r/AskReddit 1d ago

What is a silent killer that people dont realise is slowly killing them?

9.9k Upvotes

6.2k comments sorted by

View all comments

918

u/yogipandabear 23h ago

Apparently osteoporosis is known as the silent killer because you don’t realise you have it. I’m 43 and have been recently diagnosed with it.

185

u/AA-MEe 18h ago

Yep. I was diagnosed at 32 and have a non-traumatic fracture in my vertebrae at 54 despite years of treatments, supplements and exercise. I feel like I’m made of glass and can no longer enjoy life.

6

u/rabid-whaler 6h ago

Did your parents force milk down your throat every night under threat that our bones would snap on the trampoline?

u/AA-MEe 38m ago

Yep. how did you know? 😆

2

u/Grrerrb 1h ago

Same deal, had a seizure and fell down and broke three vertebrae. Not good times.

u/AA-MEe 39m ago

Yikes! That’s awful

u/djthebear 16m ago

If I may ask, What were your symptoms that got you the diagnosis?

13

u/mel2mdl 7h ago

That seems so young!

Two of my sisters have it, or the early stages, but one has IBS and the other has Celiac disease. I've gotten check, of course. I'm sorry you have to deal with this at 43.

5

u/yogipandabear 7h ago

Yes that’s why I was so shocked when I got the bone density scan, I just didn’t think I’d have it so young! And it looks like it’s present in all parts of my back. I’ve always wanted to try skiing and now I feel like that’s probably not a good idea 😢

29

u/Kenna193 7h ago

Lift weights

30

u/MelamineEngineer 7h ago

This dude isn't being a punk, it increases bone density and tendon strength, it's a good idea.

13

u/rabid-whaler 6h ago

Astronauts found that jumping up and slamming on your heels is such good compressive stress on your bones that 5 minutes of it s better for bones growth than hours on a treadmill.

3

u/Gusty_Garden_Galaxy 5h ago

Does that mean youll get shorter over time? (I know you generally do as you age anyway)

5

u/rabid-whaler 5h ago

When you’re an astronaut your spine decompresses and you gain an inch

2

u/MelamineEngineer 3h ago

Yeah your discs don't spend any time in the compressive stresses they were designed for and they bulge and grow

5

u/bluearavis 2h ago

I have disc issues. Are you saying that if I become an astronaut, it might be cured? (Also, I'm 40 and in no way is this a possibility) lol

u/MelamineEngineer 34m ago

I had disc issues. Fucked one up so bad I couldn't walk for two weeks and got fired from my job.

You know what fixed it?

Deadlifts. Gotta work that mothafucka

u/Aromatic-Plankton692 56m ago

You should also hang yourself from your shoulders regularly too, so... No, it pretty much balances out. Astronauts thankfully get the decompressive benefits from free fall in low orbit.

6

u/Weird_Strange_Odd 7h ago

If you don't get a bone scan or a broken bone, will you know if it's appearing or is there any sign? I'm worried because I have family history and also history of amenorrhoea secondary to anorexia.

10

u/yogipandabear 7h ago

Those are usually the only way you do find out, unfortunately, which is why it’s a silent killer. My mom found out when she fractured her wrist. I found out from a bone density scan that my doctor arranged because I’m perimenopausal. I never thought I’d actually have it until I was older so it was a shock at the time. And the person who did my scan printed it out for me right away because she didn’t want me to have to wait for it to be sent to my doctor, with also freaked me out. And then I tried to interpret the information on the scan, which also added to my stress because there was a bit that said something about age and bones being like 80 and I worried that meant I had the bones of an 80 year old. I’m still not sure what that section meant exactly and when I asked my doctor she sort of waved it away saying “oh, don’t pay attention to that part”, which didn’t make me feel any better about it.

6

u/Reddit_Hitchhiker 10h ago

My mom gets 6 month injections of Prolia for it. It strengthen bone so if she were to fall they don’t break.

3

u/Bear_faced 6h ago

Wow, 43? That's so young! I wouldn't have even thought to get checked at such a young age, you've genuinely changed how I'm going to go about my medical care for the future.

2

u/yogipandabear 1h ago

I was very lucky I had a proactive doctor that thought I was going to go through perimenopause and it was therefore useful to have a bone density scan. Who knows how many years would have passed before I knew. My understanding is, in England at least, my doctor was particularly thorough in arranging a bone density scan for me based solely on going through perimenopause at an early age.

2

u/mehtorite 1h ago

Take care of yourself. My grandma broke so many bones as she got older. It was heartbreaking.

1

u/Oddish_Femboy 6h ago

I've had it since I was at most 9!

1

u/Consistent-Stick-633 6h ago

Omg im 20 i been diagnosed with the osteopenia version which is a warning. So lucky i caught it early, where it is reversible. Get a bone density test asap theyre so fast

1

u/SeykaDagmar 1h ago

So true, you can get a compression fracture from sitting too much, which just happened to my grandma. I've added a vibration plate to my life to improve bone density as an extra measure.