My Menopause Blog

Tina opened an area of discussion in her comment to my post yesterday.

She asks, “So my question is have you ever felt that doing anything to support yourself or even to diminish symptoms was in anyway untrue to your feeling that ‘menopause is not a disease and does not need to be cured.’ ”

First, allow me to haul out a metaphor.

We know that pregnancy is not a disease. Yet, when a woman gets pregnant, she can expect to go through a tremendous number of physical changes, not all of them fun or pretty, with some lasting nine months and much farther beyond.

Morning sickness is one that comes to mind.

We know that morning sickness usually subsides after the first trimester. We know that by eating, small amounts of food frequently, and sticking to dry crackers, apples and lots of water during the worst times, the feeling of nauseousness will be reduced. We also know that motion sickness medication reduces nauseousness, and has side effects..

Do we change our eating habits and support ourselves through this stage? Do we rigidly stick to our regular eating habits and keep puking for the three months? Or do we pop a pill every day and worry about the side effects later?

The wise, common sense answer is not rocket science.

Menopause is as natural a process as pregnancy.

If I’m having a hot flash, I seek cooler conditions, remove some clothes, take a cool bath. If I want to reduce the number of hot flashes in my future, I take Evening Primrose Oil, eat more beans, soya and flax. I support my bodies needs, naturally using methods that have no harmful side effects.

Essentially, I change my ways to support the change I face in order that the process of change is easier. I have no interest in making my own life more difficult. There are enough idiot’s in the world doing that without my consent.

The beginning of anything new takes some getting used to. Humans resist change by nature. And menopause is change with a bad rap thanks to our youthcentric culture. Plus there’s a massive pharmaceutical industry out there with a pill for every occasion and a marketing budget that tops many small countries GNP.

But we still have the ultimate choice to make wise decisions for ourselves, define aging in our own way, gracefully embrace our process of change and be our age with confidence.

Sue Richards

Tag: menopause, My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards, aging.

According to the U.S. National Institute of Health a hot flash is a sudden temporary onset of body warmth, flushing and sweating.

According to me, a hot flash is a shocking sensation of tropical type humidity that soaks, swells and flushes your flesh as it rushes, like a wave breaking over your body from bottom to top.

The Mayo Clinic reports that 75% of menopausal and post menopausal women experience hot flashes making them one of the most common issues for this age and gender.

I’ve mentioned global warming before on this blog. It would seem that if 75% of nearly one third of the world’s population of women is over heating, something else is warming too.

What to do, what to do:

• Move to Canada and live outside.
• Take a pole dancing class and learn to strip.
• If you’re more modest, dress in easy to remove, multiple layers, then remove them one at a time.
• Buy a cheap hand held fan and be your own fan base.
• Turn down the furnace.
• Go outside if it’s cooler.
• Open the windows.
• Go sit in the basement.
• Avoid food that is known to trigger a flash. Your personal list may consist of things you love like spicy foods, caffeine and alcohol. Sorry, but lettuce never has nor likely will be a trigger.
• Slowly introduce more soy and flax seed in your diet. These, plus beans, peas and lentils contain “phytoestrogens. Researchers believe phytoestrogens may reduce menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, and also help prevent heart disease and osteoporosis, although this has not yet been proven. Regardless, this type of protein is very good for your whole system. And being full of beans can be fun.

What to do if you remember:

• Before bed, take the recommended on the bottle adult dose of magnesium/calcium combination.
• Keep spare PJ’s (or towel if you sleep nude) available. Although I haven’t tried it, I’m told that ‘Moisture Wicking’ nightwear is pretty cool too.
• Have a fresh set of sheets nearby just in case you ‘have a soaker’.

Personally, I highly recommend getting a stash of fine quality semi-sweet chocolate to help you through your hottest times. It’ll melt in your mouth and in your hand. Be warned that this is not scientifically proven, but it has no known side effects except perhaps another hot flash triggered by the caffeine in the chocolate. Any maybe some wild, hot, edible sex….with chocolate stains everywhere.

Sue Richards

Tag: menopause, My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards, hot flash.

I got a comment on a previous post about the benefits of yoga for mind, body and spirit.

With 15 years of inconsistent but well intended yoga study under my soft roll down waist band, I completely concur. As one of my instructors points out, yoga makes you fall in love with your body.

What better time than right now.

Sue Richards

Tags:My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards, yoga menopause

Mostly, I am a frozen turd.

From early October to late April, since I can remember, I’ve been cold. Blue actually. Quite shockingly without any warmth to most of my body. People who touch me during my corpse season recoil in horror. Then they flee lest I’m contagious. Like freezer burn perhaps.

As I entered the neighbourhood of the Pause, the very idea of a hot flash was exotic to me. Imagine being frozen and then suddenly hot without the mess and bother of submerging myself in boiling water or burying myself in twelve layers of wicking, poly-pro, down stuffed clothing.

The mere thought makes me tepid and giddy with hope.

But why wait for my hormones to rear their hot little heads. This year, thanks to a flush in my bank account and a fondness for down, I’ve cornered the market by purchasing four high quality, feather filled items that I am fully in love with.

New gloves that triple the size of my hands but are guaranteed for minus 3,000 will solve my frozen finger syndrome. A duvet, light as…well a feather ….snuggles me through the horizontal part of my day. My full feather jacket, with the big puffy lid, gives my body practice for that post menopausal look that’s nearing anyway. And last but not least, my vest, which since I’ve owned it has not left my body unless I’m wrapped in one of the previously mentioned items.

That is, until last evening. In mid conversation, down vest wrapped and all, the heat started clawing it’s way up my spin, around my ribs and straight to my head. This wasn’t gentle, consistent down heat. I was flashing for all to see.

Quick out of the gate I was…. unzipping my downy cover and tossing it on the floor with noticeable speed. The conversation, about this blog, got a dramatic underscore. And I got a taste of my global warming.

Sue Richards

Tags:My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards, hot flash. menopause

There is snow covering the land of Guelph. The light, fluffy variety that seems playful, even pretty. Fun kiddie snow.

Kind of seductive really. You can almost believe that this winter won’t be so bad when the first snow fall glitters so. But this kind of snow is not the only snow that falls. My personal fave is the heavy cow shit sized hunks that fall at night, filling my driveway to the brim. This followed by the ‘just doing my job’ snow plow operator who mounds said ’snow shit’ into a wall across the end of my exit. The second of the 1-2 punch is the instant drop in temperature that magically follows the plow like winter follows fall.

There is nothing quite like waking up to an impenetrable mountain of ice blocking a car that’s needed. There’s not enough coffee in the world to offset this feeling.

But strangely, I manage to escape. Last year, I took my ax to the whole mess. I call this ‘girl driveway clearing’. It wasn’t pretty to watch, and I know I made my neighbour nervous, but it was effective. And within two days I was free, albeit crippled with back pain. But proudly, with both limbs still attached.

This post has nothing to do with menopause or my period.

Not on the surface anyway.

Winter is the season of menopause.

Sue Richards

Tags: My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards,  menopause

My first intruder of the day, if you can call my period that, decided to drop by, unannounced, for mid-morning coffee.

“Staying long”, I inquired as I rifled through my bathroom cupboard for ‘the fixins’.

The usual twist of pain spoke volumes.

Well at least I get a shot of estrogen this month I thought. Might stop my hair from falling out.

My second intruder arrived under cover of darkness. I’m strangely unfazed by the experience, my first of this kind in this life. As a future precaution, I told the cop who arrived to do the break-in report that I was going to write down my neighbours phone number and keep it by my bed.

The big, burly man in uniform looked at me with amusement, then said, “Dial 911, not your neighbour”.

“Ah yes”, I blushed, mentally comparing, my image of thin, artist Gareth with the man before me. “What a good idea.”

Sue Richards

Tags:My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards, menopause.

One would think, that since we can put a couple of men on the moon just because it beckons, we could figure out how to accurately and easily test our hormone levels.

Let’s face it, hormones, unlike the old man in the moon, threaten world peace every minute of everyday. This constant and known issue should be a priority to national security forces around the world.

I realize that national security is mostly comprised of men and men’s hormone’s play a different game. But these men have mothers, perhaps wives, maybe daughters, all of them moving towards or in menopause. This must be the ultimate Homeland Security issue sitting right smack dab in your house. In fact, this menace could be sharing your bed.

Listen up fellows, let’s be frank. We, the menopausal women of the world, have weapons of mass destruction. They are not hidden in a cave somewhere in the Canadian Shield. We are each carrying. Holding. Packing a wad.

We would like to continue living our lives without fear of killing you or being depressed. We do not want to be given a ’silver bullet’ that will cause other ugly symptoms or disease. We seek balance, naturally, safely.

We admit this freely to you in the hopes that you will put a bit of your problem solving nature into motion with the following:

1. Saliva Hormone Testing has been around for 30 years and has not been embraced by the medical community. Studies show that this affordable test, done in the comfort of your own home is accurate at determining hormone levels. Saliva testing plays a key role in bio-identical hormone replacement, an individualized, low dose form of natural HRT. Please launch Operation Spit Test and encourage the medical community to learn about this form of testing and bio-identical hormone replacement now.

My menopause is not your menopause. Difficult as it may sound, one size pill/patch or cream does not fit all. We are unique creatures, all of us.

For those women who want a full menu of meno treatment options, we need individual testing and individualized, natural hormone replacement. Since you guys seem to be running the joint, would you mind looking into that for us.

Sue Richards

Tags:My Menopause Blog, Sue Richards, saliva testing, menopause.

There’s ying.

And then there’s yang.

Yesterday’s post focused on the physical changes that knock on your door as you move through menopause. These are frequently bantered about, instilling dread and loathing into any woman in the neighbourhood of ‘the pause.’ I mean, who wants to fry, dry up, or melt down with no notice?

I fall prey to this menopausal fear mongering all the time. But then I remember how much calmer and self assured I feel and how given the choice I would not want to be a minute younger. Besides, unless you are experiencing Sudden Menopause (my condolences) the symptoms of menopause have the urgency of a garden slug and the predictability of the weather. Maybe you’ll be warm today. Maybe you won’t.

Besides physical changes, it stands to reason that women go through a spiritual and emotional transition too. Here’s a list of the lesser talked about, but no less significant menopausal signs.

• Wisdom: ability to use foresight and hindsight in tandem.
• Sexual freedom: fear of pregnancy vanishes.
• Confidence: increases.
• Speaking up: willingness to speak your mind blossoms.
• Lightening up: less sweating of the small stuff.
• Adventuring: new energy for new adventures.
• Learning: a quest for new knowledge.
• Authenticity: more real and true to self.
• Power: recognition of personal power and how to use it.
• Creativity: surges of creative energy emerge.
• Laughter: recognize life as funny.
• Courage: built from life experience.
• Compassion: increases for self and others.
• Forgiveness: willing to let go of grudges and other baggage.
• Knowing: what you do and don’t want.
• Grief: a time to mourn life’s collection of losses.

Women often speak of gaining a ‘zest for life’ during their menopausal years. Menopause signals a time when child bearing, rearing and nurturing are finished thus freeing up a tremendous amount of energy and time for other more self focused activities. You no longer need to keep the family ship floating.

Finally, it’s your turn girlfriend.

Sue Richards

Tags: menopause, Sue Richards, My Menopause Blog