:(
I am a 70 year old woman. I have depression, painful arthritis, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, back trauma... and live in a very stressful situation. I am in a very weak condition and have spent long periods in bed which has only weakened me more. Do not seem to be able to do anything I plan to take care of my home or keep it up. I also need dental work because I lost a front tooth in a fall recently. I cannot get myself to call about this!! I am taking Cymbalta ( given by my Rheumatologist) and have taken many other antidepressants but have not seen a therapist. I have a husband, daughter and addict/alcoholic son living with me. He is trying to recover and I want to continue helping him. We have all had a terrible year due to my son's problems but I am in the worst condition because of all my other conditions. I cannot seem to force myself to get ready and regularly visit a physical therapist. I rarely call anyone or go anywhere. It's just too exhausting! Is there some way I... or with my family's help... can find a plan to follow here at home to help me get some physical strength back and become interested in living again?

I feel your pain!

Start small and simply. Do 15 repetitions (reps) of each exercise twice a day.

Sit in a straight-back (kitchen?) chair. Hold in each hand an unopened Campbell's soup can (or cans that you can easily grasp). Swing your arms back and forth fifteen times at your sides. Then for 15 more reps, swing your arms forward and up above your head. Lie down on a firm surface and swing the cans 15 reps from down at your side to up over your head, and rest them above your head, then back down to your side again. Do these movements slow and easy. No one will be timing you. Be sure to quit if you feel pain. If you can't do 15 reps, do as many as you can and build up to that.

Stand with the wall behind you. Slide your body down the wall as low as you can. Even if it's only a few inches, that's okay. Do this same motion up to 15 times. Try to slide down lower each set of reps.

Stand as tall as you can. If you need support, set up two kitchen chairs on each side of you or stand in a hallway where you can hold each wall. Lean forward so one knee bends (a lunge). Go as deep down as you can without falling forward. Keep your upper body and head vertical. Stand up again. Do this with each side as long as you can, and build up to 15 reps each side.

Lie on a firm surface. Lift one leg as high as you can. Lower it. Lift again, to 15 reps if possible. Switch to the other leg, as many as 15 reps. You can do each leg at a time, or switch off left to right as long as possible.

Lie on a firm surface. Using your hands, pull one leg toward your face, knee to your chin (or as close as you can get), 15 reps. Do the same with the other leg, or switch legs for each rep.

The above will strengthen your upper body, thighs, the muscles around your knees, and stretch your lower back. Again, if you feel any pain, quit immediately.

There are web sites that tell about back, etc. exercises like these and even have pictures. Google "simple exercises" or "stretching exercises" (without quote marks) to find exercises that will work for your level of flexibility and to accomplish what you want. Here is one of many --

Hip and Leg exercises, Flexibility strengthening exercises for arthritis, Arthritis, conventional treatments, alternative remedies, complementary therapies, integrative therapies, mind-body therapies

I was laid up with a bad knee and fully understand how immobility can weaken a person. It's easy to give in and just let life happen around you, so you need a support system to help you get past the mental inertia that is preventing you from moving and doing and living. And I know, when the body hurts, in more than one place especially, it is so darn hard and feels useless to even try!

Email me through this site if you want me to cheerlead you.

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Originally Posted by gardengal

:(
I am a 70 year old woman. I have depression, painful arthritis, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, back trauma.....and live in a very stressful situation. I am in a very weak condition and have spent long periods in bed which has only weakened me more. Do not seem to be able to do anything I plan to take care of my home or keep it up. I also need dental work because I lost a front tooth in a fall recently. I cannot get myself to call about this !!!!! I am taking Cymbalta ( given by my Rheumatologist) and have taken many other antidepressants but have not seen a therapist. I have a husband, daughter and addict/alcoholic son living with me. He is trying to recover and I want to continue helping him. We have all had a terrible year due to my son's problems but I am in the worst condition because of all my other conditions. I cannot seem to force myself to get ready and regularly visit a physical therapist. I rarely call anyone or go anywhere. It's just too exhausting! Is there some way I....or with my family's help.....can find a plan to follow here at home to help me get some physical strength back and become interested in living again?

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With regard to you son, you should be very proud of yourself for the support you have given him.

But.

You need to work on yourself now. I don't mean to sound blunt, but you are towards the later days in life, with regard to your age, so why don't you take the opportunity to focus all your energy, all your emotion on you, on making you important, on making your years the best you can. If your son is a grown adult, he needs to get professional help. You have given and given in your life, by the sound of it and your body, mind and soul are telling you from the inside out to stop, think, rethink and resolve to love yourself, give your energy to yourself. Not in a selfish way, but in a loving way, because if you don't love and tend to your own body , mind and soul you have far less to give others. Think of it like a garden, picture your body as a garden, how does it look in your mind, is it blooming, do you have all the beautiful flowers, plants and trees in it that you love, that give you pleasure. Do you water, it weed it and feed it so it grows and gives pleasure to others? Or is it barren, scabby, devoid of attention, overgrown with weeds, have too many people helped themselves to the flowers, have the torn out plants by the roots, have people and the world, drained all the nutrients and water from it?

How can you restore your life to its best. Devote time to you, don't run at others' beck and call, don't enable people to lean on you and depend on you so much, tough love is good love. You will one day be gone and the people in your life and in the world need to learn to survive without you, you need to live without being so worn down. It is not selfish to care for yourself and it does not mean loving people less. It means giving yourself the life you deserve and want.

Work on changing your diet to include life giving and nutritious foods. Try to cut down on processed, boxed and prepared foods. More lean meat, less fat, more fresh green food.

Try stretching gently as your exercise for 2 minutes when you wake up and 2 minutes before bed.

Write a list of goals for yourself and make small steps to help you achieve them.

Tell your family and people in your life how much they mean to you. Tell them you are turning a new leaf and this is your time. That might mean saying "No". It is hard to do, but you must, I'm sorry but no or not at this time and leave it at that. Be consistent, don't give in.

You sound like a lovely soul and a truly good person, be good to yourself and good luck with your life. Love yourself first, then you can pass some of that love onto others You do deserve it.