Blogs on More

Time for a health roundup!

I know you know this, and so do I, but nonethless I point you to this article at the Globe and Mail about the hidden calories in our favourite summer drinks. A little refresher (ha, has) never hurt anyone.

A blood test may be able to predict when menopause will strike. (National Post) While you’re there, if you were planning to commit a major crime and baffle the CSI-like investigators, don’t drink pop. I heard the screenplay writers jumping on this one.

At the CBC, another reason to try to wean your teen from the all-day videogame fest. Although good luck getting them to care about their own future dementia. It’s also still a good time to talk about dating and violence.

More news in the “to caffeinate or not to caffeinate” question. (HealthDay via BusinessWeek)

Half of breast cancer patients stop taking hormone treatment early. (USA Today)

Statins (cholesterol

Reading Anne Bokma’s piece about accidental addicts (women addicted to prescription drugs) in the May issue of More, I really saw some of my own experience during the period that I lost my first child.

After my daughter was moved to the Sick Kids NICU, but before I was discharged from the hospital where I had given birth, I was — not surprisingly — anxious and hypervigilant. One of the nurses brought me Ativan to help me sleep. I remember the feeling of being on the drug - I knew I was still upset and awake, but I didn’t actually care that I was. I felt very disconnected, like “I” was floating above my own feelings. And I did get a few hours’ sleep, which I needed.

It was very scary because I wanted to be present and at the top of my game for any decisions that were coming our way. And it was very freeing, because that death grip of anxiety and fear that descends when something really, truly bad is actually happening was chemically removed. It was a good feeling - really good.

A few weeks later I ended up in my family doctor’s office. My family doctor is generally light on prescribing drugs. But after we talked about the grief of losing my daughter and some of the specifics, she asked me if I was sleeping. I was not, at least not for more than a few hours at a time. She very compassionately suggested that sleep was one area in which she could help and after talking about options she wrote me a prescription for the drug that had helped me in the hospital that one night - Ativan.

Grieving can be very, very hard work — so much so that you can get to the point where anything that will make it stop is a positive. And sleep is critical.

Here’s what I chose: I never took any of the pills. I was fortunate that I had the luxury of few responsibilities and a maternity leave, so I could work out the sleep issue without torpedoing the rest of my life. But I knew I had them as a backup, and sometimes just knowing I could take one made all the difference.

I’m not anti-drug, and I’m very pro-sleep. But reading this piece I see how that very human and humane desire on the part of my caregivers to make the pain go away could potentially in some situations lead to over-prescription and eventual addiction. And the question of whether we try to use drugs to make every day life challenges go away is a provocative one.

So please, go read this one. Tell me what you think, too!

This weekend I went out for a bike ride. This is significant because the last time I really went for a good long bike ride was at the age of 25 - and I broke my wrist after an accident involving a leashless puppy. I never really got back into the saddle, so to speak.

But we’ve had a cascade of events at our house lately - cardiac events of those we love, an active almost-5-year-old and a home near some really great bike trails. And oh yes, remember I signed up for Weight Watchers? I’ve lost 23 pounds now. And although I would never really have wanted to know this about myself or admit it - that one last change has made a huge difference.

It’s almost like I’d forgotten how to put my health first, and simply recommitting to that goal has reminded me how much I enjoy being out and active, whether it’s canoeing or swimming or even riding a bike. I wouldn’t say I’m a fitness junkie yet, but I am out there a lot more and truly enjoying it.

I’ve also noticed that the sunnier side to my personality is coming out. It might be the endorphins from the walking and bike riding. It might be spring. It might be that feeling that I’ve accomplished something that was on my plate for a long time. Or it might be that I just like the way I look more and that boosts my confidence. Whatever it is exactly, I’m both happy about it and a bit sad that it’s weight loss…so many times I think we women wait to buy that great dress or start that new sport because of our weight. And we should not. But here I am enjoying it anyway. (Feel free to comment!)

We’ve run an article on the site lately about how one change can turn your financial picture around. I’m starting to feel like it’s true about health too.

What one change have you made in your life that truly makes a difference?

…okay, not exactly makes you fat, but there was an interesting piece in the New York Times Magazine this weekend about why exercise may be beneficial in keeping weight off, but not necessarily in losing weight.

While you’re there be sure to check out The Estrogen Dilemma. (Money quote: “I’m sorry, but only someone who has never experienced one could describe a day of ‘I would stab everyone I know with a fork if only I could stop weeping long enough to get out of this car’ as a ‘mood swing.’”

The Globe and Mail takes “gainer blogs” (blogs from people who are working to gain weight) to task. I have to admit that I don’t quite understand the gainers’ points of view. But I also wonder if the reason there are 171 comments (as of this writing) on the piece is related to the reason fat kids get teased at school.

Ontario’s organ donation awareness week kicks off today. As someone who’s been through the process, I urge you to discuss your wishes with your family. Signing that donor card is not enough, and if the worst happens, your family will be having to make very difficult decisions at a terrible time. They will need the security to be absolutely sure that is what you wanted (if indeed, those are your wishes).

In the “oh no, that sounds like a lot of work” category, the Globe and Mail recently shared that women should exercise 60 minutes a day 7 days a week in order to maintain their weight. (And while you’re at it, here’s our myth-busting article on midlife weight gain.)

That’s an opportunity for me to jump back on the blogging wagon about my year of turning 40 and share that one of my goals this year was to get exercising and also try Weight Watchers here at work. And so far, so good, although I am not hitting 60 minutes a day. But I have been walking daily, and then there’s Weight Watchers, which has surprised me.

I am not endorsing the programme, because I am skeptical that way. Ask me in 5 years. But I have found that just committing to something has really helped me realign what I’m actually eating with my food values - that is, Michael Pollan’s food values. (”Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much.”)

The mindfulness of counting points (WW’s way to sort out calories), while annoying, is helping me halt some bad habits. (Food gorging apparently can be like cocaine. Or something. I was scared to read the whole article lest I develop a craving.) And our group here at work is sensible and also irreverent and fun to be on the journey with.

And yes, I’ve lost about 10 lbs so far, despite a March Break holiday where I reverted to old habits when faced with an on-site chef and wine cellar.

Here are some spots around the web I’m finding inspirational as I go through this. If you know any I should be reading, please tell me in the comments!

A Midlife Woman’s Journey from Couch to Cross fit
Fatty Kathy’s Weight Loss Journal
I always want to mention the Health at Every Size concept when I talk about weight loss.
Perri Meno-Pudge’s Musings
Not a blog: The brand-new Heart and Stroke Foundation’s healthy weight action plan tools. I haven’t tried them yet, but I intend to as soon as my WW membership expires.

Cautionary tale: Eating disorders in midlife is a good post on Esther Kane’s blog.

Inspirational & cautionary: It’s not about the weight

Talk to me about your relationship to your body when it comes to your weight!

Okay, this is the most hillarious thing I’ve seen all day. Send this to your kids.

And when you’ve finished with that one, try a round of the Menopause Song performed by Canada’s own Wendy Farha.

Congrats to last week’s giveaway winner on how to beat the blues: Lucky #8! “To beat the winter blues, I simply catch up on all the films I didn’t see the previous year. I rent a pile of DVDs, make some ‘virtuous’ air-popped popcorn, and curl up on the couch with a gigantic mug of green tea. Works like magic! - Heather R.”

Now, onto some health-related links that are making me feel like I won something:
Beer may help fight osteoporosis. (National Post) Who knew?
Your bra does not give you breast cancer (and let your daughter know). (New York Times)
Vitamin D is especially important if you’re darker-skinned. (CBC.ca)
Where do you stand on provincial funding for in-vitro fertilization?

Next post: 39-year-old body. Here we go.

My relationship to my body has been complicated. As a victim of childhood sexual abuse, I spent a fair amount of time in childhood and early adolescence trying to achieve out-of-body experiences: Reading as a first and early pleasure, then television. I was, to put it mildly, an underachiever where sports and gym class were concerned. If you could skip them or hide at recess, I did.

I also was that kid who dressed in hand-me-downs and whose socks didn’t always match. But that’s a whole other post!

A lot improved after my parents sent me to Camp Ouareau. It might be a Canadian stereotype that a summer spent under the pines is an invariably wholesome and empowering experience, but in my case those summers - 7 of them - really were. The assumption was that we were there to canoe and swim and windsurf and play tennis, and so I did, and loved it. I also learned to trust my body - that practicing rescues does pay off when a swimmer needs rescuing; that when 9 counsellors-in-training are paddling against the waves and dusk is falling they will find extra stamina to get to the campsite.

I can’t say I fell in love with my body — I think one of the worst things about any form of abuse is that it can set a person at odds against herself in so many ways, and for me that was really expressed in a lot of bad habits around being tuned out and overeating and that kind of thing — but I had those experiences under my belt at least, along with the ripple chips and onion dip.

After I met my husband and married though, I started a slow weight gain that continued through my 20s. I’d like to blame his cooking but the fact was that aside from my one saving grace of loving to walk, I didn’t have any good fitness habits that didn’t revolve around showing up at camp. And since I wasn’t showing up…at 30 I found myself at a size 16 and pretty dreadfully out of shape. I hired a personal trainer named Cindy.

Cindy made me work. Free weights, lunges, step aerobics: You name it, we did it. She helped me believe in myself again as far as strength goes. I went down to a size 12 and started feeling much better about myself; I also formed a gym habit which did come and go a little bit (and I was never as close to as fit as many of the really cool women we profile at More). But it stuck well enough.

That’s the most fit and happy with my body I’ve been. Carl and I reformed our diet and bought a canoe and things were going great.

Then I had my daughter. I could not believe that an entire person came out of my body! Wow! But I also could not believe what that process did to my body. And before I really got a handle on that, I got pregnant again with my son and if I’d thought I’d seen stretch marks and sagging before, that was nothing compared to post-partum body #2. At least the one-year maternity leave gave me lots of time to walk and even brave the gym again.

Except…I never really got brave about it. I felt alien in my body again. I also felt guilty being away from my child (even though I know a healthy parent is important.) And I lost my workout mojo. Two and a half years ago. Ahem.

So I find myself turning 40 where I found myself turning 30: Out of shape! With bad health habits! A size 14 - and only in the forgiving vanity size loving stores.

And part of getting to midlife has also been to realize that it really, really does matter. One of my friends has had a cardiac event. I know, as all of you know, that the risk for many of the things that can really make aging lousy - diabetes, stroke, heart attack - can be lowered with healthy eating and physical activity. I want a healthy lifestyle, and know the only enemy is me.

So I’m getting back to the gym. I’m still suffering some laziness. (I’m going to try this workout. And lots of things I will be reporting on.)

I also have just now said “yes” to Weight Watchers here at work. I have some mixed feelings about that because I’m not a huge fan of diets, and also because I really want to stay focused on fitness and not on weight loss. But I also think that I need some motivation and to re-learn portion control and - hey, I said I would say yes this year. I said yes! I will keep you posted on my thoughts about that as I go through the process.

What’s your fitness and health journey been? Any tips or tricks? Any thoughts? I promise not all posts will be this long.

This week one of my best friends experienced a “cardiac event” - fortunately more of a scare than anything life-threatening, but it was a real wake-up call. (Although actually, it was a wake-up text.)

First, that women should know the symptoms of heart attack, and take them seriously.

Second, that friends are pretty important. Unless, of course, they dump you (well okay, even then they’re important to someone).

And third, that maybe a big part of midlife friendship is learning to go through some of life’s biggest milestones together.

I know my friend and I have resolved to support each other in making sure our lifestyles are more heart-healthy: watch our diets, especially salt and fat (even though it may not be the killer we’ve thought it is), exercise more together, and laugh more often.

What’s changed in your relationships lately?

This weekend the New York Times ran a series called 21st Century Babies - looking at some of the risks and outcomes from using assisted reproduction technology (ART) in the quest for children.

The Globe and Mail also ran a piece about infertility over the weekend: The new IVF gamble: single embryo transfer.

As a member of the “oops, I forgot to have children” generation — meaning delayed childbearing is the norm in my circle, whether the delay was due to marrying late, completing a PhD, starting a career, affording a house in Toronto, or just plain nerves about the whole thing — I’ve had to confront fertility issues head on in a number of ways. It seems to be a constant hot topic.

One thing I know is that it’s much easier to talk about the pros and cons of various treatments in the abstract than in the up close and personal. Have you had any experiences with ART? What are your thoughts? Do you broach these topics with teenage children?