On Falling - 16 April 2026

As a geezer and knowing of so many incidents where people either lost their lives or were badly hurt when they fell, I'm so worried about falling. In my mind, as I walk, I try to think about avoiding falling. Yesterday, walking around the house with the Freddie, I tripped on a step and fell forward. I didn't raise my leg high enough to negotiate a normal step. I was at the top of the step, so I fell all 90 degrees onto the hard surface below. During the short half second from the time you know you'll fall to your hitting the surface you feel a sensation of pure helplessness. I have abrasions on my face and some scrapes requiring bandages on my right arm. I am otherwise OK and function as normal but for the bandaged scrapes. People, keep upright! Think about this as you walk, unlike me, yesterday.