WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR MAY 2021

Thank you Barbie for providing us a clean slate.

Okie in the TX Hill Country

Thank you Barbie, for starting May off right! Today's feast of a salad: fresh spinach, wild rice, mozzarella shredded, walnuts, black olives, half an avocado, 2 small tomatoes, and yogurt creamy dressing! Then waited an hour and had coffee with 1/2 of my apple fritter husband bought me yesterday. Opened at 12 noon, closed at 2pm. Easy peasy.
This months goal is to slowly increase my walking distance daily. Currently its at 2 miles Monday-Thursdays. This past week was not consistent because of my covid test, and colonoscopy. Next week we have to shop on Thursday, because Friday I get #2 of the moderna shot.
Talked to my eldest sister Pam today, and since she's at her new place in Oregon, she wants to have a family reunion July 23, 24 and 25th. We should both be cleared by then to travel. One stipulation is you have to be vaccinated. I don't think that's being unrealistic. Plus its her event, and she can make that request in my book. She said Lee and I could have the queen in the 5th wheel they have. They had bought it so they had someplace to stay as they were revamping their home. So I thought that was nice of her to offer that.💖 Lee is not thrilled about visiting my side of the family. I told him that I could just be dropped off to my middle sisters home, which is about 30 minutes from Lee's mom's house. Then its only a 1 hour and 50 minutes drive from middle sisters to eldest sisters home. Or her daughters might go. If they've been vaccinated. It all depends if middle sister gets off her butt and gets vaccinated. Presently she hasn't done any. I am a bit bummed Lee isn't interested in visiting my side, but that's his choice. I told him, he could pick me up, before we head toward the coast to visit.
Rebecca
Whidbey
Washington

Did Ultimate Weight Training and Cardio DVD today. The plan for tomorrow is to do Exhale Cardio Fusion DVD

Made gaspacho last night for breakfast for a few days. It came out quite good. Also, am making 3 loaves of sourdough bread. I gave the one I had for Pete to the guy and his wife who came over yesterday so I made another for Pete, one for us (which I cut up so I don’t have to take a lot out at once), and one to have as an extra in case I need it to give to someone. Hmmmm….Maybe I should make another one for Nancie’s birthday Monday. Yup, that’s what I’ll do. Update: not going to bother

First need to stop at the church to get donations. The gal asked me to stop by since they have a lot. Then stop at Lynette’s since I have coupons for her, then the soup kitchen. When I come home, I may go for a walk

Still working on the jigsaw puzzle. The challenge is that each piece is exactly the same, so you
REALLY need to look at the colors, design, etc.

Good luck to everyone getting medical procedures.

Karen – what a lovely highchair. I would have loved to have had one like that

M – you always post such beautiful pictures. How lucky you are to live in such a gorgeous place. Are you required to wear a mask?

Looks like I have a stye in my eye. For a few days it felt almost black and blue in this one spot. This morning I saw what looks like a stye

Penny – I’ve heard so many women say that they got a job when their hubby retired. I know that’s when I took a permanent job. Just had to have time to me. “Load the dishwasher this way”. I’d been doing it for 23 years, didn’t he think I knew how to load it???? But he was so used to work that he didn’t know what to do with himself

Wanted to string more popcorn but it’s way too windy

katla – thank goodness for your neighbors

Michele NC

Thank you Barbie for a fresh start. I MUST start eating right. Fighting another blasted yeast infection! Hopefully caught it soon enough. Soaking in Epson salts as we speak. (The only time I ever use the tub). I love my hot tub, but have been so overwhelmed that I haven't been in it .
Figured up mine and SIL's hours for March and April. She had about 15 extra hours each month, but was rarely there open to close. I was there open to close except for day I had to take Steve to Detroit. I worked 59 extra hours in March and 68 in April. Crazy. No wonder I am TIRED. Too bad I have yet to catch up. I did catch up on household bills, checkbooks, and receipts last night and this morning.
Heading to Kentucky after work tomorrow. Really need to get caught up in next couple of weeks as Steve and I are taking a weekend off for a car show in IN (unless cancelled again at last minute).
Time to get out of tub and into bed.
Tomorrow is a New day! New month! Fresh start!


Kylia in Ohio where we were in a.c. today and heat tonight!

May
-- vote today
-- online conference at work next week
-- pilates every Tuesday
-- 50 km bicycle ride one day this month and other shorter rides, of course
-- 5 km running event on May 23 and some training runs
-- start 9 day (7.6 hours per day) fortnights this month at work
-- design at least one 50 km cycling route
-- book service for treadmill
-- plant spring bulbs
-- and see how I progress on the rest of my 2021 list.


Machka in Oz

sh0tzz99 wrote: »

Machka9 wrote: »

sh0tzz99 wrote: »

Machka9 wrote: »

sh0tzz99 wrote: »

Question for those who are perimenopausal or postmenopausal. When you had hot flashes, was there something that you recall triggering them? I'm having mild ones, but they are quite annoying and want to try to figure out if there is a trigger to look for.

I know that common ones are caffeine and alcohol, but those don't seem to be mine.

Thanks.

Tina in CA

Stress
Warmish indoor temperatures
Hot beverages
Hot food
Talking to people
Shopping
Doing homework
Working on a challenging bit of code
Taking the bus

Just to name a few.

Soooooo.....everything and anything?

Yep!

Especially stress. I tense up slightly for one reason or another and BLAM, I'm hit with a hot flash.

I am finding that the more protein I eat, the more of them I seem to have. I am currently trying a lower protein diet (which is less effective when trying to lose a few pounds) and so far, it seems to be helping. I also read that black cohosh works very well for hot flashes. If this lower protein experiment doesn't work, I'll try that. I prefer adjusting my diet before taking supplements or pills of any kind. I need to figure something out before summer or I will be miserable.

Tina in CA

I have been dealing with hot flashes for years now.

They started up in 2014, I lost a whole bunch of weight in 2015 and they mostly went away, but they started again in 2017.

I cannot take hormone replacement therapy because of my genetic predisposition toward blood clotting. So my gynaecologic oncologist offered me a serotonin based anti-depressant. Evidently serotonin based anti-depressants ease hot flashes too. In 2017, I didn't want it so he told me that if they got bad enough I was to come see him and he'd get me on them.

In 2018, they got bad enough. The stress I was dealing with around my husband's injury sent me in one massive horrible (nausea, dizziness, painful pins and needles all over, plus the actual hot flash) after another. And that's when I went onto a serotonin based anti-depressant.

That helps reduce them, but doesn't get rid of them. If I'm fortunate, I have a day with maybe half a dozen. That's a pretty relaxed day in cool temperatures. But I've also had days where they just keep coming all day and I lose count.


So I use a number of other techniques.

I have found that having a fan right next to me at work and at home helps. At work, the fan is on all the time. At home, where I can keep the temperature cool, it goes on and off as needed.

It also helps to keep the temperature at home somewhere between 17 and 18C (63 or 64F). My husband is bundled up in fleece and I'm in a tank top and shorts.

Drinking lots of cold water can help a bit.

I don't drink hot drinks any more ... I let my coffee and tea cool to room temperature before I drink them.

I don't seem to have them while exercising so if I go into a series of them at work, it can help if I go climb 10 flights of stairs. I'll be hot when I finish but it seems to stop the waves of nausea, dizziness and pins and needles that accompany hot flashes.

Sometimes just simply getting up and pacing around can help ... or walking to the toilet and running cold water over my wrists.

My diet is rather low in protein. In fact, I add sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds to my lunch sometimes to boost my protein a bit. Otherwise I would happily live on fruits, veggies and grains if I could!

I also eat quite a lot of sweet potatoes.

I take remifemin which contains Actaea racemosa (black cohosh), evening primrose oil, fish oil, vit D, valerian, ginger, magnesium, and calcium because they are all thought to ease menopause symptoms. And I take the B-vitamins.

And because one of the features of menopause which is tied into the hot flashes is having itchy, prickly, pins and needles skin ... I take an allergy med to ease some of that and I only wear the smoothest, lightest clothing I can get away with.

Oh also, when the hot flashes start coming one after another and pins and needles part of the hot flashes starts to drive me crazy, I'll take a panadol or ibuprofen.


A couple more things ... I've also figured out why the older women in church, when I was growing up, had mints and folding fans. Sucking a strong mint can actually be cooling and of course the folding fans move air. I may start doing more of both.

I have just recently started experimenting with box breathing. I was highly sceptical about it for years but have started trying it when I get a hot flash at an awkward time, like in a meeting ... and it seems to shorten the hot flash a bit. It goes like this and I do it 2 or 3 times:

Relax your body and do the following:

Let out all of the air in your lungs to the count of four.
Keep your lungs empty for a count of four.
Inhale for a count of four.
Keep your lungs full for a count of four.


Machka in Oz