Sweat Me a River

I have no tears. Any excess water in my body has been sweat out. In the morning when I drink a cup of coffee, I sweat. After I take a shower, I sweat. When I walk my dogs, I sweat – a lot! I sweat through my clothes. I sweat when I first lie down to go to sleep. Sometimes I sweat for no apparent reason. However, even with all this sweating, it appears there are a lot of women who have far worse hot flashes than I do.

According to the breastcancer.org website, a hot flash can be “preceded or accompanied by a rapid heartbeat and sweating, nausea, dizziness, anxiety, headache, weakness, or a feeling of suffocation.” Fortunately, that is not the case for me although it may be for you.

A hot flash is caused by a lower level of estrogen that affects the hypothalamus by making it think the body is too hot. Oh that gullible hypothalamus!

The majority of women in the U.S. (85%) experience hot flashes as they approach menopause and for the first year or two after their periods have stopped. Over time it seems the intensity decreases. So that’s the only good news.

A few things you can do right now to decrease intensity and number of hot flashes are:

Drink ice water instead of caffeinated drinks.

Wear cotton clothing so your skin can breathe.

Use cotton sheets on the bed – no blends!

Stick your head in the freezer – at home or in the grocery store.

Watch what you eat. Not too much sugar, alcohol or other delicious treats.

Exercise – you know, since you’re sweating anyway no one will notice that you’re having a hot flash. Exercise can also help you sleep better, cut down on stress and lots more.

So it appears that you and I will be having hot flashes for many years to come. Mine are pretty non-existent in the winter, but summer is the worst. There’s no way we are going to “love our hot flashes”. I’d love mine more if they made me lose weight.