How mobile is your elderly parent?

[Anonymous]

We’re visiting with my 83 year old father and he’s having a difficult time getting around. Walks haltingly and very slowly. Takes steps one at a time using 2 feet on each step, not walking up or down with one foot on each step.

He exercises regularly with racket sports and swimming and some weight lifting. He’s been obese his entire life but never thought he had a weight problem. Is this normal? I am surprised given how much exercise he claims to do.

[Anonymous]

My mom is almost 83, very active and works out with a trainer but she does take one step at a time (with both feet) and walks fairly slowly, and carefully. Some of this is caution (she’s had friends who have fallen) and some of it is arthritis. She walks a lot, but takes her time.

[Anonymous]

You should compare him with his baseline.
How was he last year or before?
My parents were active at that age but anything is possible at that age.

[Anonymous]

I have 3 relatives who are 83-86. One can walk short flat distances but has problems with stairs, one can walk for miles, and one can function normally.

[Anonymous]

Were the steps wet? My parents stayed active for a long time, but were always afraid of wet pavement and steps, for some reason. I think that before an actual fall, some people with more cautious brains tend to be alert to fall dangers.

Two other things: my father was active until last year, and then he fell gravely ill with an auto-immune disease that no one knew he had. I just saw him walk - his walk is very halting, he gets out of breath immediately upon walking 100ft, and his stride has shortened considerably. All bad signs, that I saw in my in-laws during their decline. My husband, who is a doctor, tells me that when the stride shortens it's the beginning of the end.

I think you should take your father's halting walk and step maneuvering seriously. There's been a significant decline there. Maybe a stroke?

[Anonymous]

My mom is 81 and walks 3 miles a day at the local mall. She is not fast, but can move along above a snail crawl. Put her on pavement, grass, etc., and she is much slower. She also can not really do stairs. Has lived on one level now for over 10 years and just doesn't do them anymore. I am going to "practice" stairs for as long as I can.

[Anonymous]

The stairs thing...knee issues as well as safety.
I went down stairs like that when my knees hurt.

[Anonymous]

You cannot trust him in what he says about exercise. He isn’t lying, just not cognitively there anymore.
My father is 80 and can walk a few miles but he started mixing some things up and I can’t really trust his judgment anymore.

[Anonymous]

It’s okay if he uses a walker - sounds as though he could use one. When it’s easier for him to walk, he’ll do more walking.

[Anonymous]

85 and 83 and so far so good as far as mobility. But the 85 year old is in cognitive decline, and would have to move to a nursing home or have 24 hour caregivers if something drastic were to happen to the 83 year old. My experience with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and inlaws, is that it's either the brain or the body that starts to go at some point, and we all hope that point is later, rather than sooner

[Anonymous]

From. 80-83 mom walked well but preferred a cane to navigate when she was out and about as she was terrified of falling. She took stairs carefully but could do them. 83-85 her mobility declined significantly with dementia and she died a month after a fall/break.

My dad had a heart attack at 80 then spent covid year barely moving and lost so much mobility. He shuffles and needs a rollerwratir and a wheelchair for long distance. Currently he is in hospital after emergency surgery and if he does not get moving soon I am
Not sure he will walk again and feel he will pass sinner because of it.

Some of their friends are still world travelers and walk daily, of course but most have slowed and beteeen frailty, balance, falls they don’t walk very well.

[Anonymous]

1. Uses a walker but struggles after a few mins, exhausted.
2. Fully mobile but has taken courses and classes to address fall risk

[Anonymous]

Your dad who can barely shuffle around the house is claiming he plays tennis and pickleball? You don’t believe this, do you? The man is over 80. It is totally reasonable that he shuffles around and takes steps one at a time.

I am 52 with various autoimmune diseases. I often take steps one at a time. And if we are out and about and come to a et of steps with no railing, my husband. automatically offers his arm/hand to me. My MIL is 82 and more mobile than I am. But she tires easily and I don’t.

[Anonymous]

My mom just turned 85 and still walks pretty normally, albeit a lot more slowly than she used to. Up until about 80, she regularly walked 3-4 miles a day at a pretty brisk clip. Now she walks most days with a neighbor (weather permitting) but they are a lot slower and only go about a mile or so. She seems ok with stairs still (again, slower, and she does them one at a time).
She started having a lot of back and knee issues about 2 or 3 years ago and it really impacted her mobility. She was able to get some injections eventually that helped, but it's creeping back again.

[Anonymous]

My mother is 88 and is still very mobile: she works with a trainer 3x a week, walks a couple of miles 5x a week, goes up and down stairs, and dances. She is slower than a few years ago but still pretty agile.