Pre-Menopausal kicking your butt?

So I have not been writing for a while due to family events and travels during the Summer, etc., but enough about the excuses, I'm BACK! I want to share or talk about a Mother's Journey through change. We went from having children, healing, and trying to survive the sleepless nights while healing, then got hit by the toddler tantrums, now the school-age dramas, and I'm about to get smacked by turbulent teens. I hope it won't be too bad, but I will talk about that another day. Let's get back to the ever-glossed-over, whispered between close friends but seldom shouted out topic known as transition into menopause. GRRRR!!!

I don't hear a lot of women who are close to me talk about this openly because maybe it's due to culture where it's not discussed, but you deal with it and shut it. BUT, OH MY GOSH!!! Pre-menopause or menopause is a reality for countless women worldwide. For Mama's, this phase brings about a fresh set of emotional and physical challenges. If you're not there yet, let me tell you…buckle up because it hits you emotionally and physically. The mood swings, hot flashes, night sweats, sleep disturbances, and various aches and pains…Holy Mother of the Almighty, I underestimated this phase of motherhood.

I won't bother explaining the scientific piece of it because I'm not a doctor, but this phase takes stress levels to another level: emotional responses, patience, etc. I pray every morning that I am calm and

and collected with running kids to and fro school, sports, and church activities and that I'm still sane enough to fix dinner. Some nights are fine, but then some nights, I have no clue what happened and woke up the next day to get the day going. However, I never realized how joint pain and muscle aches were just standard parts of this half-a-century (as my kid would refer to my age) phase. Please know that calling out our age doesn't matter in my family because we look younger than the number. It's how we take care of our body matters.

I went to the doctor for a check-up because I had started playing tennis and must have pulled something. He even X-rayed me and my back, and I was told I was clear. My doctor said to me sometimes it's just getting older. I smiled and said… ahh yes, I'm old and fat, which is what it comes to. He smiled but said to exercise 30 minutes daily and eat more vegetables, fruits, lean meats, fish, and chicken than red meat. I nodded and said, "Wait, what about my pains, he prescribed some painkillers and then looked at his charts and X-ray again and said, " I think it's more arthritis, but get your prescription and let me know if it gets worse. I love my doctor, he's older and tells me like it is, reminds me of my grandparents! I walked out of there and did get my pills, but of course, if you ask me now where it is, I would not know. I am that dumb, hmm maybe I can blame it on menopause...brain fog and all haha. Now that my aches and pains have returned, I take one Aleve once or twice throughout the week when I needed it, and it sure feels great to sleep and wake up with no pain. The constant waking up in the night is still there, but when I do exercise, I sleep good yet wake up to sweat still...BLEEEH.

Here are some strategies to cope with menopausal if you're in the same boat as me:

Aches and Pains:

**Regular Exercise - low-impact exercises like walking, yoga, or swimming

**Heat/Cold Therapies - honestly, I have a fan. I do not do well with packs, plus I don't want my autistic kid messing with that

**Massage - get your other half to use their big muscles on massaging you and alleviating muscle tensions

**Dietary Changes - I can honestly say I've been eating more berries, veggies, and fish ever since my doctor recommended to change my eating

**Supplements - I haven't found anything that works on this part (and I've tried some), but I'll post about anything that may work once I find it.

OK, maybe I need to just take a vacation LOL (Click on Travel if you're planning any quick vacay) that's it for now, THANKS for reading, till next time!