Help me mourn my missing 2 and a half inches 😞

Osteoporosis?

Have you been exposed to a strange, unexplained mist while out boating?

r1, nope. Just normal height loss. I guess most people never notice. I am having a bit of an identity crisis. I am used to literally looking down on people.

now I can only do it figuratively.

I couldn’t imagine life at 5 1/2 inches.

But you're not that old to be shrinking like that yet, right?

Are you getting enough calcium? Disc degeneration?

That's a LOT. I wouldn't be able to handle it - I've always been a tall guy. To be average or slightly above average would ruin my self-image.

I'd wear lifts - seriously.

Try viagra.

I'm almost two inches shorter than I was forty years ago. Degenerative disc disease.

But 6'3" to 6'1" isn't much of a loss.

Just wear lifts in your shoes, like I do.

See, all my female friends are like 'me too, I have lost 2 inches' as if it's not a big deal.

I knew males would get it.

Probably 20 percent of my diet is dairy. There's not a single physical thing wrong with me. Except I am barely above average female height now. AVERAGE

R9 - ugh - nature taking away one genetic benefit you've enjoyed your whole life has to suck.

just saw this: "On average, adults can expect to lose about 0.25 to 0.33 inches (6 to 8 millimeters) in height per decade after 40." WHAT???

My head doesn't need another negative thing to think about - now I want to measure myself but I'm afraid to.

I don't want to shrink - who do I need to call about this? Regional manager? Corporate office?

I am guessing it's in part because I am fat (although I also somehow lost 35 pounds but I don't care).

This may actually be what gets me to lose weight.

RC, I lost an inch to old age (5'6" to 5'5"), and because of motorcycle accident #1, I am also shorter on my left side than I am on my right. It's not really noticeable, but if I stand straight and someone looks at me head-on, it's easy to tell. My left shoulder slumps (so no left-side bra strap will ever stay in place), and I can never wear a tank top t-shirt for the same reason.

But what really pisses me off is that I've always worn men's jeans and I've always had a 32" inseam. The ridiculous length of my legs (because I'm all legs and no waist) has led me to be able to ride motorcycles that men taller than I and even women my height can't ride because of the height of the seat.

And now? I bought a little Kawasaki with a 32.1" seat height, and lo and behold -- I couldn't even come close to flat-footing it. That knocks out at least 50 models of motorcycles off the list of bikes I could consider owning.

I guess I should just be grateful I'm still alive and still riding, but gratitude is getting harder and harder to conjure up the older I get.

Still, I've wanted to be taller my entire life because of the motorcycles I'd like to be able to ride but can't because I'm too short. So at least you had your height the majority of your life.

Here's a bike I've always wanted, but can't ride, because the seat height is 34". I sat on one with the kickstand down, and my feet hung down like a toddler on a swingset.

Whaddya gonna do?

How old are you people?

I definitely feel your pain SL r12!

It actually explains a few things. I should have figured it out myself. I have had to use the step ladder more than I used to. Things like that.

Everyone talks about little old ladies. maybe all those little old. ladies started out as amazons.

r13, I am 54 and a half. apparently halves are very important to me now.

Intervertebral discs flatten as we age leading to normal height loss. Not much you can do about it. You can try to appear taller by fixing posture. Yoga helps with that.

Oh boo hoo.

R15 - damn rescue-chick, I'm just slightly older than you. That's far too young to lose that much height.

Many tall people become comfortable and used to their height - although it didn't always feel like a privilege growing up.

It's really nice to have - no matter what gender.

r18, I have always definitely seen it as a privilege, I even wore, exclusively, 3-4 inch heels for 20 years (at least) because I loved being the tallest chick around. I guess the now equivalent would be jlo's ass. embracing it.

Maybe he got it wrong a little bit I was so shocked I didn't question it.

At some point height becomes a curse. Harder to find clothing at reasonable prices. And height often means huge feet. Size 13 shoes are not always readily available. I wish my feet would shrink a bit.

My feet have always been absurdly tiny for my height and boob size. size 6 - 6.5 wide but I wear a 7, 7.5 so my boobs don't stick out further than my toes. I guess I don't need to worry about that so much if I am not adding being tall into the mix.

LOL, I would do anything to be 5'6"! I wore boots with thick heels and platform shoes for years just to have the feeling of being taller. After multiple foot surgeries, that's no longer possible. Being vertically challenged never slowed me down, but I never rode motorcycles. Just bicycles and horses.

My height loss from age luckily hasn't been as dramatic, from 5'3.75" to 5'3.25", so far, and I'm older than you, RC.

I've always used a stepstool to climb on the counters and reach the upper cabinets in the kitchen and my clinics. Pain in the rear, but the damn cats won't help.

I'd lost an inch in my late 50s but recently discovered that my cervical spine had curved forward. Think Far Side goofus characters. I've been seeing a chiropractor and he put me in traction, and I've been given stretching exercises and I've nearly gotten the inch back by straightening my spine. And my arm neuropathy and sleep problems have faded away, Who knew?

My longtime GP who is now 82 said I mught get my lost inches back if I started using those inversion boots I had fixed to the ceiling in 1995. I don't have ten foot ceilings anymore. And this place is a rental.

But it really did help my back.

r24, my bestie said she has an inversion table/thingy and asked if I wanted it. I said I would have to wear a bra, hard pass. can you imagine if I fainted on it?

That pencil never seemed to have lost much with being sharpened.

For those of you who are not eldergays, the changes that occur in our bodies as we age are mostly predictable and to be expected. However, the loss of height is one that's not often mentioned and can be quite shocking. I remember when I was a young adult, noticing how short/small my older relatives were, and thinking "Thank god, I'm so much taller." Who knew that to today's younger generation, I'm the little old man!!!

I was prepared mentally for quite a few things today at the dr. surprise pap smear, being warned about high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes (any of the fat issues catching up to me), etc. completely blind sided by this. I am actually going to have to take a friend measure me.

R-C, there's always that midget show on TLC.

midgets give me the creeps 😳 r29

Start teasing your hair and spray, spray, spray to keep it in place.

I’m 5’ 9” with my bouffant.

I thought you were talking about your boyfriend with the little dick who left you...

My husband wears lifts!

R32 - no, that would be me. Lauren can have those two and half inches.

Hilarious RC @ r25

I don't have to worry about tits but, yeah, saggy pecs

R20 - that's true. I would say you start to max out on 'normal' sizes at 6'2-6'3" for men. Above that and the world isn't made for you.

I'm lucky - i'm 6'2" and I'm at the top of the standard range for clothing sizes to be made, including my size 12 feet. Just one size up and there's like 80% less choice.

The difference in availability for size 12 men's shoe versus size 13 is ridiculous.

I wear a 34/35 length shirt thankfully - again, one more size up and it's rare to find 36/37 length dress shirt.

RC you type you like you have terrible posture.

Seriously though, we are almost the exact same age and I have a terrible family history of osteoporosis, but I’ve been able to keep all of my measly height so far. Keep your shoulders back girl. And maybe take some yoga classes.

I have perfect posture. I had a fob German grandmother and a gay father. I promise, my posture is perfect!

i’ve lost two inches as well. imma hobbit now.

Then something is wrong R38. Shrinking eventually is normal; but that’s too much too fast.

R40 - I agree - she should have shrunk maybe .75 inch at 54.

I think you need to get it redone rescue-chick. Just put a pencil mark on the wall on top of your head and measure it with a tape measure.

jesus christ that's the obvious way to do it r41 and I, no sarcasm, would clearly never have thought of that. I will do that tomorrow!

[quote]Help me mourn my missing 2 and a half inches

No.

I was 5' 9.5" when I was a college freshman. Now at age 63 I am 5' 8 3/4". So I shrunk 3/4 inch in 45 years. Shrinking is a combination of the discs between your vertebrae getting thinner and your posture degrading. If you can manage dead hanging 2-3 times a week you may be able to gain back 1/2 inch or more.

R44 - according to the site I referenced above - you start shrinking .25 to .33 in per decade after 40. So you've shrunk .75 in 23 years, which is on the higher side but normal.

I think I'm still 6'2", but I go to the doctor in September, so I'll check then.

I'm from an Italian family. All the women start screwing themselves into the ground at about the age of 25. Many of them start at 5'3" and end up as gnomes.

OP, at the rate you're shrinking, when you're 90, you'll be 2 feet tall.

r47, I always assumed that when I hit as wide as tall it would be from great fatness, not shrinkage.