Menopause Matters

joyfull

Morning dear friends,

I'm feeling a tiny bit smug as I put a load of washing on the line overnight in the gales, but dodging the showers, and this morning it is dry and smelling of lovely fresh country air. :money:

Poet - hope you are feeling more 'spacious' about your troubles. You got a good and balanced response on both threads.

During my usual spate of evening flushes I often get red hot palms. Sounds trivial but it is a niggle and I've been driven to get a cold hot water bottie just to rest them on. Anyone else get this little gem?

Have recently bought a 'Tangle Teaser' to brush my long hair with. (featured in a thread on this board). It's not very MS (£10) but I like to buy hair things, it's a kind of a [STRIKE]obsession[/STRIKE] hobby. It's proving good at brushing hair but just as useful at cleaning my scalp whilst washing hair with conditioner. Give a really thorough scalp massage.

I often turn to hot ginger and cinnamon drinks for colds and winter nasties, in fact I add them to a cup of tea. I buy both in powder form in supermarkets. :money: As always, you'd need to check them for any contraindications before taking them if you have other medical stuff going on. Just sharing this - not offering advice.

Be kind to yourselves. XXX

choille

Hi Dogcat & all sorry your feeling rubbish. I was yesterday & had to drag myself out or I would have just sat. I felt almost flu-ish.
Last night I had an early night & slept all the way through until 6.30. I didn't wake up in a sweat either.
Two things different last night OH slept on the settee tolet me get a good nights rest as he has been snoring a lot of late. But yesterday I had a couple of banannas too. Maybe just a fluke but I'm off to the bananna shop today!
It's a horrid day so far.

All the best all.

poet123

Thanks all! yes, I am feeling better, DS1 explained more of the context of the comment, and I accepted it was probably just a comment that an elderly woman would make because she sees cooking as the job of the woman of the house and that she wouldnt have made the connection I made.

Actually, DS1 quite impresssed me with his diplomacy and the way he put things, I suspect it is because he is now used to how women's minds work because he works in a school with a lot of women, and has a long term GF. OH on the other hand has inherited his mothers lack of tact!!and works mainly with men, and even after nearly 30 years of marriage still doesnt get the way women are wired. He looked on in amazement.....it was quite funny really.

So, crisis averted, lessons learned (all round). Day off today, still not 100% earache still there, but much better. The weather is awful though, gale force winds and driving rain. Loads of washing to do, so not a good day for that, the dyer will be on all day.

Thanks for the balanced views and the supportive comments, they did help.

Rowan9

sorry to the poorlies - not nice feeling unwell and low.
Poet123 - so glad you are feeling better about it today. I've just caught up with the thread. Older ladies do tend to see cooking and general looking after of families as women's work and I'm sure that is a large part of it re what she said, not *at* you. hhhmmm...my ex OH (certainly not an ex DH ha ha) is now very overweight and I'm afraid I have asked the (grown up) kids what his new wife cooks for his tea. Lesson here for me - stop thinking in this gendered way!! He has to take responsibility for his weight, if he wants to.
My 'own' lovely DH is a wee bit overweight and we do some healthier meals these days (mostly) but I know that it is his own decision re exercise etc.
Choille - I think bananas are a good sleep food? What do they have ? potassium is it? I know they are good for after exercise as they release what is needed into the blood stream. I've got a feeling that food rich in potassium is linked to a good sleep but I don't know this for sure, and am not advocating it!
Re the red palms - no, haven't had the delight of this (yet). Goodness, how many other little treats are in store for us?
I read somewhere (another vague statement of mine) that most women do not have menopausal symptoms. No, that must be wrong. I'll have to find it and read again. Maybe I dreamt it:cool:.
Day 3 of the fish and am enjoying it all. Had corned beef hash for tea last night though. The first day's lunch was just fab - the tinned mackerel, a hard boiled but hot egg chopped through it and all mixed up with some carrot sticks. Just fab. I have maybe written all this already a few days ago. Sorry if have. But it made such a fabbie meal that i know I'll have it again. Yesterday I made a stirfry for lunch and added 10 almonds (very precise but i read somewhere that 10 a day are great for meno peeps), loads of ginger through it as well. Today I had cinnamon in my porridge along with a dollop of honey. I am more of a usual porridge with salt person but am listening more to my body these days and any cravings. Oh - I also bought 2 bottles of stout the other day - hadn't expected to, just walked past a new independent offie and went in and lo! found myself asking for stout. so, purchased 2 little bottles made by Samuel Smith (I so nearly wrote Samuel Stout - what a good name that would have been!). Haven't had any yet as I see alc content is 7% so I will have to make sure i have some with food and not become giddy and silly or someone might think I'm a menopausal woman:cheesy:. Now, that was a joke as I know fine that menopausal women are calm, rational, intelligent and highly skilled at multi-tasking. What a lovely bunch we are :dance:.
Well, the sun has been streaming in the window and I've done loads of housework (not a lot actually as small abode) and was looking forward to alovely refreshing lunchtime walk with dogs. Rain on now ggrr. Will wait 10 mins or so and see if it is just a shower.
We are off out to see Tommy Steele in Scrooge tonight. Really looking forward to it as DH and I watch the DVD every year just before christmas - then we know that Christmas has really started in our house:). The window of opportunity for it is quite small as DH's birthday is 22nd Dec and his rule is that we don't watch it until after that. He doesn't have many rules though so I let this one go :rotfl:
I am now the proud owner of the essential oils book so ask questions and I will make sure I don't quote from it. DD thought i would use it more than her. Thanks for the warning re cheaper oils Choille. My lavender is from N Yard and i have a B00ts sleep blend. I used to have loads but threw them out when we moved last year. Time to stock up. I might buy one a month. Maybe someone knows about a good reliable source in an ebay shop?
Have a good day folks -stay warm but not hot!
W
ed to add - have just read more carefully and see you are still unwell with sore ear Poet - have you tried steaming your head? I used to do this when kids were little as they got a lot of ear infections. it really helps unblock the tubes. Hope you feel better soon

chatbug

Hi all, hope you are all feeling well today.

Joyfull, Thanks, my hair comming out is not nice but the way i cope with it its at the back of my head so i cannot see it. Its not to bad yet but mums started coming out when she was my age and 27yrs on she has very little hair left at the back of her head.

Poet123 glad things are looking better for you.

I have not had a period for well over two yrs but stiil have pmt does any ony else still get this or am i just weird.

Nice sunny but windy day here so going to take the dog for a longer walk this afternoon.

dogcat_2

Hi all,

I must say that I am feeling much better today...I seem to be full of energy....I know that it wont last...so am trying to get lots done. The weather here is not too bad...it rained this morning...but its not cold and we've not got the nasty gales that we had...and they were very bad:eek:...they have done some structural damage...not to my property though.
Chatbug...I dont really suffer with PMT anymore...Periods stopped about 6 months ago...I know thats not really very long.
Joyfull...no I dont suffer with 'hot hands' that must be quite nasty...bad enough with the usual sweats and flushes. Hope they dont last too long.

Hope everyone has a good day.:)

teachergirl

Hi all. Now poet123 I have to say I think you were being perfectly reasonable about your MIL. Mine is exactly the same and I would have reacted the same and my hubby probably woudn't have noticed. But you are talking to another meno lady whose body seems to have decideed that it doesn't want to sleep:eek: In the year we were first married the in-laws would phone to see if I had made sure he was wearing a vest and or a wooly hat(if going out.):rotfl::rotfl:YES REALLY!

Anyway how are your supplements going??? I did think my flushes were lessening but as I said earlier I have had barely any sleep It has been really hard to function this week. I don't know if the supplements are causing this or if it is a coincidence. On a thread here last year there was a link to a free sample of another supplement. This did seem to work for me but they wanted 25 pounds a box(One month). Anyway they have e-mailed me to say they are on offer at 15 pounds. Not exactly cheap but I am tempted to see if they work again. It is hard to decide if something actually works or if it is just a coincidnce. I did think I could try them again and if they work I could try and see what is in them and find cheaper alternatives...if this makes sense.

I also feel like I have got a really bad cold. I have to be SO careful as my father has virtually no immune system. I haven't been running just in case this would make me even worse..I just can't take the chance...so all in all I am feeling quite down.:( Sorry ladies....

choille I eat a bannana a day but not usually at night, I might try it.

dogcat_2

Hi everyone....Im off to bed in a second....Its quite calm outside...but its meant to be nasty again.:eek:

Hope I feel as well tommorow as I have today....

Sleep well everyone!..:)

shykins

UGHHHH

sorry i know u have all writtten lovely interesting and enlightening posts but all i can say is UGH

am tired as my sleep has been haphazard to say the least averaging 5.5 hrs a night which isnt enough for me. been a stressful week - real stress not the oh i dont know what dress to wear type

so my contribution to the thread is UGH

joyfull

Morning All,

Hope those of you with colds and aches and gruesome nasties manage to rest up a little today. Make lists and delegate.

Slept surprisingly well last night. Flushes are kicking off in daytime more.

I also love essential oils. I've rescued a used spray bottle (Avon room spray) and fill with water and a little cheap vodka to help disperse the oils and then add some essential oils (maybe about 20 drops to half mug water). I love lavender, geranium, melissa, rosemary and may be ONE drop patchouli. I experiment with mixing them. I then use this spray for my hair, body, sheets, room spray. Lovely after a flush, I shush it around my face & neck & feel all fragrant. Very MS :money:

I'm off with BF to a couple of village Xmas fayres. It's all crotched tea cosies and handmade cards. The coffees are about 30p & all served by lovely mature ladies and there's always a free rich tea biccy (usually on the soft side!) with the drink. We just go for a coffee and soak up the quaint atmosphere.

Got to try & catch my rabbit who spends the night in her 'indoor' quarters but is allowed a couple of runs around the house in early morning & evening. She's usually quite good about going outside into her daytime outdoor hutch, but I can already see she's feeling defiant this morning. That'll be me crawling under furniture, cricking my neck. But, I do love her so much.

Edit - hi Shykins - big Hug. Horrid to get not enough sleep.