Today’s world news is certainly horrifying and depressing, and we have just finished two years of life in the shadow of COVID-19. But from my own life, especially for the elderly, I would like to share some encouragement.
It’s a story about how I progressed from a deeply depressed and inactive old man to a happy and healthy old man through exercise. I’m certainly not trying to equate an exercise program with a problem in the big world, but perhaps even in the sad state of the world, we improve our lives and do the same for others. You can make personal changes that encourage you to do so.
The same year I retired as a professor at Clemson University in 2005, I learned that I had diabetes. Sadly, this was just the beginning of my health descent spiral. In 2012, I started to feel pain in my lower abdomen. I used to have kidney stones, but this time I felt a sharp pain differently, and an ultrasound showed something wrong.
My doctor introduced me to the surgeon. The surgeon confirmed her suspicion and she had surgery the following week to remove my cancerous left kidney. I had no recurrence of the cancer, but my health seemed to be steadily declining. As my back pain began to develop and worsened, I occasionally fell and fell and became afraid to walk without a cane. This eventually led me to buy an electric scooter to avoid the retired community where I live.
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He was referred to another surgeon who was diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus (excessive fluid or cerebrospinal fluid in the brain) due to severe trips and falls. The shunt in my brain relieved pressure and drained excess water.
The surgery worked for a while, but soon my back pain recurred. Less than two years after the brain surgery, she returned to the operating room to remove the spurs from her spine. Later, due to inflamed arthritis and herniated disc, the doctor recommended another operation. I needed to relieve the pain, but it seems that there were too many major surgeries in about 6 years. The idea of giving up passed through my head.
But I didn’t. I consulted with my brain surgeon. He sent me to a pain management clinic. There I received an injection in my back to relieve the pain and I was able to stand upright within a few days.
However, I overdoed it and ended up with a “couch potato”. I needed to turn things around, otherwise I could never do what I loved.
As they say, I started with the baby step. I focused on my balance and destination and started walking short distances. I practiced this seemingly simple activity in the hallway of an apartment with railings until I was confident that I could walk more and more without a cane.
In a few weeks I was able to walk to where my wife took care of me. I was so happy with that that I wanted to continue to make progress.
I started going to a daily exercise program here in the retirement community. Perform seated aerobics, weight training, and flexible exercise to increase durability, strength, and mobility. I also attended a small group of people walking around the campus five times a week for 30-45 minutes on an occasional trip to the Clemson University Experimental Forest and the South Carolina Botanical Gardens.
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Thanks to exercise and walking, and with the benefits of modern medicine, I have made remarkable progress. Some people say that I am a walking miracle, but I would rather call for a change in attitude from “I can’t” to “I think I can” and my determination to stand up. As Jim Barbano famously said, “Never give up. Never give up.”
I am now walking a few miles a day with little fear of falling. My heart is also much clearer — I published an eBook on Amazon called “The Turning Point of Fisherman’s Life”. My muscle tone improved and as a side benefit I lost 20 pounds and about 2 inches from the waist! And you can go trout fishing again!
Exercise and walking have changed my life. I became a healthy and happy 81-year-old man from a depressed semi-invalidity.
After a certain age, some people feel that they have nothing to do to improve their outlook. But I hope my brief story encourages and even inspires people over the age of 50 to participate in exercise and walking.
That way, these activities can change your life better and it can also improve your outlook on life!
David Van Lear is a former professor at Clemson University...
