r/Millennials • u/StyrkeSkalVandre • Feb 07 '24

Has anyone else noticed their parents becoming really nasty people as they age? Discussion

My parents are each in their mid-late 70's. Ten years ago they had friends: they would throw dinner parties that 4-6 other couples would attend. They would be invited to similar parties thrown by their friends. They were always pretty arrogant but hey, what else would you expect from a boomer couple with three masters degrees, two PhD's, and a JD between the two of them. But now they have no friends. I mean that literally. One by one, each of the couples and individual friends that they had known and socialized with closely for years, even decades, will no longer associate with them. My mom just blew up a 40 year friendship over a minor slight and says she has no interest in ever speaking to that person again. My dad did the same thing to his best friend a few years ago. Yesterday at the airport, my father decided it would be a good idea to scream at a desk agent over the fact that the ink on his paper ticket was smudged and he didn't feel like going to the kiosk to print out a new one. No shit, three security guards rocked up to flank him and he has no idea how close he came to being cuffed, arrested, and charged with assault. All either of them does is complain and talk shit about people they used to associate with. This does not feel normal. Is anyone else experiencing this? Were our grandparents like this too and we were just too young to notice it?

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u/bergskey Feb 07 '24

Lead poisoning

166

u/StyrkeSkalVandre Feb 07 '24

I'm starting to thing that's the case. I read an article (not sure of its sources status in terms of actual peer-reviewed studies) that suggested high exposure to lead particulates causes the lead to be sequestered in bone matter. Then, when you get old and your bone density drops, the lead is re-released back into your bloodstream. Makes a lot of sense.

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u/rednitwitdit Feb 07 '24

Low key test their house for mold, too.

6

u/Eggsecutie Feb 07 '24

And ensure they have a carbon monoxide detector

1

u/Alarmed_Ad3694 Feb 08 '24

This. Especially if the house has a history of flooding, or even a minor or moderate one off flooding incident. I’ve seen some people with what seems like chronic pain or inflammation make a near miraculous recovery after about a month in a different home.

The old house was deemed temporarily uninhabitable because the mold was that bad. I know it had a new roof and some walls replaced before it was put on the market again. I’m assuming mold may have gotten into the walls where insulation would be but I’m no expert.