It's been a while

If you have ever gone through menopause/hot flashes you know why I LOVE this picture!

I've been so bad about my blogging.  It's just been very busy- with trying to get in some summer fun before having to head back to school schedule :(

I also haven't been feeling myself as I have stopping having periods and I have HOT FLASHES!  Hot flashes aren't too bad, but I hate them!  I sometimes feel sick to my stomach when I get one and I even had to leave during a Pilates class for the 1st time ever!  I was so SUPER embarrassed as I was having a hot flash- sweating like mad- trying to do teaser on a long box on my reformer:

Start Position

Start pulling yourself up

To end up like this then pull your arms up and down and repeat 3x

 and feeling sick on top of it all.   I really wanted to cry- I felt like I was going to explode!  I couldn't do it and and had to leave class.

Thank GOD my mother purchased me a cooling thingy that I can wear when feeling extremely hot.  I also now take water and a towel to Pilates, bring my cooling thing when possible, dress in layers, skip the double blanket in bed.  NOW I need to EAT my way through an easier menopause!

Found these tips: (some of the supplements and soy I may not be able to do due to my type of cancer)

8 Tips To Reduce Hot Flashes and Nausea

More than 50 million women in the US alone are in some stage of menopause and as much as 80% of those women are suffering from hot flashes and nausea. That's why menopause has become a multi billion dollar industry.

Hot flashes and nausea can be treated several different ways but it all begins with eliminating the hot flash itself, because the nausea is a result of the unexpected increase in the body's core temperature.

When a hot flash occurs often the skin becomes blotchy or red, perspiration increase, the heartbeats rapidly, nausea occurs, and then as it ends chills set in.

Here are some simple approaches to reducing hot flashes and nausea and they are all related to lifestyle and natural remedies.

1. Stay away from stimulants such as caffeine, spicy foods, alcohol that can all trigger hot flashes. Did you know that spicy foods are a major trigger? Excessive caffeine works as a diuretic, which causes the loss of magnesium, and calcium, which can trigger a hot flash and nausea.

2. If you want to avoid hot flashes and nausea one of the easiest things to do is remove refined sugar from your diet. Refined sugar can also make you moody and since during menopause moodiness is even more prominent don't you want to do what you can to stay on an even keel?

3. Its important that you stay calm, get enough exercise and eat right to reduce the number of times you wake up at night from a hot flash and nausea.

4. When you wake at night from hot flashes and nausea the sooner you can bring your body temperature down the faster both will pass. You can do this by having a cold wet cloth on your night table. Immediately place it on the back of your neck to start to bring down your body temperature. If you have a window you can open do that too.

5. There are several herbal supplements on the market that can help eliminate or reduce hot flashes and nausea. Black Cohosh is one of those. Magnesium and flax seed oil is also recommended. Magnesium will also benefit your bones and heart health, and help you get a good night sleep.

6. Its a fact that the thinner you are the less likely you are to have intense hot flashes and nausea. Studies have shown that estrogen fluctuation increases with what you weigh, and so does your risk of breast cancer and uterine cancer.

7. If you smoke, stop! Smoking increases the number of hot flashes and nausea. Besides increased flushing smoking has plenty of other risks and as your estrogen levels drop those risks grow.

8. You can reduce the number of hot flashes and nausea by layering. Layer your bedding and layer your PJs too so that you can quickly strip down or cover up as the need occurs.

Hot flashes and nausea are a side effect of menopause that many women experience. You can often reduce or eliminate them all together with these eight simple steps.

I have been mentally fighting with having to change my eating once and for all.  I really don't want to.  I mean I REALLY don't want to.  BUT my body ~ it's been fighting every little bad thing I eat.  It get's bloated, puts on weight, refuses to get out of bed, drags it's self over to the couch and so on.  I just feel like total crap most of the time.  I have noticed my body is getting stronger, BUT no matter how strong it gets my poor little knees are FED UP with carrying the extra weight.  My poor feet give me such a fight I actually soak them just to shut them up.  My head pounds from my bad posture due to my hunching and not exercising my back enough.  OH and my back - TOTALLY PISSED OFF!  Today I heard that you tell how old some one is by the age/attitude of their back!  YIKES.  My back is SO PISSED.

I totally enjoyed my Sept issues of Vogue and Elle and I am stoked for FALL.  I know it's early yet, but I LOVE the fall.  It would be such a special treat for me if I actually felt a lot better by sweater weather!  I hate wearing a sweater when it looks like I'm wearing 2 sweaters!

I found this little webzine:

Open publication - Free publishing - More matchbook

 Enjoy!  I certainly did!

http://issuu.com/matchbookmag/docs/match_issue8

           

Update

Well so far radiation is going well.  I am pretty red/burned, but it seems like my implant is holding up well.  Crossing my fingers.  I am not receiving as much radiation to my skin as I had previous treatments so my skin should start to feel a bit better.  I was using Aquaphor and that worked well, but my mother purchased me some ,Miaderm and I love it.  The Miaderm is very soothing to me.  I used it only once a day for now, but after my fast treatment I will use it all the time.

The city is very hot and yesterday I crashed for the 1st time since being here.  I have not noticed much fatigue.  Yesterday could have been hard because I purchased a little mini sewing machine for $20 and ended up carrying it for a while.  My father has been with my for the past few days and it's been great just hanging out together.  I am excited to be done with treatment and able to move on.  I did try and purchase a bra and insert yesterday, but I was turned away from the breast center shop because they said it was too early and that I should not push myself.  I am still not even - and it does bug me.  I wanted to purchase a bra insert and stick-on nipple!  Yes they do sell those- how nice.

Staying in the city has left me with some great memories.........my 1st cockroach, the bum who scared the crap out of me and Leann, the people that ride the bus.  Living right next door to a gentleman's club and watching as the girls and bouncers walk to work.  The wonder people I have met in treatment.  The rude guy who made fun of my hair cut, the teller at the bank who after seeing my license told me NOT to cut my hair again.....lol.  I decided to give up on correcting everyone on my name so at the radiation office I go by the name everyone likes to call me MRS. PADRAZZLE.  I will miss Rob going to appointments with me and weighing ourselves and me wiping my arm pits before the doctor would come in......hOt Flashes...suck.

I am writing this from my plastic surgeon's office so I'm a little rushed- please forgive any errors.  I do a bad job even when I'm not rushed.  I'm hoping I have the balls to tell the doc I don't like my recon being so uneven.  I have realized that no matter what man can accomplish it will never be as beautiful as what God created.  It's amazing all the things we can do we really can't recreate such beauty.  My reduction looks good and it's nice having a smaller breast.....but it's still bigger that my implant.  I'll see what he says.  I am starting to feel like I can maybe loose some weight.....after not budging at all.  I have walked, walked and then walked some more everyday and nothing.  I have noticed my eating getting better and not craving as much bad stuff so things should be looking up.

So things are getting better EVEN the whole menopause CRAP.  I hate that breast cancer has taken so much fun girl stuff, but I'm learning to be happy inspite of it.  My mother gave me a great book and I will post the title later, but if you go on the No Surrender website you can see it there.  It has helped me A LOT.