The Dreaded Facial Hair issue!!

What is one of your worst menopause issues? The one that is most frustrating to me now is CHIN HAIR!!! I use to just pluck them because they were easy to control that way. Then I realized I couldn't keep up with them so I started getting waxed at the beauty shop (sorry, but that's what it was called back in the day--don't know if it's something else now!). That gave me a nice smooth upper lip, as well as all three chins, but was somewhat painful and started getting expensive.

My latest effort involves Nair Moisturizing Face Cream. It's been working pretty good, but I've discovered a problem. One reason I've never considered shaving is because I'm pretty sure the hair comes back thicker and stronger, but I'm afraid the same thing may be happening with the Nair cream! When you put it on and wait 5 min. and wipe it off, all you're doing is "cutting" it off at the skin...just as you would do with a razor. I think the only solution is to get rid of the hair permanently with electrolysis! To find an Electrologist near you! Call and ask about their prices. I think you will find, as I did, that for a permanent solution to this hairy problem, it's not that much at all and well worth it!

I want to hear your "hair raising" stories and what solutions work for you! After all, we don't want to end up like Rapunzel do we?

Vitamin D recommendations

I'm finally hearing about something that is obviously SO important...Vitamin D! I've been on a search for the past 4½ years for something to help my skin because of psoriasis, so the issue of vit D has been on my radar for awhile now and I knew that the recommendations were way too low. I've been taking up to 4000 UI per day and today I heard a doctor on Good Morning America say "I recommend 1000 to 2000 international units of vitamin D supplements every day. It's cheap, there are no side effects or down sides. Although D3 is considered more potent and longer lasting, both D2 and D3 are acceptable."

I just had a full blood workup and checking for Vitamin D (which is really not a vitamin) was not even mentioned. Next time I will ASK for that...which is another frustration of mine...if WE know this information and there's so many reports about how people are so deficient in vit D, then why do we have to mention it to our doctors? Boggles the mind considering it's such an important element in our makeup.

Here's a response to the piece on Good Morning America:

5 Ways Vitamin D Could Save Your Life - ABC News: "I am Vitimin D deficient and just taking D3 was not being absorbed. I am now on a very high dose of D3 and having my blood checked to see if I am absorbing it. I was told that most of the D in food products and solid pill form was ineffective. Have your doctor order a blood test to see how much D you need. If you are going to take it, it makes sense to be taking the right amount and the correct type."

Here's a great article that explains all of this, like:
"The skin produces approximately 10,000 IU vitamin D in response 20–30 minutes summer sun exposure—50 times more than the US government's recommendation of 200 IU per day!"

Vitamin D Council | Understanding Vitamin D Cholecalciferol

So, how much did YOU know about Vitamin D?

Losing weight is NOT easy at 61!

Back in 2002 when I was 52, I decided to go on the Atkins program to lose weight for the Minnie Pauz Meltdown Cruise. I lost 55 lbs. in about 3 months and felt wonderful! I managed to keep the weight off for about 2 years and then gradually started bringing more carbs into my diet and by 2005 I had gained back about 30 lbs.

Then I quit smoking (on March 1, 2005) and decided it was too hard to try to watch my weight until I was a committed NON-smoker. Well...to make a long story short, the last 4 years have brought me to the point where I know if I don't do something now, I will never get it under control again.

I did manage to cut out sugar and bread for all of March, but I find myself slipping again and having things I shouldn't, because I lost about 2 lbs in the entire month! I have a machine that I use about 3 times a day to get my heart rate up, but what I really need to do is walk, walk, walk!

By the way....the woman in this cartoon is NOT MINNIE! hehehe.....it's one of her friends. No one, not even myself, have ever seen Minnie's face

Since I don't have the self-discipline to do it right, I've decided to sign up for a ZUMBA class. They actually have them for us older gals who may not have done anything strenuous for quite awhile! That's me!! I'm going to blame it on all of you because for 10 years I've been sitting at this computer working on the website and trying to get you all laughing!

The other thing I'm going to try is NutriSystem. Those ads on TV and seeing Marie Osmond looking SO good now has inspired me to give it another try! My son and DIL both lost weight on it and honestly, the pictures of the food (read "ice cream sandwich") has finally gotten to me! :)

If any of you have tried this or any other program, (my final effort will be Weight Watchers) let me know by posting. Everyone is different and I know it's my own fault for letting things slide the last 4 years, but as always, hearing about someone else close to my age who turned it around will inspire me!!

A few years ago I said I was going to be super healthy when I turned 60...hmmm, I'm not there yet! Ihave psoriasis, sleep apnea and psoriatic arthritis, plus I'm overweight and totally out of hormones so I have quite a challenge in front of me to be "the best me I can be"!! But, as I said, I'm not ready to give up. The women in my family live to their mid-nineties so I don't want to be sitting around for the next 30 years and not be able to enjoy it! Wish me luck and give me some encouragement!

Advice for all ...

After a post on my message board about how do you enjoy the new freedom that menopause (or even peri-menopause) brings when you still have young children triggered a response, I thought I would also share it here on my blog.

Something Dr. Phil always says is the answer, I believe. "Children learn what they live", so.... what if your kids grow up living a life that includes "Mom's time to pursue her interests and needs"? If you're consistent about creating time for everyone, including yourself, your kids adjust to that as normal. I believe this is where most of us went down the wrong path...we gave UP our needs and taught our kids that they deserved our attention 100% of the time. By the time they get out on their own, we have conditioned ourselves to ignore what we want or need or enjoy. I've heard so many women say now when they have the free time to pursue what they want to do, they can't figure out what they want to do!

So why not see what you can do about creating a new "normal" for your family and let everyone help figure out how much time each family member needs or wants? You might be surprised at how understanding and giving your children might be when they find out that you need some time too.