Hot (and Sweaty) Girl Summer
Come see me and Jo Piazza in Chicago!
I shared this post yesterday saying that SSRIs make you sweat more and I had 100 people in my inbox saying they had no idea. I HAD NO IDEA. I have been experiencing hot flashes for years and telling my doctors. I have had multiple doctors say that I am too early for perimenopause and no other reasoning for my sweat. If I don’t get ready in front of a fan, my makeup will pool down like the saddest clown you have ever seen. I have been on SSRI for 5 years. I have an internet friend who has been on SSRI for 30 years and was in the dark on this. Never once has a doctor said, well actually.. anything that increases serotonin will make you sweat.
Women’s health seems to be a black hole between child birth and and death. We hear about our hormones out of wack but then we go for testing and there doesn’t seem to be much to placate us. And so much testing/exploration is done through eastern and alternative medicine and we have to “do our own research” if it is worth it to put a hormone pellet in our butts (apparently it ice not). I am grateful perimenopause and menopause seem to be on the tips of more people’s tongues lately. We will not go quietly into the dark with our hot flashes, mood swings and leaky bladders. Because of the silence, I attribute SO many things to my natural hormonal shifts when really the writing is on the wall that it could sure as shit be something else.
So where is the disconnect? Why are we not being told major side effects of drugs that change our very existence? Why are we not being sat with for more than 7 minutes in a doctors office? I think insurance billing is the answer to the second part, and also for profit medicine. But I have really fantastic doctors who don’t rush me out of the room. I would love to hear your thoughts on this because I just find it all frustrating. Every time I tell a doctor or nurse that I figured something out on “Dr. Google”, I am met with an eye roll or a gentle lecture. But like the internet taught me something this week that is insanely important to my summer happiness! Not that I can do anything about chasing waterfalls of perspiration but at least I know why it is happening. Also, another reason to drink Liquid IV.
Join me and Jo Piazza for her book tour stop for Everyone is Lying to You in Chicago! I am so so excited to chat with the brilliant, hilarious Jo and would LOVE to see my local people there! BUY YOUR TICKET HERE PLEASEEEE
01: I say this every summer but if you aren’t toasting sour dough, scooping cottage cheese, slicing tomatoes and topping with salt and maybe olive oil and lemon zest, you are not living tomato girl summer to its fullest.
02: I am a mermaid and cannot resist a mermaid print as a tribute to my culture. I have one of these Baggu 3D bags and will be buying this fun summer set for upcoming travel (we are going to England and Ireland in July!). They are so good as packing cubes or as cosmetics bags (really easy to wipe down).
03: I do not currently own a strapless bra and I am not sure if I actually need one. I wear these sticky bras when I need to (and don’t you dare forget my 36Gs) and they do the heavy lifting. I will say, I do wonder if they make me sweat more (see sweaty girl problems above) when my boobs can’t breathe but that is worth it for not having to wear the worst type of bra ever.
04: My girlfriend, Nicki, popped a bottle of this MommenPop Citrus Aperitif out this week and it was so delish! You could drink it on your own but I am not that hardcore. It was so tasty over a seltzer and I think would be even better over some prosecco. If you see this and like a spritz, grab one to try!
05: My girlfriends and I did a product swap a few months back and I grabbed a bunch of perfumes. This on from Clean in Citron Fig is delightful. I love a citrus perfume, year round, and this one has a warmth to it that is so nice and I keep getting compliments on it. Thanks for not keeping it, Shannon!!
06: I grabbed two of these Good Trouble t-shirts from Mochi Kids for my boys. I struggle with America merch at this point in time and I loved the John Lewis quote and the reminder for them to do good in the world. Proceeds from the shirts go to the John Lewis foundation.
07: I drink a liquid IV every day and I have become very particular about the flavors. My current favorites are concord grape, strawberry and firecracker. I used to buy on Amazon or Costco but if you buy direct, you can do buy 3, get 1 free. As referenced above, if you are a heavy sweater, an electrolyte supplement may be something you could benefit from. Please remember, I am not your doctor, let alone anyone’s doctor.
Chimichurri Chicken from TJ’s 5 Ingredients or Less
Pink Pasta from Brocc Your Body
Chicken and Broccoli from The Defined Dish (Trigger warning: this is a Whole30 recipe. Some have stuck with me. You can substitute the tapioca flour and coconut aminos for regular flour or corn starch and soy sauce). I will not be using cauliflower rice ever again okur.
THIS WEEK! Can’t wait to see you all for our next Book Den! Head to your library or grab your copy here! We meet on Zoom and have a collaborative chat that I really love. I can’t wait to discuss Sky Full of Elephants with you all. Please sign up at the link below to register. I will send a zoom link the week of our event. This will be our last Book Den of the school year (I forever need a summer break) so I would love to see you before we take a break until the Fall.
Can’t wait to see everyone then!
Currently Listening to:
This Yusuf/Cat Stevens album is so sweet and with his mature voice, makes me incredibly emo. Like I cried?
Something to look forward to..
The boys are both in camp this week (only week all summer I can say that hah) and then we will head to the lake for a bit. I can’t wait to slow down a bit and not be a chauffeur. Leo turns 8 next weekend and has been talking about it non stop for 6 months so it’s a BIG day. He is currently obsessed with tortoises and ants so I hope his day and week are filled with both. We found this sweet little turtle in Wisconsin a few weeks ago and it took everything in me to not bring it home (you shouldn’t bring animals home from protected areas ok, poachers). But now he is insisting on a tortoise of his own. One of his favorite babysitters is going to college in August so we will be adopting her tortoise, Harris. I guess I can’t brag that we are pet free anymore.
Stay safe and wear stretchy pants.
Xoxo,
E
Ugh-I’m sorry-it’s wild! My 22 yr old niece was complaining about the same issue. I’m glad that people are starting to call out the lack of research on women. Although, it seems all the funding for even basic medical research has just vanished. 🫣
“Women’s health seems to be a black hole between child birth and death.”
So freaking true. 😐 Whenever I am able to research something going on with me, I am met with the same derision is see in these comments. They don’t know this, but I usually only trust Mayo & Cleveland Clinic. I’m not looking at message boards or homeopathic health sites – nothing wrong with those, but I go with the trusted medical sites first. I feel like they’re all saying – then why did you come here…? We know our own body’s idiosyncrasies better than they do. Here is something else I’ve noticed too, the more gray in your hair, the more you doubted. Pisses me off.
I can honestly say, I’ve loved Cat Stevens music most of my life. You’re right about his mature voice. He’s still got it going on. Enjoy your week of camp! ♥️