'Tis the fall season....

 Once again I am reminded by a faithful reader that I have not written in some time. Mea culpa. That fact--the omission of product--usually signifies something like 1. He's well, there is nothing to say; 2. He's at death's door and is not capable of writing; or 3. He's old--he"s forgotten; or 4. He no longer cares. or 5. Make up your own reason. Over the years that I have been baring my soul and my innards, every one of the foregoing has been true at some time. You may now think that this ever-clever amanuensis will say that it is none of the foregoing. It may be. I just don't know.

I do know that my heart has not been an issue at the forefront of my thoughts on my health, though it is never far away. I am mindful that I am in constant discomfort from my bicycle accident--resolved by getting off my feet several times per day. I am mindful that my appetite is not what it used to be. Mostly I am satisfied with child sized portions. Accordingly, my weight is pretty stable between 190-195 lbs, the lightest I have been in decades. I am mindful that my appendectomy appears related to a newly stable alimentary system, not seen in years (go figure). 

But most of all I have been thinking about falling, literally. My weird bicycle crash and subsequent testing and subsequent discovery of a crushed vertebra, started all of this. I learned about what the ER people call a "head strike"--any significant blow to the head. And how effects of such punishment may not appear immediately, ergo, don't settle that accident claim hastily. I learned that I have a shrinking brain which has a "tortuous" basilar artery. This artery feeds the brain in the area of the 8th cranial nerve which may be related to the differential hearing that I have remaining in my ears, ie, less in the right than the left. I speculate that along with sclerosis of my cranial arteries there may age related difficulties with balance owing to age and blood feed to the brain.

I began to suspect my balance was worrisome some 5 years ago and this led to the decision to sell my bass boat and stop fishing. I also started using a cane for longer distance walking, for example an hour on feet in a grocery store as opposed to walking from the car into a restaurant, though these are not hard and fast rules. I also have mistakenly assumed that keeping strong via work outs and etc would permit oneself to save oneself from a fall. I have found that there is only limited truth in this. It is true that I have saved myself from falls when I am prepared to think that I may fall. But there is no protection against most falls which happen when one is unaware. When one of those starts there is no saving yourself.

I had my most recent one of these about 10 days ago. I turned around in the house and must have stubbed a toe or otherwise caught my foot and down I went. As on the previous occasions I tried to grab a door frame but it wasn't enough and I smacked my head on the tile floor. Subsequent pain in my right knee would suggest that it hit the floor at some time as did my right shoulder which may have crashed into the door frame. There was a modest bleed at my hairline but not enough to see anyone about. My pupils did not differentially dilate. I developed a considerable goose egg. And I could not get up for a couple minutes. Jan was home and responded well. We decided to stay put and observe against headache and signs of confusion. Neither happened. But I have had a lingering tension near my mastoids which may owe to the head snapping back, then forward. I am also a bit more prone to getting a headache if I read too long. We'll keep on this, but I think all is okay.

What is not okay is the increase in frequency of these events. Starting with the bike event I have now fallen 3 times since Aug of 2020. Since I have some osteoporosis a hip being the first to hit the floor would be a disaster. But can head strikes be far behind?

Is there a walker in my (near) future?

Happy Turkey Day to all of you...