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Menopause : What is it and why do I need to know about it?

You may have heard about another friend’s menopause stories but menopause is different for every woman. It is therefore important to be well informed about this third stage of life in a woman.

It is a time of change. Change can be exciting, a bit scary….. BUT MENOPAUSE need not be scary. All the changes are perfectly normal.

What is menopause?

It is a time when women stop having their monthly periods. It is a change of life. It is a new beginning. It is a time when one’s ovaries have run out of follicles (eggs) and therefore stop producing hormones, especially estrogen. It is a normal part of being a woman, and all women go through it.

When?

No one can be sure. Every woman is different. Most women reach menopause around 50 years, but many women start the changes in their 40’s.

Your best clue to timing of your menopause is your mother. Your menopause will be around the time when she had hers, with few alterations depending on lifestyle e.g. women who smoke get menopause about 2 years earlier than they otherwise would have.

How do I know?

It doesn’t happen all at once. It is a slow process, usually taking 3-6 years, and is complete only when a woman hasn’t had periods for 12months in a row.
Natural menopause: Your body will give you few clues that the process might have started.
Changes in your periods: – Missing periods, having more frequent periods, bleeding lesser or more than usual. This may happen for one or more years before they stop forever
Hot flashes and nights sweats – feelings of heat in the face and upper part of the body for few seconds or minutes on and off.
Dry vagina with possible itching and uncomfortable feeling during sex.
Bladder control problems: – some women may leak urine when they sneeze; cough and sometimes if they don’t get to the bathroom on time.
Mood swings and easy irritability.
Memory changes.
Having aches in the bones. Bones become weak after menopause because of deficiency of estrogen hormone from the ovaries. The main bones affected are the back, hip and arms.

Will all these changes happen to everyone?

No!! Menopause is different for every woman. Some have many changes, others just a few.

What can one do to feel better and stay healthy at this time of change?

Don’t smoke.
Exercise regularly-walk, ride a cycle, use stairs.
Eat healthy and get enough calcium and vitamin D.
Stay in cool areas and wear loose clothing.
Talk to family and friends about it.
Learn new ways to relax e.g. meditation.
Laugh a lot.
Ask for HELP if you need it. Don’t suffer quietly.

Does one need to see a health care provider?

Yes. Your doctor can be a big help as you go through this transition. You can discuss about your changes in periods, how you are feeling and about your chances of having weak bones.

Does everyone need medication?

No!! Many women will not need medication during menopause, but some need them to help cope with severe symptoms.

Treatment options!

Treatment is varied and depends on the symptoms, ranging from dietary advice to herbal medicines (like soy proteins), to hormonal medicine for vasomotor symptoms and other medicines for bones only. One needs to see a doctor to advise an individualized management plan as per profile of the patient. Every woman is different and may require different treatment schedules.

Tips for Nail Maintenance

Read Nail Maintenance Tips first.

Step by step procedure

Shop for items such as the nail coat, tip guide strips, neutral polish and white polish. Note that the neutral polishes are very pale, sheer shades with a pink, beige or peach cast. Look for manicure kits that come with everything in one convenient box. Here is what you also need; alcohol swab, nail brush and files, manicure scissors, nail buffers, cotton, nail clippers and cleaners. The procedure:

Cutting the nails. Make sure you do clip, file and shape your nails properly. Follow the contour of the finger cuticle. Tend to your cuticles, then wash and dry the nails completely.
Apply the base/top coat and let it dry for some minutes. Make sure you do not react to the chemicals provided.
After everything has dried up, remove the guide strip by peeling it off then fix it below the tip of a nail, following its natural curve. The guide will allow you to paint an even white tip with ease and precision. That’s how great painters work by the way.
Be sure you place all guide strips on the nails you want painted. The longer the nail, the longer the white tip should be. Be sure that the arch of the guide is smooth and rounded and the lengths of tips are equal to give it a greater uniform look.
Start by painting each nail tip white. Perform this by extending the brush stroke from the top of the guide to the end of the nail. Avoid getting any white polish on the body of the nail below the guide. Let the tips dry.
After they are dry, remove all the guides.
Dissolve leftover adhesive by rubbing it gently with an alcohol cotton swab
Now apply 2 coats of the neutral polish, first by letting the first coat dry then apply the second coat.
Finish with a thin layer of base/top coat.
You can have your own color combination just to be different from the French style. Instead of the neutral, you may consider the white, red with black tips, red with gold tips or white with silver tips. It’s up to you.
As you finish up, keep your hands very still as the polish dries to avoid denting or smudging it.

Important things to note

DO NOT USE YOUR NAILS AS TOOLS OR WEAPONS. Instead use your fingertip or knuckle to perform tasks.
You may trim cuticles once each week. First soften them with a specialized cuticle cream, and then trim carefully with a clipper.
You may moisturize nail beds regularly by rubbing nondrying nail lotion over the entire nail bed at least once a day or oil the nails daily by using creams such as aqueous cream with vitamin E. This helps to hydrate your cuticles and prevents peeling and separating of the natural nail from the acrylic.
Wear gloves whenever coming into contact with cleaning chemicals (kitchen/bathroom cleaner, bleach, ammonia, etc) as well as when gardening – dirt, fertilizer, and chemicals used for plant growth are harmful. Gloves protect your skin as well as your nails!
Do not use glue on your nails. Temporary patching with glue may trap dirt and /or bacteria in the nail which may damage the natural nail. In addition, glue is water soluble – so it will break down when you come into contact with water and you may re-break the nail, causing even more damage.
Eat a balanced diet especially full of vitamin B, calcium and protein to get stronger nails. You may also take supplements
Clip your nails regularly in a rounded or squared shape. On the toes nails, if you easily get ingrown toes nail conditions, trim the nails horizontally than curving them. Not that the more your nails point especially at the tips, the more likely it is to break off.
Avoid biting your nails as it is a sure way to create unhealthy and unsightly nails

Valentines Day time: A complete woman’s guide

Read Valentines Day: A complete woman’s guide first.

How to look good for him, on this day

Let’s put it plain, Men have many traits in common;

They love their cars
They like to look at good breasts
They scan the best hips in the neighborhood
They love cute faces and the hair too.
Read the book of Solomon

Men are visual creatures by all means. Ever wondered why beer commercials have contents with the best hips and legs? The sexy connotations are not taken for granted. In her book called; Find a husband after 35, Rachel Greenwald advises women to wear dresses at all times. Studies prove that men love to see their women in dresses. With these parameters, you can use them to spice up your love. Remember, once in his eyes, some things are hard to forget. If you are walking down the streets with him and he notices a cute woman with a great body, this will linger in his mind for a while, if not a long time. You must erase it immediately. Tell you the truth, if you don’t erase it, and it happens over and over again, one thing will remain to be true; that the reason he is with you is that he can’t do better!

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Nail maintenance tips

Introduction

Nails are an important part of the body. The nail is one of the hardest parts of the human anatomy, and a durable and potent weapon. Although there are differences between fingernails and toenails, they are also quite similar

In many aspects. The fingernails growth at 3 mm/month compared with toenails at 1 mm/month. One of the reasons is because of poor blood flow to the toes compared to the fingers.

There are advantages of nails such as:

Protective coverings. They help protect the tips of the fingers and toes from injury or inflammation.
They may serve as effective weapons as anyone who has been scratched by sharp nails can confirm.

The nail anatomy

Nails are made of basically keratin, a fibrous protein that grows out of the front part of the top of the toe and slides forward over the nail bed. The same keratin is found in hairs.
The root of the nail is also called the matrix, or the growth plate.
The whitish area at the bottom of the nail is the lunula (half-moon), and the fold of skin lying directly over the root is the nail fold.
A skin layer next to the root is called the eponychium also known as the cuticle.

Keeping your nails healthy

Nails show many different indications of systemic diseases or conditions. For example in patients with anemia, the nails appear as whitish patches called apparent leuconychia which is spurious whiteness. On the other hand the nails are alive and need to be taken care of. The following are some of the facts on healthy nails:

A healthy nail is clear, with no discoloration on any part. There should be a normal growth pattern that follows the follows the contour of the toe or finger.
The nails have no nerve endings, meaning that there is no pain directly associated with damage to the nail itself. The pain that may arise may be due to the damage to the underlying tissue that has been traumatized.
The toenail serves no useful function to modern humans except for beauty especially in many women
The fingernails growth at 3 mm/month compared with toenails at 1 mm/month. One of the reasons is because of poor blood flow to the toes compared to the fingers.
Nails do not breathe. The nail plate is made of dead keratin and does not require oxygen. The nail bed, cuticle, and matrix do require oxygen because they are composed of live skin cells. These areas are supplied with oxygen rich blood from numerous capillaries.
Nails do not sweat since the bed does not contain sweat glands, so it can not perspire. While the nails do contain a lot of moisture the moisture does not build up under the acrylic nail. The moisture that causes problems under artificial nails occurs when the product lifts and moisture gets trapped underneath; most commonly caused by waiting to long between rebalances.
Nails do not eat and they do not need vitamin or minerals. Because nails are made from dead protein, they cannot be strengthened by vitamin or mineral supplements, or topical vitamin treatments. While severe vitamin, mineral, or protein deficiencies do affect the nails, healthy people rarely suffer from a deficiency severe enough to affect their nails.
The most common cause of nail problems is an accidental or intentional, damage to them, and in most cases it is the big toe that is affected, just because it happens to be a bigger, better target than other nails
Some nail disorders are caused by ill-fitting shoes or erratic nail-cutting. When cutting nails, it is important to follow the contour of the cuticle

How to Give Yourself a French Manicure

This is a fairly difficult job, but after some time you easily get used to it. You must practice this. It will give you some attractive appearance from daytime denim to evening elegance. The white-tipped look will never leave you wondering whether your polish complements your outfit.

So if you want to look good, consider a French manicure.

Continue reading Tips for Nail Maintenance.

Valentines Day: A complete woman’s guide

Imagine yourself in a movie. You wake up the following day, shower or just before that, stare at the figure in front of you on the mirror and …..oops! You see the best booby, the best behind and the cutest faces you ever saw.

Put that cucumber down- we’ll have plenty of time to play later. You’ll soon stop thinking like a man and learn to think like woman.

In the living room, you press on the messages and a number of them are waiting for you. «Hey gal, its mike from Club Dimples, we met yesterday? I thought…eerrrr…we could meet, if that’s ok with you. If you are ready, this is my number. Please call back. Then comes the next one: Hi cute little thing, its Jack. What’s up sugar? You were so moody last night. I couldn’t see you. Will you call me back?

Let’s fast forward to the mall, where you spend a fortune on facials, cosmetics and clothing. You had your nails done, pedicure, and massage…its party time. You start choosing what to wear….»But wait, don’t I look fat….» crying. «No, sweetie, your hips are good, your friend responds. You get weird thoughts about yourself. It’s an emergency here. Just few days to go to Val’s day, you need a complete facial and body makeover. Everybody is in it and you can’t be left behind.

Welcome back to earth. I hope I made you think of this day deeply. No more movies. In this planet, we have men. These are a certain species of beings with minds, and eyes, eyes that are predatory. And they make a kill out of them. Men are visual human beings. They look at facts and digest them instantly. Well they look at women and that’s it. A man has few things that are still carries on from childhood to adulthood.

From the time when mother’s breasts were all the beauty the world could offer, both sexes have had feelings of enlarged, enhanced life from seeing a gloriously naked woman. The male body holds no such primitive magic. It is one of the dissymmetries of our biological life.

In matters of love, you must understand that men are emotionally much more sensitive than women. Thus, it is much more humane to be firm and break a man’s heart early than to let him get his hopes up only to waste away in anguish or vindictiveness.

Women control intimacy. His is a powerful tool, and the extraordinary emotional power they have over men needs some form of responsibility to steer men in the right direction.

The game of love is a lot more complicated than sex. Do men only want one thing- – sex? No. If it were true that men only wanted one thing, then all men would be visiting brothels for this. Do all women want one thing– sex? If that were true then all women would be visiting gigolos. Men and women are two completely different creatures that must come together in a relationship.

Valentine’s Day is here and this is your chance to spice up the relationship

Love and romance

Think about the following things; «What about the two of you? What about your future? Where are you going?» It may not be for Valentines Day alone but from now on, a few tips could help you send him messages of your intentions. These include;

Your visit to his crib. While visiting him, leave your personal effects in his home. This is a clear territory demarcation. Other females will get the message too. By the way, even animals do this. Without territorial markings, you have no chance. Other will do it. Even if it means leaving your scarf in his car, send the message.
Your mother is your attorney. Quite interesting, the experienced lover has some lectures to give.
Have you met his family? You won’t get noticed. Probably Mike has another one at upcountry. Just check.
Gifts, gifts, gifts. Even lingerie for him.
Give him an ultimatum. You are not cheap to be used up. Let him prove your worthiness. On this day, you could play cat and mouse till the proves you worth.
Give him a complete home make over. Rearrange his kitchen, bedroom. After all one day it will be yours, you may do this just be for the main event.
Arrive unannounced at his home, with groceries, etc. But be careful this may sound that you are sneaking in on him. Some guys just don’t like it, and it may mean you raise your antenna.
When introducing yourself to others, your boss, your friends, church mates, mention these words; wife, mistress, or fiancée, it’s the weapon at your disposal.
Drive his car, but don’t crash it. It could crash your romance too. Men and toys are one thing.
Surprise him with midweek luncheon dates and come with two or three of your secretarial friends and/or your mother.
Clean up his house. You have the freedom to remove all unwanted magazines, his other women’s stuff,… and tell him

Continue reading Valentines Day time: A complete woman’s guide.

Exercise in pregnancy; what you need to know

You may have been having a regular exercise program or are planning to have one. There are various types of exercises available programmed ranges from light to heavy depending on your ability to manage.

Now that you are pregnant, your exercise options become limited during but a number of excellent choices exist. Activities involving running or jogging, walking, aerobic dance, bicycling, swimming, and tennis can all be pursued to some degree. Some activities should be taken up before you conceive if you wish to continue them while you’re pregnant.

Running or Jogging

We advice that you start this before conception, otherwise your muscles may not be able to support your loosening joints. This type of exercise is aimed at giving most or your muscles some strength and stamina that will help you carry the pregnancy. Trust me; you will need that strength for 9 months. If you have been doing this for some time before becoming pregnant, you may continue to pursue these activities without harm. You may enroll in a gym to have this done on the treadmill or get out to the nearest club that has sporting facilities.

Walking

Brisk walking at any time, say while going to work, or from work, while going shopping or just work out at your neighborhood helps you burn a good number of calories. You are advised to start brisk walking anytime, including during pregnancy. To do this, begin slowly bearing in mind that the whole idea is to increase your activity level gradually. Start with 5 to 10 minutes at a time and slowly increase to 20 or 30 minutes three or four times per week. Avoid this in high temperatures or humidity but you may exercise outdoors. Remember also the type of shoes you wear, High heeled shoes are a NO, NO for this type of activity. Get some good comfortable shoes, which are not tight.

Cycling

Before you start on this, make sure you have done this before, and you know how to ride a bike. Accidents happen and this is not the best time to have one. Cycling is important in that it gives you good cardiovascular workout. It’s not a weight-bearing activity and this means that the increasing weight of pregnancy will not affect your ability to continue. It is advisable to start on a regular cycling schedule before trying to conceive but even after conception this is safe. Remember always to start very easily and increase slowly. Stationary bicycles are probably the safest to use; and can be used by the pros and those who are learning to ride too. With stationary ones you avoid road traffic accidents and other risks.

Swimming

This is probably the best type of exercise. Water supports your weight during this activity. This is the best program and you may even forget that you are pregnant. Some facilities provide aquanatal classes with qualified instructors. Medical evidence indicates that submersion in water may help reduce leg edema (swelling) which affects at least 50 percent of pregnant women. It is postulated that the pressure of the water squeezes excess water from your body tissues into your bloodstream, which then gets rid of it. Avoid Jacuzzis, hot tubs, and water that is above 100°F, as these tend to overheat the body!.

Other Sports

There some sports that must be avoided. Skiing or horseback riding can cause traumatic injury to the fetus or separation of the placenta. Scuba diving has been associated with fetal hypoxia (lack of oxygen) and should be avoided. Tennis involve frequent turning, twisting, and jumping are not highly recommended during pregnancy.

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