Dear Oprah – IT’S MENOPAUSE!!!

Oprah kicked off her first program in the New Year with a show about her year-long odyssey with health problems and weight gain.  She told viewers that everything in her life –and body –was humming along until she hit 53, when, as she put it, “life took over.” She had heart palpitations. Her blood pressure was creeping up.  She was having trouble sleeping and was so exhausted during her entire 53rd year that there had been times when she didn’t even want to go to work.  (sound familiar?) She stopped exercising and ate more. Her friend, the exercise and nutrition guru, Bob Greene, told her she seemed depressed.  “There’s a dullness about you - you’re not really there,” he recalled saying to her.

Though Oprah has mentioned in the past that Dr. Christiane Northrup’s book on Menopause was helpful in figuring out what was happening to her, and her website offers several links to articles on the topic, Oprah nevertheless attributed all of these symptoms to thyroid disease (cured now) and the fact that her life was out of balance.  But to me, and probably every other 50-something viewer who has been through the same experience, it sure sounds like Menopause. Unfortunately, she didn’t utter the M word once during the one-hour show. What a missed opportunity to educate millions of women!

Not only are her symptoms typical of menopause, her experience over the years with physicians who focused on each individual ailment is remarkably similar to how most women are advised to manage the symptoms of menopause.  One doctor told her to reduce her salt intake. Another prescribed medicine for the heart palpitations and yet another for her creeping blood pressure.   As I’ve written here before, it’s easy to find yourself taking a handful of meds, including sleeping pills, in an effort to feel better (and help you function) during the menopausal transition. But a healthier approach to take is to look at the bigger picture, acknowledge the fact that it’s Menopause, and work with a medical professional to help balance your hormones and guide you on a journey of overall wellness. (keeping a diary of the symptoms you’re experiencing can help you “connect the dots” and see the big picture).

We all tend to behave like we’re the first woman to go through menopause when it happens to us. But in recent years, there has been more sharing of information (my goal for this blog) and a lot of good books on the subject.  Some that I recommend for Oprah and other women in the same boat include:

• The Female Brain by Dr. Louann Brizendine
• Our Bodies, Ourselves: Menopause, The Boston Women’s Health Collective
• Dr. Nieca Goldberg’s Complete Guide to Women’s Health
• The Wisdom of Menopause by Dr. Christiane Northrup
• Is it Hot in Here? Or is it me? The Complete Guide to Menopause

If you have found other books on Menopause to be especially helpful  I hope you’ll share your recommendations here.