FashBlog.com

In my early 30’s I was diagnosed with a medical conditions that necessitated being placed into a drug-induced menopause. After a few months, all I could hope for that real menopause would somehow skip over me, or at least hold off until I was 70 and feeling cold most of the time. No such luck. After my daughter’s birth I needed a hysterectomy and my system started following its own drummer, resulting in hot flashes for years. Night sweats began long before they were due, but optimistically, I figured that the sooner they started, the sooner they’d be over. Hah!

Being hot like that is awful-even though it seems that it’s not much to get upset about, all things in life considered. But to repeatedly break out into full-body sweats is disgusting, especially when everyone around you is calmly going about their business with nary a drop of perspiration in sight.

Since my mother died from breast cancer, I’m not the best candidate for hormone replacement therapy or even soy-based over the counter pharmaceuticals, but I take them anyway. I’ve also refrained from hot beverages, getting overheated, and placing a cold pack under my pillow. (Sleeping on ice just adds to my misery.) Giving up caffeine and wine isn’t on the horizon, either. Therefore, I found myself wondering what women did before air conditioning and paddle fans were invented. What do women in continuously warm areas of the world do? I also wonder about the physiological phenomena of having a hot flash right after thinking about having one. I often wished I could take my temperature during a flash. But, since it’s only about 2 minutes in duration, I doubt I’d get an accurate reading.. But I swear that it feels like it’s 95 degrees when I know the house is at 75. It’s a big difference, let me tell you.

So, if you’re facing this stage in life, or simply fed up with this recent heat wave far too early in summer, let me share some of the things I’ve found pertaining to fashion and clothing that might make life a bit better for you. First, think cotton. Keep repeating, “Cotton is my friend.” It is so much easier to wear than any polyester, nylon, rayon or other blends, and doesn’t show sweat like linen. This goes for lingerie as well; I know it’s hard to find cotton bras, but they are out there, and cotton camisoles are also an option-for some, anyway. Not only is layering key to feeling like you’ve some control, layering with things that don’t need pulled over your head is the key. (Who wants to have to deal with that several times a day?) If possible, try to avoid garments with draping, folds, pleats or excess material; believe it or not, any additional weight of fabric can make a difference. What worked best for me is to go sleeveless. For some reason, those few inches of material on my upper arms make me feel a good deal warmer. If it cools, I add a simple blouse over my tank or sleeveless top, leaving it unbuttoned and rolled up at the sleeves. I also found that loose dresses are often cooler than shorts, and wearing caps or visors outside keeps me a few degrees cooler as well. (It’s not much, but any little bit helps.) Obviously, the practice of wearing light colors instead of dark should be heeded as well, and anything extra that can be annoying should be left at home for another time-like decorative scarves, heavy belts, vests-even some jewelry.

My last thought about this issue is why the change in women’s hormonal systems results in a temperature rise instead of drop. But I smile as I think of something else: If we women got cold, we could probably hide it easily. But it’s hard not to notice someone flushed and “dewy”, fanning herself, in the middle of winter. Perhaps it’s nature’s way of telling us that it’s about time we let vanity and worries about appearance go out the window. As “women of a certain age”, perhaps it’s about time we review our priorities in life…

On that note-where’s my ice water?