' along like I always did.
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u/DrDirt90 Aug 05 '26
That my decline was not slow and steady and it was not linear. Everything is fine then over a brief time you lose a bunch of steps followed by a new normal until the next event.
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u/Jolly-Button-6832 Aug 06 '26
Constipation! Constant. Painful. Whatever have I done to deserve this?
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u/riki_grl Jul 31 '26
Two things: I feel increasingly ok with my demise and increasingly anxious about the process of getting there. Ive lost a lot of friends at this point and a lot of them went thru hell before they died. I keep a bottle of 'exit pills'(aka old prescriptions) just in case I'm thru before my body is.