Archive through August 06, 2003
TV ClubHouse: archives: The TVCH Menopause Rant Thread:
Archive through August 06, 2003
Scorpiomoon | Thursday, July 31, 2003 - 07:37 pm     Thanks for your responses, guys. I definitely need to do more research on soy and nutrition. |
Cathie | Thursday, July 31, 2003 - 08:45 pm     Goddess, he's in TX but he does have a twin who is also a doc, lol. Maybe there's a triplet in Indiana! He also told me several years ago when I requested medical assistance for weight loss that at my age (late 40s then) I shouldn't expect to be able to lose or change my habits. He even predicted that I would continue to gain and "top out" at 300 lb. Don't you know that was encouraging to me! After another year or so, when I did continue to gain (never made it to 300 thank goodness), and was diagnosed with diabetes and high blood pressure he gave me medication for them, still without mentioning weight loss. I finally became disgusted enough with my body and my health that I started a medical weight loss program at a local hospital and lost 94 pounds in the first 9 months. I took great satisfaction in making one last office visit to him. He was flabbergasted (sp?) and was amazed that I had been off all my meds for over 6 months. He did blood work and all of my results were well within normal limits without any meds. I told him that his earlier words of "advice" to me were detrimental to my health and had created a sense of helplessness, making me think I may as well just eat and bear the consequences, but that DESPITE his advice I had sought treatment and succeeded. He did admit he was surprised and would keep that in mind in the future, but that in 20 years in practice he had only one other patient who had attempted a large weight loss and succeeded. I suggested (politely )that maybe a little encouragement and enthusiasm from him would help those numbers increase! |
Juju2bigdog | Thursday, July 31, 2003 - 09:58 pm     Cathie, may I suggest (politely) that we hook Goddessatlaw on a good PMS tear up with that bozo and let her have a few rounds with him? Theowl, mercifully I was spared most of that weird emotional stuff, although I have found it really easy to cry over sad stories in the newspaper come to think of it for about the past five years or so. Besides which, you really DO suck at the AR games. JUST kidding, I have no idea how anybody including myself is doing at the games. Just remember, it is not you; it is the freakish nature of menopause. You may want to check back with your doc about the crying. Just be sure not to tell her how REALLY bad you are doing on the games. |
Theowl | Thursday, July 31, 2003 - 10:14 pm     Thanks BabyRuth, but my hubby just brought me Peanut Butter Hot Fudge Shake from Sonic. I feel so much better now. Thanks alot Juju!! I needed that!! WAAAAAWAAAAAWAAAAAA!!! I'm better now. Boy, they come and go so fast!! Lately, reading FlyOnTheWalls thread does me in. Just now I read what Admin plans on doing with the donations, and there I go again. (The shake didn't help that one) I think it's just something I have to live with. I don't want to go to my dr. I don't want to do a whole lot of anything anymore. Oh well, I guess I'll just go to bed now. And yes, I really do suck at the games, mostly Cupid. AAARRRGGGG!! Maybe I should just quit playing them, but I can't. I'm addicted!!  |
Fanny | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 05:27 am     I'm in denial. It's too hot in here! I can't sleep! LOL wonders if anyone has been able to keep her heating bills really low in the winter due to hot flashes |
Grannyg | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 05:35 am     Fanny, just when you are freezing to death and WISHING for a hot flash, you never have one.!! They never come at a moment when you wish for them. Only when you are wishing you would never have one. |
Jeep | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 07:23 am     LOL Fanny! It's funny you would say that. I remarked to my hubby this past winter that we saved lots of money because I kept turning the heat down. I don't have the occasional hot flash. I've just been getting progressively warmer all the time. I used to use an electric blanket turned up to the highest setting. Now, I sleep with the lightest blanket (can't do without one) I can find, turn the heat down to about 60, turn on the ceiling fan and even a small table fan that sits by the window. If it's still to hot, I turn the heat OFF and open a window a crack and let the fan blow the cold air in! It gets so cool even the cats won't come in to visit me! But even with us having a very cold winter, my electric bill went DOWN! |
Lumbele | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 10:09 am     Theowl, I think all that blubbering comes with the territory for some of us. Sad movies, Mormon commercials, suffles dropping like rocks etc. etc. Look at the bright side, nasal passages get cleared regularly, husbands and kids tripping over themselves offering goodies to make you feel better. Heck, we may as well enjoy those perks, don't ya think? |
Fanny | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 10:48 am     Oh thanks for the encouraging words, Granny. And LOL Jeep...well if nothing else I'll have lower heating bills to look forward to. Maybe I can take all that money I'll be saving and buy bullets with it. Dammit I just had my period a week ago and now I'm starting to PMS again. Before I entered this BID phase of life (B*tch In Denial) I had two good weeks out of each month. |
Calamity | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 11:35 am     Hi Scorpiomoon: I hope it's a long time before I need to worry about menopause but I wanted to chime in re: your question too! It can be so frustrating trying to find reliable (and comprehensible ) info on the links between nutrition & health. It seems like most every study that comes out contradicts a previous one. But I have read that women who were in good shape prior to menopause generally report fewer difficulites. I agree with Babyruth and Karuuna. Cutting out (or at least limiting) highly processed foods and animal fats as well as adding soy to one's diet really do seem to have significant health benefits for women. I know herbal supplements are somewhat controversial and to be honest, I'm a bit wary of some of them myself but evening primrose oil is purportedly good for PMS symptoms. As for fitness...Weight-bearing exercises help build or at least maintain bone mass - very important for women as we age. And as one gets closer to menopause, improving cardiovascular health should be a priority because our protection against heart disease all but disappears. There are many yoga postures that are said to be good for menstrual problems. Of course yoga also helps with one's flexibility and balance, which also becomes more important as one gets older. |
Juju2bigdog | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 05:37 pm     Scorpiomom, I don't think anybody knows the answer to your question. Here it is the 21st freaking century, and medical science knows hardly anything about menopause. I find it continuingly incredible. Hahahahaha, like Jack just said on tonight's BB show, I had to keep in pretty good shape because of my job because we had physicals on a regular basis, and they would give you a "fat boy" letter if you were not in good shape. I never got a "fat girl" letter, and I eat pretty healthy, but still menopause was and is no picnic. BUT, you should just do all that healthy stuff anyway. It can't hurt. |
Mak1 | Friday, August 01, 2003 - 07:31 pm     Heck, Juju, my mother can't even say the word "menopause". I guess her generation didn't discuss such things. |
Dahli | Sunday, August 03, 2003 - 07:01 pm     This is a great thread and similarly to Robin McGraw I've spent tons of time researching this very topic for my own he!!ish trip through perimenopause 5 years ago when I thought I was going crazy and all they offered were drugs... Learned a lot of it can be handled very efficiently through lifestyle choices and getting smart about what to put IN my body. That and weight bearing exercise is key. If I could suggest two really important things in addition, they would be make sure to get sufficient Essential fatty acids, don't be afraid of fat, the right kind is your friend, decrease drastically alcohol and caffeine and of course completely eliminate nicotine and other poisens! :-D |
Karuuna | Sunday, August 03, 2003 - 07:14 pm     Caffeine? give up caffeine? I'm not sure the crabbiness from giving up my caffeine would be less than the crabbiness from my symptoms! Seriously, tho, I do agree with you Dahli It's just that some of those changes are harder to make than others.  |
Whoami | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 12:42 pm     Ah, what a great thread! Personally, I can't wait for menopause! All this monthly mess is enough! I also have very heavy periods in the first couple of days. Then it tapers off to almost nothing. Then a day or two of "normal" until I'm finally done for the day. I've only had time to skim-read a lot of the posts. And I think I read something about the "soaking" when you stand up....yup, been there done that! Now to be real gross here (go away men). For probably about 10 years or more, my first two days are so heavy, I umm....(now I'm getting embarassed here)...pass clots. I didn't see anyone else mention it. Just wondered if I'm wierd or something. No, I haven't consulted a doctor over it. It's just one of those things that, if it was something life-threatening, it would have done me in by now (seeing as it's gone on for so long). This last time (I'm just finishing this month), it was a nice steady flow every day. I figure it was cause of change of altitude and stuff (live in CO, flew to CA). Seems like everytime I go on vacation, I'm on my cycle! I couldn't even go all the way into the ocean at the beach this weekend cause of it (I only wear pads, can't handle tampons). Could only go in to my knees. Yes, I am anxiously awaiting menopause. I just hope it hits me like it did my mom. She never had hot flashes, never needed hormones. Never had any problems. She just plain up and stopped having periods! |
Tagurit | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 03:51 pm     I am glad that this thread is here. I was worried about having a hysterectomy young and how my life would be on hormonal replacement meds. I am 33 but am looking at a hysterectomy in the near future. At least with this thread, I can see what may happen from different prespectives. I used to get menstrual migraines -horrible one in the beginning, another in the middle and yet another at the end - not much got done at our house during the week! We tried the lower dose bc pills but that didn't work. So, for about a year now, I only take three weeks skip the last week and start the next set. So, no Aunt Flo. Let me tell you, I wasn't ready for the night sweats and hot flashes! Those are terrible. Just went through some yesterday and this morning after getting out of a nice cool shower, I was soaking wet from sweat. It is terrible! Don't we women go through enough?!?! lol Thankfully I don't go through this all the time - every third or fourth month and just last a day or two. I think I can deal with them over the migraines though. The thing that bothers me is my lower back. Do any of you deal with lower back pain all the time like you get during PMS? I swear I deal with it 2.5 weeks out of the month. If so, what do you take? I do take Advil but would like to know of other approaches. Whoami, your first two days of Aunt Flo would be like my middle days. I really never thought much about it. I would just make sure I would take in enough iron. |
Twinkie | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 04:03 pm     Ok, I talked to the doc about the horrible hot flashes i've had since being off the HRT and told her the over the counter soy-based estrogen is expensive and she has prescribed Paxil. She said it will not only help with the hot flashes but also is a mood elevater. Something I'm sure everyone around me will be happy about. LOL Has anyone else taken this med or know anything about it? |
Mak1 | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 05:01 pm     Whoami, I used to have the clotting problem too, with terrible cramping. When I remembered to mention it to my doctor one year, he said birth control pills could help, but I decided to wait until it got worse, lol. Luckily, it hasn't been happening in recent months. I take a daily iron pill now for anemia, and I think that's why I'm doing better. Tagurit, I get that backache. It stiffens up, like a minor spasm. I take Aleve, but it doesn't help on the worst days. It feels better when I have heat or ice on it...both help temporarily. When I go for walks, it feels better while I'm moving. Too bad I can't walk 24/7 for a week at a time! I've used a heat wrap (Thermacare). It helped somewhat, but can only be worn for 8-hour intervals and only a few days in a row. I hope someone here can give us a more long-lasting solution. Twinkie, my daughter took Paxil for treatment of depression. I think I saw the drug discussed in the Members area a while back, probably in the Depression/Anxiety thread. I haven't heard of it being used for hot flashes but will be interested to learn if it helps. I only have hot flashes sometimes when I'm asleep...so far. |
Juju2bigdog | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 05:01 pm     Oh, interesting, Twinks. Thanks for reporting back that you have been to the doc. I'm so glad you went. Be SURE to let ME know how it works. My mind would like to get me off the HRT (which gets you right back to bleeding again, Whoami, in case you didn't know that), but my body can't take the hot flashes. Whoami, I would say the clots are probably not uncommon, at least they were for peri-menopause. I would guess there are no men reading this thread. If there are, they have extremely strong stomachs. Or they are puking in the bushes every other post, poor things, lol. |
Mak1 | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 05:16 pm     Twinkie, some members have posted their experiences and side effects with Paxil Here. LOL Juju, men enter this thread at their own risk! |
Tagurit | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 05:26 pm     Mak1, I do the heating pad at times. I haven't tried a cold compress or anything. I hate it when I can't get comfortable at night though especially when it is several nights in a row. I end up getting up and walking around. Then I hope I can get back into bed and fall asleep before I get annoyed again. lol And, do you find on your worst days, you have to bend down to pick up EVERYTHING?!? Maybe someone out there has a wonder cure for us. |
Halfunit | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 05:36 pm     I've been on the pill for over 15 years, and boy - am I GLAD! I have about 2 and a half days worth of very light action. I know that my time is running out with my daily little friend due to age and the fact that I smoke. Unit is aware that he will see the big "V" within a year or so. I dread what is going to happen to my body once I stop taking the pill. |
Glenn | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 06:31 pm     I have been reading this thread from time to time. I have to confess I have learned tons of things I had no idea of and it has helped me to understand what to look for. I have been fortunate to have not experienced what it is like to live with someone going through these tough times. I have mixed emotions about wanting to. |
Squaredsc | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 07:19 pm     rofl glenn, be afraid. |
Fanny | Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 08:42 pm     Glenn why in the world would you have mixed emotions about it??? I'd be running as damn fast as I could in the other direction. |
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