***** of life

This is not something I like to admit... and maybe it is not a polite topic of conversation.... and maybe I'm having second thoughts since there are male blog readers... BUT ANYWAY.... I consulted a doctor yesterday about menopause symptoms.

Let's see...  This year I will be 58.  I have never had American friends or family members discuss the change of life but it is a fairly common topic between my Japanese friends.  Some people complain about physical changes, some people complain about irritability or slight depression.  I've always prided myself on my health and ability to buckle up and work through things but honestly!

At least 4 years ago (I remember... I was in the States that summer) I would wake up in the middle of the night overheated!  My oh my!  These California summer nights are something!  But nobody else seemed to notice and I remained overheated when I came back to Japan... and on into the fall... and on into the winter.

Rats.  I know what is coming.

And that's the way it has been for the past four years.  An occasional private heat wave during the day, oven baking episodes every single night.  It got so that I'd wake up in the morning naked!  Sometime during the night I'd have discarded my pajamas and be lying on the futon exposed to the world!

This actually could be a dangerous situation.  Right now our bedroom temperature drops below zero at night.  The windows freeze shut, the curtains freeze to the window sill.  And there I am in all my glory!  In the mornings Tetsu will look over at me and say in a concerned voice,

"Are you alright?  It is freezing in here and you have nothing on."

I one time consulted a gyn but he felt hormone therapy was worse than the symptoms themselves.  Bear with it Ma'am.

This week I've been seeing a doctor about my mysterious achy neck... and while I was there I approached him about menopause symptoms.  Oh yes!  He definitely recommended Chinese herbal medicine, a mild, traditional way of treatment.  Okay... 

I know that Chinese herbal medicine is actually very popular in Japan but I didn't know that a regular doctor (considered Western medicine) would prescribe Chinese herbs.  They are not really herbs anyway, the medicine is powdered herb extract so my vision of mysterious jars of leaves and nuts was dispelled when I was handed little aluminum packets of powers.  (Picture from the Internet.)

"Dissolve one packet twice a day in hot water.  There are many different combinations of herbs so it may take a while to find one that works best for you but this combination is good for cold sensitivity, menopause symptoms, stiff shoulders, back ache and irritable bowel symptoms."

That should cover it. Hopefully I will soon be enjoying a good night's sleep. And maybe I'll be able to go back to quilting without a neck ache."