(no subject)

[shadowkat]

Been unseasonably warm of late - in the 60s, 80s and 70s, but tomorrow, it becomes unseasonably cooler, dipping into the 40s and 50s - this is all in Fahrenheit, because I can't convert to Celsius. The US flirted with it in the 70s and 80s, then gave up.

Been sluggish and tired of late, although I thought I was sleeping well enough - possibly not. I also can't help but think this is yet another side-effect of menopause. I'm no longer in perimenopause, I'm finally in menopause. And frigging doctors can't help. And I can't afford Midi Health (my insurance doesn't cover it and it's upwards to $250 a visit, with $75-$250 for followups, and that doesn't include bloodwork. Also it's virtual.)
With insurance, my co-pay is $25.

Saw this as a description of Doctor Who:

"There is an element of [the Doctor's] character that's constantly searching for something, but also constantly running away from something. That’s a really nice dynamic to play."
Ncuti Gatwa

Yup, that's pretty much what pulled me into watching the series. I found that relatable. I feel much the same way. As if I'm constantly searching and constantly fleeing from things.

Memage:

1. Rice or potatoes? Potatoes because I can't do rice.

2. Fish or red meat? Fish - I digest it better.

3. Salad or cooked vegetables? Salad - it tastes better.

4. Cake or ice cream? Ice Cream (I can't eat cake), plus less likely to send blood sugar rocketing into the stratosphere.

5. Water, soft drink, wine, beer, or hard alcohol? Water (all the others are bad for me, with the possible exception of red wine, and even that's dicey. It's okay, I'm fine with water.)

***

1) What's normal March weather like in your area?

This year? It wasn't normal and all over the place.

2) Are you following any spring sports?

No. I'm not really a spectator sports enthusiast. I find watching them to be either stressful (if engaged) or boring (if not engaged). In short? The appeal is lost on me?

3) What's a summer wardrobe staple you haven't had out since last season (or if you're southern hemisphere, answer this for winter)

Short sleeve shirts and kahki's capris pants

4) What's your favorite spring break memory?

I don't know?

5) How do you feel about daylight savings time?

Just wish they'd pick one. Don't really care which.

Comments

[cactuswatcher]

Food meme
1. Potatoes or rice: Either. if served plain I prefer potatoes; with sauce other than cheese, rice works better.
2. Fish or red meat: Red meat. Arizona is not a place where it's easy to get good fresh fish.
3. Salad or cooked vegetables: I try to have both every evening. Salad usually tastes better, but vegetables are more filling and more nutritious.
4. Cake or ice cream. I grew up in a family that didn't have cake or pie without ice cream. Can't think of any of us that chose one or the other when both were available. Granted we had ice cream in the house almost always, and cake or pie was for special occasions. (Guests for dinner at our house did sometimes choose one or the other.)
5. Water, soft drink, wine, beer or hard liquor. Water. Soft drinks wreck my teeth. Wine is expensive. Beer makes me gain weight. I'm not that fond of the hard stuff.

[shadowkat]

Depends on the salad? If it's just romaine or iceberg? Yes. IF spinach, chard, arugula, and other greens from the power green family? No. Those are actually more nutritious than say cooked vegetables. Also, if you add onions, sweet peppers, radishes, nuts, mushrooms, cucumbers. Most people make crappy salads, or so I've noticed? And they smother it with dressing. I just use lemon juice, and sometimes a little olive oil.
Also, if it's a well-made salad - more filling and has more fiber. [I've become a bit of an expert in the art of making salads. I usually just eat the one's I make myself now - because people suck at making salads.]

[iddewes]

We’ve had a mix of unusually cold and unusually warm here too. It’s warm today.
Did your Mom have a hard time with menopause? Usually it’s supposed to be similar to what your Mom had. In my case both my Mum and I stopped having periods when we hit 50 but she didn’t have many symptoms and I do get hot flashes which is annoying. I think some of it is from Tamoxifen though. And here they say you are officially in menopause when you haven’t had a period for a year so I am well into it now.

[shadowkat]

No. My mother didn't have any issues at all - of course, she had Graves disease and got it treated as an over-active thyroid. New evidence suggests that it isn't genetic at all. And as my Mom keeps informing me? Everyone is different. (Sigh). We did both get it later in life - 56-57. I might have gone through it at 55, but COVID hit, and the vaccine through my body off. (The vaccine caused a lot of women with Menopause or on the brink to get their periods, or be set back. It was weird. They did a study on it and everything.)

Yep, they say that here too - you aren't in Menopause until you've not had a period for a year. My last period was in September of 2021. I had a little breakthrough bleeding in Feb of 2022. But nothing since then. So I'm officially in Menopause. Thank god. Perimenopause was 100 times worse - it was hot flashes, night sweats, pms, cramping, gushing periods, the whole thing. So happy to be through that nightmare. I thought I was going crazy with the mood swings. They've leveled off now.

[iddewes]

Arg, I am sorry you had it for so long. Hope the worst is over now. The vaccine didn’t have any effect on my periods but then I had already gone over a year without a period when I had the vaccine.

[shadowkat]

It is for the most part - or its changed? Now I just got the hot flashes and nightsweats with accompanying dizziness. But my biochemistry really shouldn't go with the hormone therapy - because of other issues.

[iddewes]

I can’t have hormone therapy either due to having had hormonal breast cancer. At least for me it’s not that bad - my friend was having a more difficult time and was on HRT but had to stop it because she had breast cancer too. I’m not sure how she’s doing now though

[ann1962]

Any competent obgyn should be able to test your hormones and have suggestions. Assuming you don't mind HRT, it does work. I'm just off of estrogen because of my age, but still on progesterone cream, all prescribed by ob. There was some crossover effects when I first started many years ago with my thyroid meds but absolutely able to be dealt with by my primary and the ob. Same thing over several docs because of moving. Standard practice.

[shadowkat]

The difficulty is finding a competent obgyn. They do not appear to exist in NYC or they don't take my insurance. I've gone through four to date: 1) misdiagnosed me with HPV, 2) threw me on progesterone which lead to a physical depression b/f taking off and no longer accepting my insurance, 3) threw me on estrogene before disconnecting her phone, and giving me anxiety attacks, the 4) refused to treat anything, refused to take me seriously on perimenopause, and then took off to Staten Island, and they threw me at a man, and I cancelled that.

I've asked others in the area? They've not seen them in years. For the same reasons. My sisinlaw - ended up zooming with a physician in California to get treatment for thyroid. My friend gave up and doesn't go to an obgyn. Friends from church? Gave up as well.

In short - a competent obgyn doesn't exist in NYC. You're lucky to have found good doctors. They are not created equal. And no - that is not standard practice. Standard practice is not to treat it at all and hand-wave menopausal symptoms, unless it's thyroid. (My thyroid is fine.) Apparently if you have issues with thyroid - they treat it, if not, it's just something you deal with.

[ann1962]

That's wild you can't find one. Standard practice for regular menopause, not counting the quacks, is to be on both prog and estrogen at the same time. The risk with only estrogen is higher rates of cancer, that apparently the progesterone offsets. And you should go off estrogen by 60 which is why I'm now off. Except for one quack I had in CT that was an ob that had no patients, and did Green card exams instead, the only reason I met him, I have had luck with obs. The best doc I ever had was my ob that delivered the kids in CT. I will never have as great a doc as him ever again. He was everything a patient could ever want. I judge all doctors by him.

I hope you find something asap.

[shadowkat]

Thanks. But I'm not looking. Gave up again. It's not worth the pain. Also, I have such a delicate biochemical sitch going on - that it's been strongly advised that I stay away from estrogene.