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Besides mobility issues related to degenerative joints, knees, etc. there are so many other unforeseen circumstances that may come into play as we age. In the last 6 years, I've had 2 (formerly healthy) friends come down with serious forms of cancer. As luck would have it, both had, previously, down-sized into single-story homes. Currently, neither has the strength to walk up and down stairs unless absolutely necessary; one of them carts a portable oxygen machine around wherever she goes. Both have nice patios/green spaces that can be accessed, easily, from their dining areas and walk just a few steps to their laundry rooms.
When we're healthy and vital, we never imagine that these small things will make such a huge difference, but they really do enhance the quality of life if one should experience a major health challenge. There's nothing wrong with remaining in a two-story home that you love and feel comfortable in - the challenge is waiting too late to make a move if the need should arise.
I'm 59. Since I was a child, I've averaged 60+ ski days per year and many years with 100+. I'm no stranger to the orthopedic surgeon. ACL grafts. Meniscus tears. There is no way in the world I'm not going to have arthritis issues when I'm in my 80's. I need to live somewhere I can have a knee replacement with the 6 month mobility problem recovering from that and still be able to sleep in my bed.
I own a single level house. My townhouse condo at the ski resort is 2 levels but I've certainly had days where I slept on the sofa rather than use crutches to get upstairs to the bedrooms.
I know a man who is is now about 83 or thereabouts and living in So. Cal. started up to Mammoth as soon as the snow started to fall...he skied and skied and skied...at home he went to the gym every day and was very active with yoga work.
Out of the clear blue, Parkinsons hit him.. he now has round the clock caregivers who do shifts and one takes him to the gym during the day. This man has gone from this vibrant go go go guy to one who is falling down. Life is full of twists and turns and potholes.
Could be so many wear their nerves out so badly with all their pushing.
He did not cause his Parkinson's with the gym and skiing.
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He did not cause his Parkinson's with the gym and skiing.
I didn't say it CAUSED it, but look where he is now. Do you know WHY he ended up with PD. Does anyone know WHY we end up with what we deal with. We can all speculate on what we "think" are factors, but here again there are no Absolutes to WHY.
I'm saying he pushed his body all this life, pushed it and now he's where he is. None of us would have thought this.
There's been a lot of research into it, but so far, doctors aren't sure of the exact cause of Parkinson's disease.
They do know that if you have the illness, the trouble starts in some of your brain cells.
In an area of your brain called the substantia nigra, cells that make the chemical dopamine start to die. Dopamine has an important job to do. It acts like a messenger that tells another area of your brain when you want to move a part of your body.
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My husband's brother was diagnosed with Parkinson's about 4 years ago. He was a marathon runner all of his adult life and in excellent shape. He first thought his long-distance running may have been the cause, but no. It was the result of a drug used to treat his prostate cancer. He discovered this on his own through research; his doctor agreed that this was, most likely, true.
A relative had a stoke which made the right side of her body weak. She had to use a walker to get around after that. Some people lose their balance and fall. So navigating stairs is hard. You also lose muscles and your legs become weaker as you age which makes stairs hard. If you exercise regularly, you could avoid some of this.
Some small two story homes have all bedrooms upstairs. So you would have to sleep on the sofa if you couldn't get upstairs.
If you end up in a wheel chair, same thing.
personally, I would not want to retire in a two story home.
People move all the time. So 20 years from now or even before that you might move for some reason.
Actually I live in a three-story house (that is, the basement is completely finished as a living area and is my office) and love it. It is an in-town house where there are essentially no one-story houses, although there are condos in elevator buildings. I will move to a one-story house if I ever need one. Planning ahead is a good idea up to a point... but planning, decades in advance, for an eventuality that I can easily deal with when the time comes makes no sense. (I'm 63.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spuggy
I swim, I walk but yes I have been having difficulty with stairs even before I started a hormone blocker after breast cancer. The side effects are having a well known horrible effect on my ankles and feet. It's insulting and smug to sit in judgement of others who can't handle stairs as if they are lazy. balance/back issues are also an issue. I am facing 4 more years on these meds and Need to utilize any strategy that makes my home safe. It isn't depressing or rushing towards old age, it's called being realistic and planning for my health and quality of life.
Regarding the former quote, read the latter one. The reason it can be wise to plan in advance is that no, it's not easily dealt with when the time comes, because once you have mobility issues, which can arise suddenly without advance warning, it becomes difficult to deal with a move - you may not have the ability to get around easily enough to go look at the places you are interested in and be very limited in the choices you have. And it's very difficult to pack up a home with possibly decades worth of accumulated possessions when you have impaired movement. That's why a lot of people think it makes sense to think ahead while you are fit and active so you can more easily deal with everything that comes with moving while you are physically able to do so.
When I think of my recent hospital/rehabs for the knee infection and the fact that I didn't walk for 2.5+ months -- my body got so weak and atrophied so much and I did so much PT etc etc once the infection was addressed. When I finally got to go home I was so thankful I live in a small apt and had two steps to get into my apt from the ground level. I just can't imagine how it would have been had I lived upstairs. Talk about a life working out in spite of obstacles. As it was I had to learn to get up and down these two little steps with my walker...there are no handrails for these two steps.
Lot of real life stories out there...from those who can afford so much and those who manage to "make it".
I wonder if many of those 20 and 30 year olds buying single-story homes (the folks the OP was so critical of) are doing so in part because they think that as the overall age of the population increases, those houses will be more desirable, appreciate more in value, and be easier to sell than multi-story properties?
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