My Menopause Blog

Unless I read back in my blog, which I am loath to do right now, it’s easy to forget what it was like in those early days when I was 80% indignant and 20% dumbfounded by the changes that were occurring, often in tandem with each other, in the peri - not quite a full period- menopausal early days.

One of my girlfriends is a new initiate to the whole sweat, flash, forget, mood swing groove so I get a full load of her shock and horror on at least a weekly basis. Until now, she has let everything I’ve said about menopause slip by without a thought. But now- evil laugh from Sue - said girlfriend simply can’t help but talk and talk and talk about - well menopause and all its glorious hormonal backbends.

If you are in the learners stage of menopause and simply want some facts - no funny stuff - cause it isn’t really funny yet - I urge you to click on this link : The Canadian Women’s Health Network. They’ve got straight up answers to the following questions.

• What is menopause?
• What is ‘perimenopause’?
• What are the signs of menopause?
• Do all women experience menopause in the same way?
• What is ‘induced’ menopause?
• How should I prepare for menopause?

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .

I was shocked and puzzled as I watched man after man emerge from the ‘Male Change Room’ at our local recreation center. By the dazed looks on their faces and their careful walk as they exited towards the pool, I can only presume that some metamorphosis took place.

First off - I had no idea there was a room set up for this type of task. And further, since there are rooms available, for a modest fee I’ll add, why do so many women attempt to change their men by themselves?

Now the Female Change Room - walk in one side pre-menopausal then out the other a full fledged member of the Menopause Club - that would be sweet.

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .

About 10 days ago, my brother told me that he’d just started talking 5,000 units of Vitamin D a day. It’s been a year since he completed cancer treatment and even though he’s back to work - his tail has been dragging behind him ever since.

According to bro - within two weeks of popping the chalk like pills with his morning wheaties, he had a ’skip in his step’ and was eyeballing his baseball glove with the eagerness of a boy. It’s not often - or really ever - that my brother has a health tip for me - me being the granola bar of the family - but this did not dissuade him from applying some friendly sibling pressure to give Vitamin D a try.

My tail has been dragging behind me for some time now so I brought up the Vitamin D idea to my nutritional consultant. He promptly recommended that I ‘get on the D Bandwagon too’.

It’s only been a week - so I have no remarkable results to report - but - I do have an additional Vitamin D story to share.

Here’s one of today’s headlines in the health section - Vitamin D may help lower breast cancer risk before menopause. Apparently the study tracked more than 10,000 premenopausal and more than 20,000 postmenopausal women aged 45 or older for an average of 10 years.

I’ll let you read about the study for yourself - click here.

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .

What can I say - it was like we’d slept together forever.

Yes, Gus (poorly photographed here because after one photo, my camera conked out and by the time the batteries were recharged, the ambiance of the morning after was gone) had all the moves of a man who knew when to snuggle and when to back off his perpetually flashing bedmate. He snored - but in the cutest way for the shortest time. He farted - once - which is totally forgivable. And he did not hog the bed.

He did not give me attitude despite my tossing and turning, several times burying him in the heavy duvet. After each midnight run to the bathroom, I returned to find him in the same place that I left him. In fact, my mood did not swing once in the several hours of bed sharing - even when he woke me - big eyed and bushy tailed at 7am.

So it’s not that he provided actual menopause relief but instead he did not add to the nightmarish nocturnal menopause symptoms. Yes - wee Gus remained sweet, loving and supportive.

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .

This is my friend Gus. His meno-mother, a card carrying member of ‘The Stupids’, swears that Gus brings menopause relief to her each and every night. Just how he does this has never fully been explained to me but - today is my time to find out. Gus is having a sleep over.

I must further state that Gus is no longer a cup sized puppy as this photo would indicate. The strapping muscular dude that is gazing at me right now turned 1 last weekend. He now weighs in just about 20 pounds - considerably less dog than my dearly departed 70 pound mutt Stew.

So then - menopause relief awaits me in this bug eyed package. I wonder if this could be the beginning of a menopausal revolution - I imagine millions of women trading in their bed partners for a Boston Terrier.

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, Boston Terrier .

Today was our first 30C day of the season. There I was, sitting in my doctors office, a stuffy rather rustic space with no central air, discussing something non-menopause related when a hot flash from hell decided to BBQ me right on the spot.

I quickly did a clothing adjustment followed by a hair tie trick that is as slick as pulling a rabbit out of a hat. Then I inched forward so that barely any of me was touching any surface and I inhaled deeply through my nostrils.
Despite my obvious hot flash emergency response, my doctor - a woman of my vintage, said nothing.

I figure I’m either excellent at integrating my relief actions into my stream of motion or she’s in the same sweaty boat as me and saw no reason to comment.

Silence is a sure sign of a ‘been there, done that’ hot flasher.

Sue Richards
Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .

Yesterday I described the newly named but not new menopausal symptom ‘The Stupid’s’. Now - I will describe an example of a recent outing involving me - a two year veteran of ‘The Stupid’s’ and the inventor of ‘The Stupid’s’, a fresh, brand spanking new merry peri-pausal gal.

The plan seemed simple enough. I would pick up my girlfriend and together we would attend the Standing Women event on Mother’s Day in our city.

The picking up part went smoothly. We both remembered that I was driving, the time of departure and the pick up point. But no sooner had we reached the first stop sign, and I clicked the left turn indicator, did our plan start to fall to bits.

Her: Where are you going?

Me: To Loyola House….(instantly my mind search begins with hope for information retrieval that backs up choice currently being questioned.)

Her: It’s at the Loretta Convent not Loyola House.

Me: Really - wow - that never even made it into my mind. Are you sure?

Her: (hesitates - knowing full well that ’sure’ is no longer ‘for sure’.) I think so - remember I read it in the Tribune at your house yesterday.

Me: You mean the Mercury - you read it in the Mercury but I was sure you said Loyola. Still Loretta Convent does make sense given it’s women and all so let’s try there first.

We arrive at Loretta Convent about 15 minutes before the appointed time and no one is there.

Her: Hmmmm. You’d think someone would be here by now.

Me: You’d think…(I scan the vast property for something that looks like a gathering). Let’s go to my place and check the Mercury again. If it is at Loyola House, we’ll have just enough time to make it there.

Her: Sure. Who knows - maybe I have the date wrong.

We quickly drive the five blocks to my house, easily find the paper in my recycling box and confirm that the event was to be held at Loretta Convent and start within a few minutes. By the time we make it back, we are just in time to join the dozen women that have gathered for the 5 minute silent peace vigil.

Please allow me to suggest The Stupid’s Lesson for the peri-menopausal from our peace vigil adventure: Staying flexible and open to the possibility of the opposite being true is key to staying happy while in the grip of The Stupid’s.

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .

I have been kind in my previous posts about the distinct loss of memory that seizes the early days of the peri-menopausal. Sure - I have expressed indignation, shock and horror at my limited ability to walk from one room to the next holding the same thought. And I have been embarrassed by the distinct gap that certain nouns leave when they pack up and move out of ones vocabulary. But I honestly don’t recall reverting to name calling my ‘almost cured cause it does go away - or return - depending if you think your memory comes or goes’, menopause symptom clinically referred to as muddled or fuzzy thinking.

Not that I took to muddled or fuzzy. In fact, I’m not fond of either word. But neither was I interested in renaming something during a time when remembering my own name was a challenge.

So then - The Stupids - coined by a newly peri-friend is neither kind nor pretty but it does truly hits the nail on the head don’t you think? I see a sitcom - tee shirts - some Doh! like statement that we club meno babes can toss around in an annoying Homer fashion.

It’s called branding - you just tie a bunch of stuff into this much harsher but even more accurate moniker for one of the first menopause symptoms to hit your musical menopause stage and tada - everyone catches on.

‘The Stupids’ - coming to a mind you used to depend on!

Sue Richards

Menopause Tags: My Menopause Blog, my menopause blog,Sue Richards, peri-menopausal, menopause relief, guelph blog, baby boomer, womens health news, menopause symptoms .