Menopause Moods and a Radiant Being

I hit the Huff Post! They picked up a piece I wrote for EmpowerHer: “Five Thing I Wish My Husband Knew about Menopause.” Thousands of hits! A first for this blogger. Here’s the Huff Post link.

As I wrote the article, I uncovered a concept I’d never considered. Here’s what I wrote:

Speak Up! On days when I seemed extra grumpy or I snapped at Cliff for a minor offense, I wish he’d told me, gently, how this made him feel. In “A Men’s Guide to Menopause,” Dr. Pepper Schwartz writes: “While your role is to be supportive, don’t resign yourself to being her punching bag. If you feel she’s acting very unreasonably, tell her how you feel and how her actions affect you. Be specific.” Had I known what a grump I was on occasion, I could have worked harder to temper my behavior.

Truly, during all those years of PMS and menopausal moodiness, I never thought to ask Cliff: How is this affecting you? What can we do together to improve my mood so both of us are happy (not just me)? Same thinking applies to other family members and friends.

For those of you still dealing with menopausal moodiness, do ponder!

And speaking of moods, look what Cliff bought me from local artist Arianna Bara.

Arianna, who is  a designer metalsmith, calls her “Radiant Being.” My Radiant Being is made from gems that influence moods. Arianna explained that Radiant Being’s body is Crazy Lace Agate,which attracts strength and brings good dreams. Her head is formed from Honey Jade, which is a stone of emotional balance.

Is Radiant Being helping my mood? I suspect so, but mostly, perhaps, because she’s so beautiful and so much fun to wear.

Admire more of Arianna’s lovely pieces below, read her artist’s statement, and see a photo of her I took at the Hillsborough Gallery of Art. To learn more about Arianna’s work, check out her website here.

 

 

 

Artist’s Statement: I am a metalsmith because I enjoy creating objects of delicacy and smoothness from hard and seemingly unyielding materials of the earth. My creative spirit is moved by nature, and nature’s simplest forms are my inspiration. I work in sterling silver using free-form stones, fossils, and gemstones, creating unique combinations of color and texture that make each piece one-of-a-kind. The vibrant blending of lace agate, the glitter of druzy crystals, the flash of  labradorite that hints of the Northern Lights: these features of stones engage and excite me.

Hot Flashes and EmpowerHer: Part One

A few months ago, EmpowerHer, a woman’s health site, invited me to write articles about hot flashes. I had fun figuring out how to give each article a creative slant, and I enjoyed the research. Citing sources brought me back to my university days!

My first assignment was:

I went to my friends at Midlife Boulevard, a women’s writing and blogging network. They sent me great responses:

• “I used to think steam was coming out of my ears.”
• “It’s like a furnace exploded in my core and is radiating to my extremities.”
• “A hot flash is 100 degree heat paired with 100 percent humidity.”
• “I feel like I’m getting my hair washed, and the water is way too hot!”

Read the rest of their responses here, a bit of my own experience, and the research I uncovered on the topic.

My second assignment for EmpowHer was:

Is there a difference? 

Read a story here from my very own bedroom and then my research on hot flashes and night sweats.

The final article I’ll include today addresses this question:

I got brave and talked about the Modess Starter Kit my mom ordered for me. I used this as a segue into menopause, which comes on a lot slower than the shock of that first period.

This article was a bit harder to put together research-wise than the first two. Read it here!

I’ll stop to give you a chance to read. More hot flash scoops to come! (And thanks to Stacia, who’s been editing my articles. I appreciate your light and encouraging hand.)

P.S. I dug deep through mighty Google, and I don’t think I had a Modess Starter Kit after all. I think the pamphlet I read was called “Very Personally Yours.” Here’s the cover!  Sound or look familiar to any of you?