The Menopause Minute - Volume 76

Dear Red Hot Mamas

September is National Menopause Awareness Month! U.S. Federal legislators established this month-long event to increase awareness about the importance of having accurate information to enhance women’s health at menopause and beyond. Red Hot Mamas has been on the road this past month, spreading the word by broadening the basis of women and healthcare professionals’ knowledge.

A few weeks ago, I experienced mid-west hospitality at its best in The Heart of America (Kansas City). I was deeply honored to have the opportunity to present The Effects of Menopause at Shawnee Mission Medical Center’s Menopause 2010 Current Trends 23rd annual Breyfogle Conference. This was a continuing nursing education conference for CEU accreditation. There were 150 nurses in attendance. Many of our Red Hot Mamas topics were presented by clinicians and covered a myriad of topics such as hormone therapy, osteoporosis, incontinence, skin changes during menopause and the ever popular, MentalPause topic. This was a delightful program and highly educational, in the spirit of National Menopause Awareness Month.

Looking for Help with your Hot Flashes?

Are you post-menopausal and experiencing several hot flashes a day? For many women, menopause is just the beginning of the aging process. In fact, many post-menopausal women experience annoying and uncomfortable hot-flashes that may interfere with day to day activities.

If so, you may be eligible to participate in a clinical research study to test the safety and effectiveness of an investigational medication, which is taken by mouth, in women who are experiencing moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms, commonly called hot flashes, associated with menopause.

Lost Your Groove? You're Not Alone

Written by Diana E. Hoppe, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.

Have you lost your groove? Your sex life has taken a dive even though you are still interested in your partner? You are not alone.

According to the recent 2009 Sex, Romance, and Relationships Survey released by the AARP in May 2010, there has been an alarming drop in people’s sex drives. Evaluating a random sample of 1,670 American men and women, aged 45 and older, some intriguing findings were revealed. Between 2004 and 2009, the percentage of the people in their ‘50s who say they have sex at least once a week took a 10-point nose-dive for both sexes (women dropped from 43 – 32 percent, and men from 49 to 41 percent.). The majority of other age groups also showed similar decreases.

Denver Learns What's So Funny About Menopause

On Tuesday, September 14, we were thrilled to be a part of the What’s So Funny About Menopause Red Hot Mamas co-ed event hosted by our program site at Porter Adventist Hospital in Denver, CO. Over 80 women and over 40 men attended the event that focused on the humorous side of menopause, along with important health information about midlife concerns.