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Magnets in Your Knickers and other Menopause Matters

Who would have thought a magnet in your knickers might ease menopause symptoms? The first time I heard about these I was sceptical. But this week, having had a couple of rather heated moments in the office, I’m starting to think again.

I confess I don’t know much about these magnets or whether they work. Ages ago I read an article somewhere about the coyly named, Ladycare device – a magnet that you stick to your knickers a couple of inches below your belly button and which apparently confers all kinds of menopause symptom reliefs. I’ve read enthusiastic reviews from women who claim it helped them sleep better, lose weight, and even improve their eyesight. Can the claims be true?

The magnet device costs just under €30 in this part of the world. That’s enough to make it a ‘considered purchase’. Right now, I’m considering. If you’ve any experience of Ladycare, I’d appreciate your comment.

4 comments   Hot flashes, Menopause, Menopause symptoms, Perimenopause   , , ,  

Crankiness, menopause and over-engineering

Preparing for menopause is a great excuse to indulge in a little crankiness so, today, I take as my theme the subject of over-engineering and pointless innovation.

What exactly is over-engineering and how does it affect the menopausal woman? Let’s consider a couple of example:

  • Flip out car keys. Flip out car keyWhat exactly is the point of this ‘innovation’? Is it to stop us poking ourselves in the eye with our car keys? I’ve been driving for 30 years and never had a car key accident so I don’t understand why my latest car key needs to fold up into the fob. Answers on a postcard please if I’m missing something really important here.
  • Microwave beeps. Dear Sanyo, How much happier I would be if you had devoted your attention to the cooking capabilities of the microwave and not worried so much about the beep. Who, in their right mind, thought any household would need a device that beeps incessantly until you open the door?
  • Back to the car and the green light that tells me it’s time to change gear. Did it ever occur to them that lights flashing on the driver’s console might be a distraction and that the driver’s attention properly belongs on the road. Ditto flashing seat belt lights and/or alarms. If I choose not to wear my seat belt, breaking national law in the process, can’t you just accept that I’m an adult and have my reasons? Beeping at me may induce an accident or road rage. Just saying.
  • Mops. Is it just me or has there been an explosion of innovation in the moposphere? From the swiffer to the interchangeable mophead and yet, dear reader, none of them seems adequate to the task of washing a floor. Seems to me the only way to make my tiles shine is to get down on my hands and knees and scrub like generations of women before me.
  • Ironing. Steam irons with inbuilt tanks are still fundamentally irons. Why can’t the innovaters see that we need to move beyond hot triangular metal. A major breakthrough is called for. Stop the tweaking if you please.

If you’re thinking I’ve little to annoy me if this is my list of issues, you may well be right. But that’s the point, isn’t it. Menopause means it’s okay to be cranky.

Leave a comment   Menopause, Perimenopause   , , , , , , ,  

Perimenopause and Symptoms of PMS

You have probably experienced these symptoms even if you didn’t recognise them as premenstrual tension

A woman I worked with once told me she felt like an over-ripe tomato when she had PMS and was so sensitive to touch that she thought she would explode if anyone touched her.

For me, it’s noise. There are days when the chatter on the train in the morning goes right through my head putting me in a bad mood that can last all day. Noise sensitivity is, in fact, one of the symptoms of PMS although I hadn’t made the connection until I came across an amazing list of pre-menstrual syndrome symptoms recently. It includes:

  • bloating
  • abdominal cramping up to 2 weeks before period that may also be felt in the back, thighs, or vaginal area
  • poor coordination
  • rashes
  • breast pain and swelling
  • stiff neck
  • back/joint pain
  • indecisiveness
  • slurred speech
  • eye problems – dry eyes, difficulty focusing, aching eyes
  • tiredness
  • hand tingling
  • sensitivity to noise, touch or smell
  • dizziness / fainting
  • pounding or irregular heart
  • more – or less – interest in sex

Not to mention the mood and emotion symptoms that are more commonly connected to PMS.

There are some practical steps that can help alleviate these symptoms like avoiding sugar and alcohol, switching to a healthier diet, and taking regular exercise. It’s not a bad idea to have a little refresher on these techniques because by the time we get to peri-menopause when PMS symptoms can resurface as a problem, many of us will have forgotten both how wide the symptoms can be and what’s effective in dealing them. The article cited above is a useful starting point. It has certainly opened my eyes.

For more on the subject of menopause, you may like to read this useful feature from the New York Times.

2 comments   alcohol, breast pain, Dizziness, eye health, Menopause, Perimenopause, PMS, PMT, symptoms, throbbing breasts   , ,  
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