The straight poop
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Dear Crabby: Seems like ever since I became perimenopausal, I’ve been having a lot of trouble with my bowels. I used to be pretty regular, but now I can go for days without any real results. I DO NOT want to become one of those old ladies obsessed with her bowels! Please help.
Too much information
Sunday, Feb. 3, 2008
Dear Crabby: It seems like almost every day in the news, I hear that some medicine is bad for me or some treatment I'm using increases my risk of something-or-other. When I try to check it out, I get even more confused! How should I handle all this information?
Minding the medicine cabinet
Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008
Sometimes I look in the medicine cabinet and find some medicine whose expired-by date is printed in Roman numerals. So, do I blithely open this container and take II tablets IV times quaque die and call my physick in the ante meridiem? NO!
Bring some novelty to your New Year fitness routine
Friday, Jan. 4, 2008
Dear Crabby: I'm looking for something new for my exercise routine this year. What can you recommend? Bored in Baltimore
Changing seasons linked to changing mood
Friday, Oct. 5, 2007
Ah, the changing of the seasons. The snap in the air, the gorgeous leaves, the complete inability to get your carcass out of bed and face the day. The earlier night falls, the faster your mood plummets. Have you noticed?
Frozen dreams
Ice cream frenzy leaves family fulfilled, lethargic
Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007
My family loves ice cream. When we eat it, invariably, at some point, one of us will look up from our bowl, and say, dreamily, “I could eat a gallon of this stuff.”
Pill required even after birth control isn't
Thursday, Sept. 13, 2007
Dear Crabby, You’re not going to believe this! Three years ago, after an intense period of lobbying, my husband finally got that vasectomy. Woo-hoo! But my excitement was short-lived. Now at 45, I’m having heavy bleeding, clots, unpredictable periods, and general menstrual mayhem. My gynecologist is recommending the pill!
Thyroid gland isn't the perfect fall guy
Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2007
Dear Crabby: I am dieting and exercising my tail off and I still can’t lose weight! I am convinced I have a thyroid problem that’s affecting my metabolism. I just know if my health care provider gives me some thyroid medicine, I’ll lose weight.
Nature’s renovation?
Friday, July 27, 2007
Dear Crabby, What would you recommend for a teetering-on-menopause woman who's experiencing hot flashes of the intensely sweaty kind far too often for comfort? I have read so many conflicting articles about hormone replacement therapy, and as nasty as the hot flashes are, they seem preferable to breast cancer, heart disease, stroke and whatever else the wisdom of the day suggests HRT can provoke.
Strength of body and spirit
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
People often complain that they don’t have time for exercise, they can’t afford gym fees, or that they don’t know what exercises to do. Fortunately for them, the solution is as close as their nearest PBS station.
Supplements can't match power of fruits and veggies
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Dear Crabby: I just read that women who get calcium from food have a better bone density than women who take calcium supplements. Is this true?
Stressed out by incontinence
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Dear Crabby: I’m having a lot of trouble with my bladder. I’ve always been active, but I can no longer run or cough without serious leakage. Other than medications, is there anything else that I can do?
There’s a fungus among us
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Dear Crabby: I’m really bummed, because I’m ready to get out my strappy sandals for spring, and I noticed that my toenails are thick and yellow. They look totally disgusting! What can I do?
Reading the roadmap of varicose veins
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Dear Crabby: My legs are starting to look like a roadmap, and they ache at the end of the day. What can I do about varicose veins?
Painting in the second half of life
Get your muse on! Part 3
Friday, May 25, 2007
Pam Rees finds that taking up painting at an older age has certain freedoms. “There are no ‘shoulds’ for me now. I know what I like, what I want to paint, and I do it. If I never sell any work, that’s ok. This isn’t my living, just something I love."
Put me in, coach: Creativity and coaching
Get your muse on! Part 2
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Quinn McDonald spent 25 years of her life working for corporations. The last time she got fired, her boss said, "You’re different … and you seem to enjoy it." It was not a compliment.
Get your muse on!
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Midlife is the perfect time to reinvent yourself. You have the hard-earned wisdom of aging, the kids are (hopefully) out of the house, and if you’re lucky, a tiny bit more money than you had when you were 20. It’s time to stretch your wings and try something new, something exciting, something … creative!
What price beauty?
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Dear Crabby: I recently read something in the news about cosmetics being bad for you — can this be true? What’s the story on cancer-causing cosmetics?
Fight menopause mind with mental calisthenics
Thursday, April 5, 2007
Dear Crabby: It seems like ever since I went through menopause, I can’t remember anything! I lose things, forget people’s names, and even why I went into a room in the first place. Am I going crazy or becoming senile?
Low libido calls for physical, emotional remedies
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Dear Crabby: What can I do about my libido? I used to be a hot mama and now I'm more like a cold fish. I tried to discuss this with my doctor, and he handed me a free sample of Viagra, which I never took any of because it scared me. There must be something that would bring back that old desire in me.
The basics of getting back in the dating game
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Dear Crabby: I’m 53 and newly divorced. I was married for a long time, and my husband was only my second sexual partner. I am terrified of “getting back in the game,” but I don’t really see myself spending the next 30 years alone, either. What do I need to know in today’s dating/sex world?
Sailing the seas of menopause
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Dear Crabby: I took HRT (hormone replacement therapy) for about a year but stopped it because of the cancer scare. I am now on an over-the-counter supplement with black cohosh to control the hot flashes.
Weighing methods of weights and measures
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Dear Crabby: Is BMI an accurate measurement of obesity, and do those body fat calipers really work?
No secrets to losing weight
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Dear Crabby, Tell me about weight loss. Those ads on TV make it look so easy! The losers don't even end up with excess skin! If it was that easy, why aren't we all thin?
Answers for beating fatigue can rest with you
Thursday, Feb. 22, 2007
Dear Crabby: I just don't know what my problem is. I have no energy. Even a killer shoe sale isn't enough to get me out of the house. For my last birthday, the kids got me a lapblanket! What's happening to me?
Spandex-free, fun exercise not an impossibility
Thursday, Feb. 15, 2007
Dear Crabby: I know I need to start taking better care of my health. What sort of exercise do you recommend for a mid-life woman? P.S.: I hate spandex.
Quitting smoking a good idea at any age
Thursday, Feb. 8, 2007
Dear Crabby: My kids are after me to quit smoking. I’ve smoked since I was a teenager and I am in good health. Why should I quit now? After all, we all gotta die of something, right?
Tanning booth no solution for age spots
Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007
Dear Crabby: I’m getting these dark places on my skin — you know, around my cheekbones and a couple on my chest. Someone told me they’re “age spots.” I was thinking of going to a tanning booth to even things out a little. What do you think?
Hair loss signals need to consult professionals
Thursday, Jan. 18, 2007
Dear Crabby: Ever since I hit 50, my hair has been coming out in handfuls! I am so freaked out. What should I do?
Keep your hips ship-shape with a bone-density test
Thursday, Jan. 4, 2007
The bone-density test is a simple X-Ray that measures how dense your hip bone and your low spine are and assesses your fracture risk. You should totally go for it. This may be the only time in mid-life that anyone tells you that you have the hips of a 20-year-old.