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[av_textblock size=’16’ av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” font_color=’custom’ color=’#808080′ id=” custom_class=” template_class=” av_uid=’av-lcphk8wq’ sc_version=’1.0′ admin_preview_bg=”] [av_hr class=’invisible’ icon_select=’yes’ icon=’ue808′ font=’entypo-fontello’ position=’center’ shadow=’no-shadow’ height=’20’ custom_border=’av-border-thin’ custom_width=’50px’ custom_margin_top=’30px’ custom_margin_bottom=’30px’ custom_border_color=” custom_icon_color=” id=” custom_class=” template_class=” av_uid=’av-9t22yk’ sc_version=’1.0′ admin_preview_bg=”]<\/p>\n [av_textblock size=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” font_color=” color=” id=” custom_class=” template_class=” av_uid=’av-lcphlkg9′ sc_version=’1.0′ admin_preview_bg=”] 10 January 2023<\/b><\/p>\n I managed to dodge THE dreaded virus for nearly 3 years \u2013 followed all the guidelines, double boosted with the vaccine, wore masks in indoor settings, and avoided crowded spaces. Then, just before Christmas, I started to get irritated eyes and a runny nose.\u00a0 I spent a day in denial because I couldn\u2019t think of anywhere I\u2019d been where I could have caught Covid in the previous week.<\/p>\n When some fatigue set in, still in denial, I ordered the RAT kit online as a precaution, collected it and had a PCR swab taken.\u00a0 They both tested positive for Covid. I have since learned an unmasked runner<\/a> passing me (also unmasked) when out walking can infect people they pass<\/a> with the virus, so that could be how I caught it.<\/p>\n So, I was one of the statistics that spent the Christmas weekend in isolation, which actually wasn\u2019t so bad.\u00a0 My dose of Covid was fairly mild and didn\u2019t last long. I got antivirals delivered pretty quickly, the weather was warm, and I had everything I needed.\u00a0 But, this is just one example of how my body seems behave in ways that I can\u2019t totally control.<\/p>\n This is certainly true with many women\u2019s experience of menopause, or the earlier pre-menopausal phase known as perimenopause, which can come as an unexpected shock: for some this can have very physical effects such as depressive moods, fatigue, and brain fog. I\u2019ve only had hot flushes that still persist, and that I have adjusted to as a new physical reality. I now tend to dress in layers that can be stripped and reloaded on my body with relative ease. I have made some adjustments to my exercise routines and have a healthier diet: more like the Mediterranean one, with far less processed food, and more fruit and veg.<\/p>\n This is an example of how our birth sex has lifelong impacts on our health and physical and mental well-being. At birth or earlier our bodies can be identified as having either a male or female reproductive system (or in very rare cases, neither). When many of us are in our most productive years in our 40s and 50s, suddenly our bodies no longer behave in ways we\u2019ve got used to.<\/p>\n The recently broadcast Menopause documentaries<\/a> on NZ TV1<\/a> among other things show the continuing lacks in medical knowledge of the changes women go through during menopause. This is one aspect of the under researching of female bodies<\/a> by the science and medical establishments.\u00a0 The take-aways from current knowledge are that the correct balance of hormone therapy as well as appropriate diet and exercise can make menopause easier to live with.<\/p>\n Diet and exercise can also help weather a global pandemic. The spread of Covid has confronted us with new material realities \u2013 older bodies especially have immune systems that don\u2019t function as effectively as when younger.\u00a0 It may be easier for younger people to be in denial about the continuing impacts of the pandemic as they rush to return to pre-Covid lifestyles.\u00a0 But the deaths continue. This year there were over 2000 Covid deaths<\/a>: a much higher rate than those for flu<\/a>, and at a higher rate than the 377 deaths on the roads this year<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\nDamned body seems to have a mind of its own! Yes, Judith, bodies matter! *<\/strong>
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\nBy: Karolyn<\/strong><\/p>\n