My mouth is always covered in painful apthae (chemical origin).
My ankles have been sprained enough times (17) that at least one is arthritic.
A cyst on my wrist enlarges periodically, especially when stressed. Thanks, Army.
My other wrist suffers recurrent tendonitis.
I’ve got cavities all over the place. I think it’s 10. My wisdom teeth need pulled too.
The kicker to all this is that I’m only 22. The question, then: Is it normal to hurt this much? I know older people (let’s say 40) are commonly achy in the same ways due to years of stress on the body. Are people my age supposed to feel this messed up though? For those my age, do you have any/all of these minor health problems too? For those older, were you all beat up at 22?
I think you’re a little ahead of the game. That thing in your mouth sounds like no fun at all. Except for that, I might have been able to compete with you when I was your age (I’m 53 now). I had a bad right knee and right wrist from ealier injuries. I had frequent breathing problems from a broken nose. My sinus problems and some dental problems apparently led to rather frequent bouts with infections; it was at that age that I was having the worst problems of my life with my tonsils. There were a couple other problems that I prefer not to name.
Still have all those problems (except I don’t get tonsillitis any more), and I’ve been adding to the list with enthusiasm. Wait till you’re my age; you’ll look back and wish for those halcyon days of your youth, when you were strong and healthy.
“I know older people (let’s say 40) are commonly achy in the same ways due to years of stress on the body. "
I quoted you because I didn’t want your :rolleyes:
I’m 47 years old and no I wasn’t “all beat up at 22” nor am I all beat up now.
As I get older ,yes there are signs of 'wear and tear” and I’m sure as I get even more years stacked up there will be more of those signs .
There is a CW song (I can’t remember who sings it) that goes something like this " if I had known I was gonna live this long I’d of taken better care of myself"
OP: dude, looks like you’ve been dealt a bad hand physically. I’m roughly your age and I don’t know anyone who is dealing with this kind of problems. So why is the cyst on your wrist the army’s fault?
Why is any of that the Army’s fault? You should have had the Army fill your cavities and pull your teeth for free. At least you’d have one or two less things to gripe about.
I’m about to turn 40. I wasn’t as “beat up” at 22 as you describe. What I wanted to add is that I AM far more creaky and achy (I’ll spare you the details) than my mom was at 40, and moreso than my grandmother was in her 50s.
So, I think it’s more situational than age related. I work with hand tools and stand most of each work day, and have for over 20 years. That is, I imagine, more of a factor in how arthritic my hands feel than how many trips I’ve made around the sun.
I’m 42 and I don’t hurt like that. Are you doing physically intense labor? When I was working on my house, at the end of each day I hurt all over. Each morning I would wake up with all my joints feeling arthritic, but after re-establishing a more normal routine those pains went away.
I hope it’s all temporary for you. For what it’s worth, my best female friend has been plagued with pain all her life–arthritis, migraines, hip problems, hysterectomy (she’s not even 35), etc. Some people do seem to be cursed with health issues. But it aint supposed to be like that.
Never heard of it, so I googled it and the first thing that came up was wrongdiagnosis.com. Weird. But it’s ulcers in your mouth and I wonder why you say “chemical origin.” What are you gargling?
I was pretty healthy going into the Army and the Army never did that much to me. You need to get to a doctor and have everything documented. Eat healthy, take vitamins. Definitely get your teeth/mouth fixed. There’s no reason to put up with that in the military.
IntelSoldier, I see from your profile that you’ve been to Iraq and that you are now back in school. Aren’t there any army benefits that you’re still entititled to as a vet?
As for your original question, I went through a few rough patches physically myself at a young age, and things did get better. The cyst, the teeth, the tendonitis-- all sound like things that can be worked on. As for your ankles, is that self-diagnosis, or has the arthritis been confirmed by tests? Whether it’s arthritis or something else, there are treatments and/or physiotherapy that can help you recover a better physical condition.
Don’t give up on yourself, it sounds as though you’re just going to have to work to repair years of neglect. Good luck!
katpohl: I didn’t roll my eyes at Ruby, she rolled them at me for calling 40 old, which I didn’t.
Svedjik: The cyst on my wrist is the Army’s fault because it formed during Basic/AIT from doing so many pushups. Just holding my own weight (plus a rucksack full of books) up by my wrists makes them hurt. I’m thinking the bursas on my elbows are from laying in the prone firing position a lot too.
Sage Rat and levdrakon: The chemicals in question are acids, specifically citric and phosphoric. So what I’m gargling could be anything like orange juice, fruit, soda, chocolate, tomato sauce or basically anything that’s not baking soda. My dentist can’t do anything about it because #1, it’s not my teeth, and #2, no one really knows what causes it, why, or how to prevent it. I stopped using toothpaste w/ SLS but that only worked for a little while. Whatever the cause, it’s genetic. Both brothers and a few of my (for some reason, just male) cousins have the same problems.
MoodIndigo: It’s a self-diagnosis. My ankle hurts when it rains. It’s a deep-down pain, like in the bone. If I don’t move, it’s fine, but any bending makes if feel like the bones won’t move. It’s probably not arthritis exactly. I just picked something to call it. Whatever it is, it hurts.
All: Yes, there are plenty benefits that the Army gives me but they don’t have a magic wand to make me feel better. I feel that I may have overstated my battered-ness. I’m very healthy, actually. I’m the right weight, I exercise. I can see and hear superbly…it’s just that I’m full of little pains here and there. My activities are in no way limitted (except maybe eating painlessly). I’m just wondering if I got a raw deal or if everyone has their share of health things gone wrong, even at 22.
Arthritis at 22 is not a good thing. I’m just now getting it in my hands at 50 and I’m trying to do all possible to fight it back.
I broke my ankles/toes/heal on a regular basis playing soccer as a teenager and at 50 both feet need a little TLC. Just the basic yoga rotation of ankles in a sitting position makes a huge difference. Yoga is good for the back too.
10 cavities all at once is a little unusual, wisdom teeth removal is not. Both are temporary problems that can be fixed.
As for health problems at your age, well… I broke a bone in my neck (playing soccer) and it will never heal. And it has bothered me for 35 years (arthritis).
Don’t wait until you’re my age to start taking care of yourself. You will never wake up younger than when you went to bed.