Why I chose not to have hormone replacement

I recently had bloodwork done to determine if I was post-menopausal.  And, yup, I am.

The reason I had the tests done is due to the night sweats.  Waking up 3 or 4 times a night feeling like I was laying in a puddle was wearing me down.  It had been going on long enough that I finally decided to talk to my endocrinologist about it.

I also made some changes to my sleeping environment - I got a wicking mattress pad from cool-jams and pajamas from cool-jams and Amazon.   And a friend of mine made me some cooling packs out of rice.

It was amazing to be able to only have to wake up to pee!  It made a huge difference in my demeanor at work as well.

Today I saw my GP in the morning and my endo in the afternoon.

My endo explained to me that if I’ve been post-menopausal for 10+ years, that’s 10+ years my body has not had these hormones.  And giving them back to my body can be a bit of a shock.  Even in the lowest dose.  It also would increase my chances of stroke, breast cancer, brittle bones, and a list of other stuff.

And hormone replacement isn’t meant to be for life.

I asked her flat out if the only real benefit would be to relieve the night sweats.   She said yes.  So I risk all that other stuff, just to relieve something that I’ve already pretty much taken care of?

Yeah, negative on the hormone replacement.

Had I found out earlier - like years earlier - that I was post-menopausal, I would have probably opted for the hormones.  And had I had a full hysterectomy it would have been a huge benefit to get the hormone replacement immediately.

But my situation it would be more negatives than positives to do it now.

Menopause and what I did not know

The definition of menopause is a woman that has not had a period in 12 months.

I didn't know that.  I thought it was the whole hot flashes, etc. stuff.  It can or cannot include the miserable stuff.  And if you've had a hysterectomy, you're considered in menopause.
CONGRATULATIONS!

Postmenopause - interestingly enough has the same damn definition.  However, bloodwork can also determine whether you're post or not.

I'm post.  FSH, LH, and Estradiol tests were done on my blood.  I'm not even wavering on the border.  I'm definitively post.

I see my doctor in about a week.  I'm hoping to get some relief from my hot flashes.  They haven't been as bad since I made some changes to my bed and the pajamas I wear.  But I'm not looking forward to summer at all.

My hot flashes/night sweats started out very mild.  I'd get warm at night, wonder why the AC didn't click on, and throw a leg out from under the sheet.  Then they started feeling like this flush of intense heat from my waist, creeping up, my skin would feel prickly, my back would sweat, and then it would go away.  Or if they happened at night, I'd wake up feeling like someone peed the bed because my back was soaking wet.

I'll update this after my doctor visit to see what she does with me.

The good thing about hot flashes/night sweats is that they normally go away after 2 or 3 years.  I'm hoping that I'm at the end of that and that they will go away before summer.  :-)

Changes to my Eating Routine

I knew I needed to do something different a long time ago.  I’ve had absolutely no desire to go to the gym.  Don’t miss it, don’t feel guilty at all about it either.

And my weight has been a steady 196.  Till last week when I was 199.  That is way too close to 200.

So I’ve stopped the 160 calorie protein drinks and the peanut butter in the afternoon.  8 almonds instead of the drink.  And 8 almonds with my apple instead of peanut butter.

I’m concerned about the protein.  But if I have any ‘episodes’, I’ll just go back on the protein drinks but still leave out the peanut butter.

My biggest issue is portion control.  I can go through a jar of peanut butter in 5 days.  And that’s me only eating it with my afternoon apple.

I can eat 4 servings of cauliflower with wing sauce in one sitting and still not feel full.

That’s why NutriSystem works for me.  I eat their meals and only their meals.  It’s my morning and afternoon snacks that I go all crazy.

So we’ll see what this slight change in my eating habits does.  :-)

What to do when you're phone dies....UPDATE

Hit the home button about 50 times.  Then press the power button while counting 1001, 1002, 1003, 1004, WTF, 1005.  Try that a few more times.

Try charging it even though you know it had at least 60% on the battery.

Try a different charger.

Hit the home button about 50 times.

PANIC!!!!

It's the zombie apocalypse!

Send a text (using your iPad, duh) to your brother and bonus sis letting them know you're phone is dead DEAD.  Like they can wave their HP wands and fix this.

Google if the Verizon store is still open.  SHIT!  They close in 30 minutes.  Change out of pjs into clothes and cuss under your breath at the idiots in the passing lane doing 40 in a 45.

Phone is under warranty, but who gives a shit when you don't have a working phone for what a full freaking week?!

Verizon employees tell you to call Verizon because they have to go through the dance of 'troubleshooting' even though it is more than likely a hardware problem.  Fucksonofabitchshitdammitfuckfuckfuck.
I don't have a landline.  I have to wait till tomorrow to call from work?!

Breathe, breathe.
OhOHOHOHOHOHOHOH!!!  I have my 6 still!

Continue to panic since the Verizon employees are just as confused as you are.  Then get very confused when they mention a SIM card because you didn't know SIM cards even existed any more.

Then say SIMS because you're in minor freak out mode.

Then get distracted by the lil tool they bring out and show you how to remove the SIM from your 8 to put into your 6.

Shiny.

Go home, swap SIM, call Verizon.  Told to go to PC and open iTunes.  PC hasn't been turned on in at least a month, so it takes F.O.R.E.V.E.R.

Then iTunes decides it's not going to behave.  Tell tech I'll call back once iTunes downloads.  This guy is very calm and schedules THEM to call ME.  Tells me it could be a software issue.  Makes me fell better.  :-)

Did I mention I forgot to take my anti-anxiety meds yesterday?

Take shower, feed dogs, feed me.  iTunes finishes downloading.  And now I can't get the stupid thing to open.

*sigh*

Satan's Spawn strikes again.

Uninstalled iTunes from PC.  Reinstalled.  Tech called.  He had me hook phone to computer, press volume up, volume down, and power in that order quickly.  It took 3 times, but

Today was a good day! And Wool Balls!

I was out of bed before 10!

Fine - it was 930, but that’s still good.

Ate breakfast outside with the Mafia.  Stayed outside till it started sprinkling.  

Did all my laundry and most of my clothes are put away or hanging to dry.

Cody’s girlfriend, Zoe, came over to visit for a little bit.  Even her brother ran the fence with Cody.

I bought 2 wool balls from WalMart.  That’s all they had.  So I went online and bought a 4 pack on eBay.  They’re 1/2 the size of the WalMart balls.  They really do work!  No static in my clothes and it’s great knowing that chemicals aren’t being melted onto my clothes.

As I was folding my sheet, one came bouncing out.  Adele was very intrigued with this ball that suddenly appeared at her feet.  LOL

Buy yourself some wool balls and stop buying dryer sheets!

Tomorrow will be a good day too!  I’m volunteering in the morning, a little bit of grocery shopping on the way home, and if the weather lets me - putting my amaryllis into the ground.

Hot Flashes Do’s and Don’ts - Update #3

The apostrophes are probably all wrong on my title.  Get over it.  :-p

Don’t
Other than what you read doing your own research:
Don’t sleep on a memory foam mattress.  If you can tolerate a spring mattress, they are way better for airflow and keeping your body cooler.  If not, then get a hybrid.  I think mine has a cooling gel layer and it doesn’t do squat for keeping me cool at night.
Don’t dry your clothes with Bounce.  Get 6 wool balls.  The Bounce or any other fabric sheet has chemicals that melt during the drying process and clog the holes in your clothes.
Don’t sleep with 1,000 thread count sheets - same concept - no holes, can’t help keep you cool.

Do
Get a Bed Jet or similar gadget.  It helps, but I would prefer that it blew cold air versus ambient.
Sleep nekkid if you can tolerate it.  I can’t.
Sleep alone.  I can’t.  And though they are little - my dogs do put out some body heat.

I also bought a mattress pad and pajamas from cool-jams.com
PJ’s haven’t arrived yet.  Got the mattress pad today.  I’ll update this tomorrow with how I slept.  It’s a very high-quality mattress pad and will fit on even a pillow top I think.

I slept very well last night.  :-)
The low was in the high 30's so that might have helped.  But I woke up not in a puddle of sweat.  I'm looking forward to getting the pajamas today.  I'll update again tomorrow after I sleep in the pj's.

1/19/19
Got my PJ’s yesterday.  They’re very well made.  Definitely not used to spending that amount of money on pajamas.  But I slept through the night and when I did wake up I didn’t feel like I was laying in a puddle.  I felt a little damp on the side I was laying on, but that’s way better than a puddle.

I also didn’t have my Bed Jet on last night.

I will be buying more of these pajamas and throwing away my sleeping t-shirts.

2/5/19
Got bamboo pajamas on Amazon.  Sold by SleepyTimePJs and less than $30.  They are so very soft!!  And very comfy.  Definitely recommend these pajamas.

Hurray! Pfft

Came out of my funk Friday.

Weekend weather was nice enough for my dogs and me to spend most of the morning outside. 

Somewhere in there Luna's dad came to drop of some of her things that the family didn't want.  Those items will get donated to a local senior doggy sanctuary.

I did keep her water bowl and her food mat as a reminder of her.  <3

Her ashes came in yesterday and I met her dad after work.  I looked in the bag that Greenbriar provided to see what was in there.  I was really hoping they did a paw print.  The box with her ashes is beautiful.  They did get the paw print and they also got a card, certificate, and a bookmark.

I took Cesar with me.  He loves car rides.  He got lots of pets when Luis met us.  :-)

I'm very tired today.  I'll get a little chilly, put on my hoody, then get real warm and start to sweat, take it off, then chilly again.  I'm hoping I'm fighting a cooty and not actually getting sick.

The next thing occupying my wee lil brain is my cracked bathtub.  I'll pester Heath Friday to see when I can look forward to it being replaced.