Menopause Awareness Month | Are You Prepared? | #PoiseFab5

September is Menopause Awareness Month and since this site is a resource for women let’s talk a little bit about the symptoms of menopause and how they can affect a women personally and relationally.

The biggest symptom we hear about during the stages of menopause and pre-menopause are:

• Hot Flashes
• Night Sweats
• Irregular Periods
• Loss of Libido
• Vaginal Dryness
• Mood Swings, Sudden Tears
• Fatigue
• Hair Loss or Thinning, Head, Pubic, or Whole Body; Increase in Facial Hair
• Mental Fatigue, Disorientation
• Weight Gain
• Incontinence
• Changes in Body Odor
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Irritability
  And More!!

After researching the symptoms I can tell you this, I’m 34 and I must have been experiencing menopause the last 12 or so years because many of these symptoms are ones I deal with on a daily basis.

Even though I deal with some of the symptoms I don’t let them dictate my life and you don’t have to either.

Today I want to share a few things you can do to prevent menopause from ruining some of the best years of your life.

We are going to have what Poise calls “The 2nd Talk” and we are going to do it virtually.

What’s “The 2nd Talk”?

Okay, let’s back up here.

The first talk is the one you would have had with your mom or older female relative about preparing for your menstrual cycle.

“The 2nd Talk” is when you talk to your mom, grandma or other female about menopause. Having this talk will help you be prepared for the next major phase your body will experience that’s why I’m having it with your today.

Preparing for “The 2nd Talk”  and a personal story.

I’ve had the 2nd talk with my mother several times.

It came about when we noticed that she would break out in a heavy sweat out of no where. We’d be spending time with one another just talking when sweat would begin pouring down her face.

The first 3 or so times I saw it happen I’d turn the air conditioner temperature higher. After noticing that the sweats were occurring regularly, I asked her about it.

We talked at length about her symptoms and what she was doing to treat them. After talking with her it got me to thinking about how my body might respond to menopause.

I’ll tell you what…I’m not looking forward to breaking out in shirt drenching sweats in the middle of conversations.

What can we do about Menopause?

There are to major areas that can be affected by the symptoms of menopause. The first is our mental health and the second our physical health.

The symptoms of Menopause can cause women to withdraw, feel self conscious and hopeless, but there are some things we can do and tools available to help us get through our bodies transition with confidence.

Diet & Exercise

Whether Pre-menopause, currently experiencing menopause or post menopause, women should be exercising.

There are just too many health and wellness benefits related to an active lifestyle to ignore physical activity. This is coming from a woman who hates to sweat and work out.

After committing to a exercise routine the next step is to evaluate your eating habits. I’ve learned that certain foods have negative affects on my body.

Sugar converts very quickly into tummy fat for me. I can’t eat fried foods without getting gall stones and my husband gets heart burn after eating acidic foods such as oranges or tomatoes.

Accessing your eating habits will help you choose foods that will help you feel and perform at your best.

Feminine Hygiene & Intimacy

Menopause symptoms such as hot flashes seem to be the most common complaint. It can be embarrassing to break out in sweats for no reason and with sweat comes odor.

I’m not sure if I’m Pre- menopause or not but I sweat easily. I live in the South so some of it is our climate but I sweat in the winter also. I use several products in an effort to stay fresh and shower two to three times a day on the summer.

So you can see why when I was asked to try the new Poise product line geared toward menopause symptoms I was more than ready to oblige.

I went to Walmart, bought the following five products which Poise has dubbed the Fab5. I even shared some behind the scenes pictures of my shopping trip.

• Poise Roll-On Cooling Gel

• Poise Body Cooling Towelettes

• Poise Feminine Wash

• Poise Panty Freshener

• Poise Personal Lubricant

These five products were created for women to address hot flashes, intimacy issues related to dryness and odor problems.

I initially felt like these products might be gimmicky but I ended up finding them useful.

I especially like the Poise Panty Freshener and the Poise Roll-On Cooling Gel. Right now you can print a coupon good for $1  off Poise products.

The products start at $2.97 so you could get the following deal.

Buy Poise Cooling Towelettes 20 ct & Poise Panty Freshener $2.97
Use the $1/2 Poise Product coupon
Final Price: 2 for $4.94 or $2.47 each!!

Without giving up TMI (to much information), these are products that definitely helped me feel fresher. For those of you who use baby powder to stay fresh or carry a small perfume bottle to freshen up during the day, you’ll like the Poise Panty Fresher. They attach directly to your underwear and keep you fresh up to 4 hours.

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Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Poise #CBias #SocialFabric

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I don’t plan on letting menopause be a source of embarrassment for me. I plan to eat a healthy diet, exercise and stay fresh with products designed to help women continue to feel confident in whatever stage of life they are in.

1. Have you gone through menopause or are currently experiencing it? Share your advice for dealing worth the symptoms in the comments below.

2. If you’ve already gone through it, would you have liked to have see these products available?

3. Which product was your favorite?