Transition prompt — Age of Empathy

Is Weight Gain from Menopause Getting You Down?

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Menopause! It’s the transition all women face sooner or later.

For the fortunate ones, it’s later. My journey down this path of agony began when I was 53. A friend said she didn’t experience it until she was 64, and it wasn’t that bad. I wanted to slap her! 😠

We, ladies, start dealing with this ugly occurrence at different ages with symptoms at different levels. Mine were too awful to bear. The night sweats were insane! I slept with a fan right next to the bed aimed at my face. It had a remote control I kept on my bed stand. I’d wake out of a dead sleep with my body on fire. It felt like the Jolly Green Giant was standing over me with a blow torch. 🔥

I’d grab the remote and experience a little relief. Eventually, I’d cool off enough to drift back to sleep. No sooner would I fall back to sleep than wake up freezing, turn the fan off, and pull on an extra blanket. This cycle of misery went on all night.

I got up in the morning feeling more tired than when I laid down.

I owned and operated a bar and grill at the time. I’d be behind the bar serving a customer when a hot flash would hit. My face turned red as a beet, sweat rolled down my face, and I’d grab a bar…