Let’s talk about menopause. I’m pretty sure that’s what I’m going through. I will get it checked out with my doc to make sure. But it clocks with what K went through with perimenopause and menopause. I wrote about it in the past post, but I need to expand on it more now.
We need to talk about non-men’s issues. That’s been true for all my life and even more so now Women’s issues. Nonbinary people’s issues. Agender people’s issues. Anyone but the goddamn men’s issues.
I’m fucking sick of it. I’m fifty-two years old, and my god, can we please act like it’s almost 2024? Which means not centering men. That doesn’t seem like a big ask, but apparently, it is. I’m fired up because I am, I think, going through menopause. And if I’m not, I’m experiencing symptoms that have been consistent with menoapause.
Which I didn’t know, by the way. Sure, I’ve heard of hot flashes, but that was about it. The only reason I knew anything about the symptoms before now was because K had talked about it with me when she went through perimenopasue and early menopause. She had hot flashes so bad that she had to turn down the thermometer. She was a heat person. She grew up in Florida and loved the heat. Once menopause hit, she was hot all the time.
As I mentioned in the last post, I had no problem with my period. Or rather, my one problem was that I never knew when I was going to get it so I had to carry pads with me almost all the time. That was no big deal, by the way. It was a mere inconvenience more than anything else.
K did mention it when she started having symptoms. I was sympathetic (see what I did there?), but I couldn’t relate, obviously. I started perimenopause and was not thrilled with it, but it still wasn’t that big a deal.
Now, however, if it is menopause, my god. This fucking sucks. And when I talked to K about it, she confirmed everything I said. A month or so ago–and, yes, I am going to get graphic in talking about my period–I had a gush of period blood heavier than I had ever had before. In like six periodes aggregate. Honestly, I had never seen that much blood come out of me at one time.
I had to ask K if that happened to her. She said that yes, it did. Oh, the excess blood as your body clings bitterly to the possibility of having a baby. Why did no one tell me that the ovaries did not go quietly into the night?
This seemed like it should be basic information that everyone who gets a period should have. Yes, I know better than that, but hope springs eternal. I thougtht bec;ause my period was so mild, so would menopause. If that is what this is!
Today, I’m feeling decent. Not tired. But I’m flushing and a bit achy. I. Don’t. Get. Sweats. Ever. Wait. To be more truthful, I get sweaty when I do exercise from time to itme. But just walking around or existing? Nope. No sweating. Hardly at all. Unless I’m in extreme heat, which I fucking hate.
I’m making great pains to be blunt about this because I’ve been sweating like a pig for the past few days. Not all the time, though. Not just when I’m doing a workout. But I’ll just suddenly burst out into sweat. That alternated with chills, which I only got when I was sick.
This was even a bigger deal than the sweats. I don’t get cold. I like the cold! I would rather be in zero degrees than seventy. I know I’m sick when I’m shivering. In this case, though, it’s just…weird. I don’t feel sick. I’m not in pain. I’m achy, but K says that’s something she gets, too, when deealing with menopause.
She wakes up body aches and then it migrates into hot flashes, lots of bleeding, and other shit. I have been having tension headaches as well. I have not had a migraine in many years so I am DISPLEASED that I am having tension headaches now.
I wake up and feel vaguely achy. I do my Taiji/Bagua routine, which puts me in decent shape. By the way, Taiji keeps on saving my life over and over again.
When I first started Taiji, I had pains in my body that were persistent. My shoulders hurt. My back hurt. And my knees started hurting because I was doing it wrong at first.
When I mentioned the back pain to my teacher, she gave me one simple exercise (heh) that we did in our classes. She told me to do it three times on each side every day, and it would help my back. Which was crushing. The pain, I mean. I colud not move without winccing or moaning.
I was, quite frankly, skeptical. How could one stretch help my back that much? A month later, the pain had decreased by about thirty percent. I could not believe it. I was no longer in excruciating pain, and I could move without wincing. I excitedyl told my teacher about it, and she was very pleased for me.
A year after she had given me the advice, my back was completely fine. Seriously. It did not hurt at all. It still doesn’t. It might tweak a bit if I sit weirdly with my laptop, but then I do a few stretches and it’s fine.
I’m fifty-two years old. I have heard people in their thirties and forties moan about their aches and pains. Then they say something like, “Well, that’s just the inevitability of getting older.”
Which, it’s not. Or rather, yes it is, but you can heavily mitigate it. I have. I don’t have any major body pains on the daily. I have tweaks and ouches, but no deep pain. I have gotten cramps in my legs a bit, but no big deal.
I’m tired. I will write more later. Maybe.