Health in your 50s.. expectations ?

[BookWorm45]

I'm 53 and have noticed especially during this year I've had a series of health problems. Some minor / shortlived, a couple more severe. Basically it feels like there hasn't been a week in 2023 where I've not had some item or other. THings such as - severe headache; diarrhoea; UTIs; a tooth problem; thrush; migraines; hearing loss (turned out to be partially wax build up in the ear and partially that hearing has actually worsened); knee problem; rosacea; sleep problems.

For "normal" people, e.g. not athletes or the very rich, is this just simply the way that life is once into the 50s / 60s ? Or have I had a very unlucky year ?

What would your expectations be of "normal health" in your 50s ?

I wasn't saying that having a healthy lifestyle now isn't important @Chilispirit - I think it is, but I've been pretty much as healthy as I could have been for 20 years now but some physical factors relating to trauma get built into your body, whether that's neurological or otherwise (I have some damage in my brain that probably happened in my 20s), and whatever you do later in those situations will only mitigate not reverse. Other things might be more amenable to recovery, e.g. liver damage or having physio to change musculoskeletal problems. People are often shocked at how bad my health has been considering I'm one of the most clean living people they know (and genetics are strong), but it's all past effects IMO.

Sending you 💐💐💐 @SierraSapphire

I'm 53 and nothings really changed, some of the stuff you've mentioned like migraines ( i get them occasionally), knee soreness (I exercise a lot), rosacea (always had it mildly) and sleeping problems (living in a warm climate) i just see these things as normal, not an age thing.
I'm really conscience of exercising and eating well especially as you get older cause you're more susceptible to health issues.

I'm 48 and have been like this for years. In the last 2 weeks alone I've had a chest infection which led to an ear infection which led to painful swollen lymph nodes in my neck. Plus I have a tooth abscess and caught a stomach bug. Oh and I have fungal nail infections on almost every toe. This is all fairly typical for me.
I don't know what else to do. I walk over 10,000 steps a day and have a good diet with lots of fruit and veg. I take various supplements to boost my health.
I feel like my immune system is weak and I don't know what to do about it. I'm already doing all the things they recommend. I've already had cancer (cancer can be linked to a weakened immune system). If this is going to get worse in my 50s then God help me!
Sorry, no advice OP but I do empathise.

I'm 58 and I've been really lucky to have had no health issues at all for over a decade (just the occasional cough and cold). This is in spite of me operating a policy of "benign neglect", so I don't do anything to specifically improve my health, I choose not to take up screening, and I generally believe in just not making a fuss.
However, I'm not naive, and I know that "stuff" can happen at any time, so I could be pushing up daisies in a year or two. I simply take the attitude of "what will be, will be" and will continue to enjoy my life until something comes along to scupper that. I just don't think that stressing about the "what ifs?" serves any purpose, given that death is the one thing we can all guarantee!

I’m 57. Mostly healthy usually, but had a few months last year where I had severe back pain for months, followed by gut problems, and a chest infection. I just didn’t feel myself for ages. Usually in the gym a couple of times a week, and walk miles, but ended up not being able to go for about 5 months. At the moment, have had a chest infection, with a cold that started today, and surgery yesterday on my mouth. Feeling pretty sorry for myself, tbh. I have a dodgy hip that will need replacing soon, but I do, and always have kept active, do exercises every evening to keep flexible, and am a bit underweight. Don’t drink alcohol, and vegetarian. I’m hoping it’s just a bad phase, and will come out the other side disgustingly healthy!

I'm only 45, but I'm not overweight, have been very active all my adult life, have a brilliant diet, have two dogs and live in a lovely bit of rural countryside. No past trauma and a very comfortable life.

Yet HRT has hit me like a bus. And I'm constantly knackered, getting colds and viruses. I take supplements on top of the healthy diet and nothing helps.

Nature not nurture.

I had this. Lots of bits.

Its culminated in bad chronic fatigue syndrome.

And yes l was active and yes l ate properly.

I'm 58 and suddenly feel like it's all going a bit wrong. Stuff hurts, don't sleep, tired etc I'm on HRT but interested in testosterone element to it. Got rotator cuff and hip problems and it's really affecting my life. I'm a very physical person who suddenly can't be any more and it makes me sad and concerned.

I was really unwell during my 50's, it was a combination of menopause and undiagnosed coeliac disease which caused all sorts of problems.
Now I'm in my 60's and now gluten and menopause free I've never felt better.

I do think to an extent it is luck of the draw. Unless of course you are a smoker, completely inactive, live on rubbish food, drink alcohol to excess and don’t look after yourself at all.

I was healthy, slim and active all my life and when I reached sixty I was suddenly struck down with various infections and heart problems. It has been a shock and I am not sure what I could have done to prevent it tbh.

Looking at friends around me in their 50s and 60s, several have had hip replacements and serious illness including cancer whereas others haven’t suffered anything serious at all.

@Moredarkchocolateplease

'Yet HRT has hit me like a bus. And I'm constantly knackered, getting colds and viruses. I take supplements on top of the healthy diet and nothing helps.'

Why are you taking it then?

I would NEVER have taken or take HRT.

@Jewelspun I meant peri meno has hit me like a bus! The HRT has helped massively 😁 obviously hasn't helped my brain fog though!!

Without realising i had developed prolapses related to vaginal atrophy, which also affected my gait and left me with insertional tendinitis (so no more half marathons).

I'm in my fifties and hardly have any health problems apart from thrush/tireness even when I am on hrt.
I excerise alot and have to push myself to go sometimes due to feeling knackered. I feel so much better after my gym classes and I find walking helps. I walk everyday with my dogs.
I think my tireness is due to a hectic family life with dc's and elderly parents who all need my support.
I try to eat well but do enjoy having a few glasses of gin over the weekend and takeaway/fakeaway. My DH is very hands on so I am not caring all on my own. I am finding my MIL and parents need my time more while my DC's are getting easier due to being teenagers, preteen. I tend to worry about things and I know it doesn't help and I wake up very early in the morning. Around 3am and can't get back to sleep. I think we all need to look after ourselves. I hope you feel better soon OP.

Thanks everyone for responses so far -interesting to see the variety !

I’ve just had a high volume saline injection on my Achilles.

2 years of agony gone in 10 minutes

I got 2 cancers at 48, no risk factors or family history but been treated for that now but chemo has caused some issues and can't take HRT. I am ill about once a year, key thing for me is exercise 3 to 5 hours a week to halve reoccurrence at stage 4 risk.

I'm 52 and have no real health problems. I'm overweight, but I exercise regularly and eat a healthy diet. I probably drink too much.

If you had asked me a year ago I would probably have talked about brain fog and tiredness but that lifted once I started taking vitamin D.

I didn't expect specific difficulties, but i remember mum at this age talking about being old and i thought that was crazy, but she had a significant heart disease by this age. I'm now on my 50s and this year had to have my gallbladder removed after months of awful illness with it, got my own heart disease diagnosis, and now have something peculiar going on with my kidneys. When the kidney thing made itself known I ignored it for a few weeks because I just didn't want to have to get to grips with another thing. I have an appt in a few weeks to see about it. Otherwise i feel well, but also I am feeling my age in that I don't feel like I did when i was 20.

2 nasty bouts of covid have really affected me.

Add in peri menopause and suddenly I have heart and lung issues, I'm 2 stone overweight, high cholesterol and high bp :(

Meds for cholesterol have given me awful nuscle pain so off them atm

Need to lose weight but can't seem to

I've had migraines too but they aren't so bad now

It's pretty depressing tbh

@BookWorm45 I was fine until covid and that seems to have activated everything and it's mother (I'm 61). I think this is the age when it starts to cause persistent issues of all sorts if you are overweight, smoke, vitamin defects, too many carbs, drink much , not enough excerise ( all of which I'm guilty of- though not more than 15 units a week). I have changed things somewhat and so far lost just over 2 stone, cut the carbs hugely, turned round pre diabetes back to normal, reduced drinking to twice a week only of 1/2 a bottle of wine a time, walked more and drank more water, take vitamins, -- just the smoking to go now!! And adding in a bit of swimming etc

@PokeyLaFarge are you me?!

Exactly the issues I developed post covid. Statins also gave me very weak wobbly lower legs - felt like walking thru concrete- so I stopped them

I suspect our parents had similar issues but we wouldn't necessarily have registered it because they were not posting on forums, not using internet etc- and only knew about it if they mentioned it or you were involved in taking them to appointments etc.

@Crikeyalmighty I think you may be spot on !

Thinking about my own mother, she would have never wished to discuss anything such as menopause; general health issues affecting energy; anything such as HRT / declining sex drive etc etc.

This is where MN is so useful with being able to get people's views.