Do people generally become irritable and miserable as they age?

No. But they are less willing to tolerate bullshit and less likely to pretend and perform for the benefit of other people’s comfort. They are more inclined to value authenticity, humility, and honesty.

Yup.
What does tend to happen is your body getd stiffer and more painful, and your mind less agile. How miserable and irritable you get is individual.

Yes, it's because we are fed up of looking after everyone else for our whole life .

Yes we do. We've had a lifetime of other peoples shit and we're sick of it.

I haven't grown more irritable or miserable but I definitely won't put up with bullshit anymore. I'm also really bored with people who whine, moan or whinge about how fed up they are, how they haven't got what they want or their partner/children/work/life isn't the way they'd like but don't do anything to change it. And as for judgemental - I've always been as judgemental as hell.

Many patients in my job are over 65… up to 95 or more in fact.. also a few of my colleagues are late 60s at least; basically some people are lovely despite their difficulties & others don’t stop moaning.. some people are actually depressed but are not getting medical help for it, so they always seem unhappy; some people are moody, some are unpleasant, others are chilled, some are angry & aggressive; really everyone is different whatever their age and there are various reasons for that including the state of their health which if it’s not good can obviously cause stress and anxiety.
So mood and physical health can often be linked.

But I have found with the older people I’m related to or that I’ve known for years, that certain of their personality traits can become enhanced as they age; in either a positive or negative way.

Oh god, it must be a fortnight since we had this one! Must mean we're due a "is 42 too old to have a baby?" thread ...

I've noticed the past couple of years that my mum (71) has a bit more of a short fuse and can make digs. Also the eye rolls and tuts. Drives me crackers 😞

Some people become more irritable when they get older. Some people are irritable and grumpy whatever age they are. Even if you’re relatively mobile, there are more aches and pains to contend with. Some people say that they have less tolerance for dealing with ‘stuff’ as they age and are more direct. That doesn’t mean they’re grumpy, just that the bullshit tolerance level has changed.

I enjoy the company of young people, but I think that, for some of them, there’s a sense of entitlement that they’re owed a living.

I agree that being spoken to patronisingly is intensely irritating. I have a friend who has some physical illnesses and conditions, but she has the sharpest mind and is an Oxford graduate, who is interested and interesting. To be called ‘dearie’ and spoken to as though she’s a toddler, is demeaning and would make most people grumpy.

Yes. I am perimenapause and very miserable as well as irritable. I wasn't like this when I was younger.

I am a home-visiting nurse for the disabled and elderly, and there are some who, despite their disabilities and pain, are just a delight to be around, Then there are some who just struggle mentally with everything, and appear miserable and criticise. I often wonder if it has to do with how isolated they are, and that the loneliness exacerbates their physical misery.

I have a chronic pain condition at 35 and I try to be as positive as possible but it is HARD. I have found a load of my senior pals arent listened to or wrote off after a certain age so they tend to grumble more.
We have become very comfortable at dismissing older people as a society. Be it their pain, experiences, or woes.

I am 79 and J hope that I am not irritable or judgemental

I'm old and the only things that make me miserable are the aches and pains i get now and the fact that I tire so quickly, It's so frustrating to start the day with lots of plans and then to feel worn out by 2pm. I used to have so much energy and stamina and then bang! it was gone and it makes me depressed. Knowing that it is only going to get worse can be scary. i do get annoyed by the way some people treat me as stupid because I am old. When the practice nurse at my health centre calls me "dear" I want to deck her, please speak to us old folk as if we are human, because we are. i am not critical or judgemental of the younger generation, in fact I feel they have had a really raw deal, this should be their time and many of them are really having to struggle. Neither of my parents lived to be the age I am now, in fact both of them died a couple of years after retirement so I have no memory of either of them being really old. My dad was horrible, nothing to do with age, it was his personality, my mum was lovely, saw the good in everyone and always looked at life from multiple perspectives. i hope I am like that

Some people become miserable and irritable as they get older and some people don't OP.
Older people are still individuals.