The past few months I haven't felt like myself. Something was off, but I couldn't put my finger on it. First I thought I was just being lazy. Then I thought maybe I was depressed. Last week I finally realized what it was - menopause. And even thought this is the second time around, it kicked my butt as much as it did the first time.
A few years ago I went through early menopause (I had already been diagnosed with PCOS and endometriosis). Thanks to a vitamin regimen I was able to have most of the symptoms completely go away. Just an FYI - menopause or perimenopause can be a sneaky little bastard. I thought I was losing my mind. Instead I'm going through menopause for a second time at the ripe age of 27. Fantastic!
There is anxiety, hot flashes, depression, foggy mind, exhaustion and weight gain to deal with. The anxiety and depression didn't sound any alarms. I have dealt with both in my past and I knew I could get through them again. The hot flashes haven't completely gone away, but they are rare and insanely annoying. Have you ever been somewhere and seen a really hot guy? Just as you start to make eye contact you start sweating like crazy and have to fan yourself to get any kind of relief. Good times! The symptoms that really had me thinking - foggy mind, exhaustion and weight gain.
There have been so many days where I am trying to focus on something and I just couldn't get my mind to follow along. Quite a few times I would walk into the storage room at my office and have no clue what I was in there for. Many nights I would come home with the best of intentions of writing a blog, but would stare at a screen at a loss as to what I should write about.
The exhaustion has been a whole different beast. I have never felt so tired in my entire life. But not only am I tired, I also have insomnia. There is nothing worse than not being able to sleep when you are exhausted. Thankfully I have spent almost this entire weekend (including Friday) sleeping. I'll sleep for 12 hours, wake up and barely be able to stay awake for 2 hours before I'm asleep again. Most nights I come home, crawl into bed and fight to stay awake until 9 to 10. There is something about that time frame where my internal clock turns and then I'm wide awake. And exhausted.
The hardest thing to deal with is the weight gain. It's not easy to admit that I've gained 10 pounds. I have been horrifically hard on myself the past few months. So many nights I would plan to work out or eat healthy, but by the time I'd get home, I'd barely be awake and would eat whatever. People ask me all the time how I've lost 92 pounds and I can tell them in great detail what needs to be done. But right now I couldn't do those things for myself. And it makes me feel like a big fat fraud.
I'm changing my diet and going back to what has worked for me in the past. Cutting out processed foods, bad carbs and as much sugar as possible. I'm also trying to eliminate as much sodium as possible as well. My hope is that my hormones will stabilize soon and my metabolism will kick back in and do it's job.
If there are more than a few days between posts, just know that I am doing my best to get myself back.
Until Next Time,
A few years ago I went through early menopause (I had already been diagnosed with PCOS and endometriosis). Thanks to a vitamin regimen I was able to have most of the symptoms completely go away. Just an FYI - menopause or perimenopause can be a sneaky little bastard. I thought I was losing my mind. Instead I'm going through menopause for a second time at the ripe age of 27. Fantastic!
There is anxiety, hot flashes, depression, foggy mind, exhaustion and weight gain to deal with. The anxiety and depression didn't sound any alarms. I have dealt with both in my past and I knew I could get through them again. The hot flashes haven't completely gone away, but they are rare and insanely annoying. Have you ever been somewhere and seen a really hot guy? Just as you start to make eye contact you start sweating like crazy and have to fan yourself to get any kind of relief. Good times! The symptoms that really had me thinking - foggy mind, exhaustion and weight gain.
There have been so many days where I am trying to focus on something and I just couldn't get my mind to follow along. Quite a few times I would walk into the storage room at my office and have no clue what I was in there for. Many nights I would come home with the best of intentions of writing a blog, but would stare at a screen at a loss as to what I should write about.
The exhaustion has been a whole different beast. I have never felt so tired in my entire life. But not only am I tired, I also have insomnia. There is nothing worse than not being able to sleep when you are exhausted. Thankfully I have spent almost this entire weekend (including Friday) sleeping. I'll sleep for 12 hours, wake up and barely be able to stay awake for 2 hours before I'm asleep again. Most nights I come home, crawl into bed and fight to stay awake until 9 to 10. There is something about that time frame where my internal clock turns and then I'm wide awake. And exhausted.
The hardest thing to deal with is the weight gain. It's not easy to admit that I've gained 10 pounds. I have been horrifically hard on myself the past few months. So many nights I would plan to work out or eat healthy, but by the time I'd get home, I'd barely be awake and would eat whatever. People ask me all the time how I've lost 92 pounds and I can tell them in great detail what needs to be done. But right now I couldn't do those things for myself. And it makes me feel like a big fat fraud.
I'm changing my diet and going back to what has worked for me in the past. Cutting out processed foods, bad carbs and as much sugar as possible. I'm also trying to eliminate as much sodium as possible as well. My hope is that my hormones will stabilize soon and my metabolism will kick back in and do it's job.
If there are more than a few days between posts, just know that I am doing my best to get myself back.
Until Next Time,
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