Baby Boomer women need to find out as much about menopause as possible so that
they can work with in an intelligent way. Menopause often begins to arrive in
women at around 52 years of age. Some women experience menopause symptoms at
an earlier age. This is so, especially if there are some medical issues present
that can cause changes to the body`s makeup. Women that have gone through cancer
treatments, such as chemotherapy, are likely to experience symptoms earlier.

Such a change in a woman`s life occurs as the ovaries stop producing estrogen.
This causes the woman`s reproductive system to gradually shut down. This change
is said to be physiological because it is comprised of the body`s reactions
to adapting to the changes. The symptoms of menopause are not necessarily entirely
physical, as the mind also must adapt to the ‘change of life’.

Symptoms of Menopause
As the body is adapting to the changing hormones during the natural
menopause stage, many women wonder what is happening to them and how they can
adapt. Menopause is a time of a life change. With the body`s changes, natural
hormones change levels and the body undergoes a variety of sudden ’swings’.
Some symptoms include:

• Hot flashes or hot flushes - a feeling of intense heat coupled with increasing
  heartbeat and sweating.
• Sleep issues, such as an inability to keep proper sleeping hours
• Urinary issues, such as frequency or urgency
• Skeletal and joint pain
• Muscle pain
• Fatigue and irritability
• Memory loss
• Depression

Along with those symptoms, other changes can occur within the female body.
It is best to seek the advice of a medical professional, as he or she can provide
ample information. While this phase is a normal part of a woman`s life, it can
also present some dangerous side effects that should be examined by a doctor.
Always talk to a physician about the symptoms.

I’ll have to admit, I was an Ironworker by trade and always thought of golf
as a game for sissies. I’m sorry if you’re an avid golfer but that’s the way
I felt. Next thing I know, my oldest son takes up golf. Oh, no, I thought, where
did I miss out on his upbringing?

He played for about eight or ten years and all the time, telling his younger
brother and I how great the game was and how much he enjoyed it. Every time
he invited us to play or even brought up the subject, he was in for a lot of
ridicule. The next thing that happened was that he finally got his brother to
go and play a game with him. That did it and my younger son was hooked.

You can’t possibly know what that did to a guy with an Ironworker’s outlook
on life. Well, after about another two years, the boys were playing every Tuesday
after work and I was missing their companionship. I figured that the only way
I would be able to spend some time with them was to belly up to the pro shop
and try the game out for myself.

You probably already know the end of the story. I became a stark raving maniac
over the game. Now I’m calling them up on other days like Saturday and saying
“Hey, let’s go to the new Championship course here in Tahoe and smack some
balls around.”

I’ve got my own set of golf clubs, shoes and all the trimmings and I’m having
a blast at a game that I wouldn’t have given a chance if it wasn’t for my two
sons defying my bias against the game. It’s kind of funny how life takes these
little turns, as we grow older, isn’t it?

Looking for a new, good book to read about improving a marriage relationship?
Some of the most famous experts in the marriage enrichment profession have published
new works in 2007. While many of these books are a little long, this one is
quick and to the point. One of my favorite is the “tell it like it is”
book from Robert Mark and Jane Alter, “Good Husband, Great Marriage: Finding
the Good Husband in the Man You Married.” Robert Alter is a marriage
counselor and a man’s man who once refereed hockey.

During his 20 years of working with married couples, he discovered that men
are the ones who can mess up the marriage relationship, much more than women.
This is not surprising. Boys learn to be competitive in sports and often adopt
a domination mindset over girls while growing up. , grow into men who do struggle
treating women with respect. Boys and men are not raised to relate in complementary
ways, they have to learn about relationships from women.

This book is written for guys by a guy who had to learn the hard way. Robert
Alter credits his wife Jane with teaching him how to love, honor and respect
her as a person. I have to agree with his viewpoint, since I have learned a
lot about relationships from my own wife. I found this book very easy to read.
It contains lots of funny stories and witty humor.

Many of the chapters are only two or three pages long. He includes a “take
action” item at the end of each chapter. This is a must read for all men
(and their wives) to stop disrespect and direct their energy to building the
marriage of their dreams. I highly recommend reading this book. I was privileged
to hear Robert Mark Alter speak at our Catholic church in May 2007. A husband
can make his marriage relationship something to be proud of.

Starting a healthy diet is hard to initiate when you’re just beginning such
a program. In fact, those who attempt to eat right after a lifetime of eating
wrong often find that breaking their unhealthy eating habits is usually the
hardest part of the diet and lifestyle change process.

Yet, as difficult as it may seem, if you genuinely would like to experience
the healthiest lifestyle imaginable, it’s important to develop and follow a
plan towards changing to a healthy way of eating. The bottom line is that eating
healthy food is crucial for sustaining normal bodily functions and for living
a life free from diseases.

A good place to start is in the kitchen: get rid of all foods that don’t fit
into wholesome food categories. Ouch! Yes, that means getting rid of junk foods
and — hold on to your hat — beverages. Even diet coke must go! Zippo. Out
the door. You do not want anything tantalizing you to snack unhealthily during
the day.

Replace the bad stuff with good-for-you things to eat like carrot sticks, celery,
yogurt and fresh fruit, along with a few high protein foods; and have on hand
a good supply of sparkling bottled water and herb teas to replace the sodas.
Do you miss the crunchy feel of those bad-for-you chips?

Keep a few pretzels on hand for those times when a carrot stick just doesn’t
satisfy your craving to munch. One of the most important things you can do is
to get rid of all sugar products. Yes, all of them. Sugar is so very bad for
you and is the very worst junk food you can have in your cupboard. The sooner
you break the sugar habit, the sooner you will begin to feel better.

Enjoy your journey! It will change your life.

Although traditional arts, crafts, and hobbies are enjoying a huge surge of
popularity at every level of American culture– if you don’t believe it, just
“Google” the first past-time that comes to mind– it’s still interesting to
see how many people don’t connect a hobby or past-time with a healthy life-style.

As an enthusiastic eater and cook, who was still cooking not only for family
but for boarders as well, I decided that, for the Lent of the year 2000, I’d
make a more consistent effort at what are really the very moderate demands of
the Catholic Lenten fast. I’m the daughter and the sister to a couple of gifted
knitters, although my Mom had actually moved on some time ago to a master’s
degree in French literature and then full circle back to the drawing and painting of her art school days.

I’d tried to take up knitting on multiple occasions over the years, but could
never quite make it happen–I was way too uptight and too impatient. Passing
a very hip, and previously unknown yarn shop, I decided that, why not?,I’d give
it the old heave-ho once again: it would get my mind off of food…and my grumbling
stomach. This time, giving no thought to health or lifestyle, I promised myself,
it would be about the process and not the product…

My point here is that you don’t have to be a master craftsperson…just find
something beside the television or surfing the internet that can engage your
attention and your hands, a few minutes a day, or even a few times a week. Ironically,
the internet has been a god-send for this area of human endeavor!

I am not the greatest knitter– I quickly learned to restrict myself to small
items, to lessen the pain of regularly ripping out miscounted rows or stitches–I’ve
always been so absentminded and distractable that today I’d probably be labeled
ADHD! In any case, it’s easier to take these types of small projects in the
car, on the plane, or to an appointment.

Interestingly enough, there’s now significant psychological research that supports
the case for a consistent past-time’s healthy ef