Hey Menopause Goddesses – Sister Goddess Karen Clothier has brought together a number of beautiful elder women just up our alley. Check out the Menopause The Magical telesummit with wise woman speakers each day at 11 am PDT and 5pm PDT. It’s rethinking the conversation on Menopause – just as we all have been doing. And it’s free! It starts 9/12 (yes I know that was yesterday, but I am a Menopause Goddess after all) and continues until 9/23. Luckily, the content is accessible 48 hours after each talk.
Let me know what you think. In the meantime, I’ll be working on our annual goddess meeting, so will miss some of the speakers, initially. Sigh.

Dry River Bed © lynette sheppard

Menopause means moist in all the wrong places. You’re dripping on the outside while your skin and tender membranes are desiccating as if they were exposed to a harsh Southwestern sun, 24/7.

We have feedback on our outer skin. We see it crack and peel, feel it itch or flake. And we pour on lotions. By the tubful. All that money we save on monthly feminine supplies? It’s nothing compared to what we have to budget now just to keep a semblance of moisture.

Inside we are dry too. Our natural vaginal moisture disappears. For some of us, it is noticeable in painful sexual intimacy. We buy and use lubricants to regain a healthy sex life. And thankfully, there are many products now mimic natural lubrication (see the Menopause Marketplace for some of our favorites.)

When vaginal dryness doesn’t cause painful intercourse, however, it can still cause health problems. Vaginal atrophy and thinning of the lining may manifest along with dryness. One of our own Venuses was having problems with drainage and recurrent infections. Turns out that sexual intimacy was resulting in microtears in the lining that were then becoming infected. Even though she couldn’t feel that. Using lubrication and taking estrogen intravaginally has alleviated the symptoms.

One of our faithful readers and satellite Venuses wrote me with a brilliant solution of her own. She was having urinary and bladder issues (again, which can be part of this whole post menopausal syndrome). She did not want to avail herself of HRT and was trying to find a more natural alternative.

Evening primrose oil has been used by some women for a variety of Menopause symptoms. This goddess had taken the capsules at one time for general relief of hot flashes and the like, but had to discontinue them because of nosebleeds. (Evening primrose oil can be a blood thinner. Remember, just because it is “natural” doesn’t mean “no side effects.”.)

She wondered about inserting the capsules as a vaginal suppository, where there would be a local effect (relief of dryness) without the systemic effects (blood thinning). Google turned up little information, so she tried it on her own.

And… it worked! No more dryness, relief of urinary symptoms, and reduction of hot flashes. “It’s not perfect,” she tells us. “There is a bit of leaking, so you need some light protection, but all in all, I think it’s fantastic, and I thought you might like to pass it on to others.” I think I’ll give it a try as well.

Another reader shared that she started drinking dong quai tea and lubrication was simply no longer a problem. Another potential remedy to try.

This is what we are all about. Women sharing wisdom – what works and what doesn’t. Our thought processes, experimentations, successes, and failures. Let us know what works for you. And doesn’t. We’ll gather around our virtual kitchen table here and help one another through the worst and best of the Big M. The best journeys are shared.

I’m sending a huge shout out to all the Menopause Goddesses who shared their hot flash stories and  memories for this contest. There were so many belly laughs that it was hard to narrow them down to one winner. And as you all know, I believe we all win when we share our wisdom and humor with one another. We may be hot and dripping, but at least we know we are not alone. And there is serious power in that!

Here is a sampling of my favorite entries – our overall winner is at the end. Read on and empathize.

Tori Venus shares:
“My husband and I were going out to dinner with a couple we didn’t know very well. As we were driving to the restaurant, the windows steamed up, got all foggy, and our host was fiddling with the defroster, turning fans up all the way to no avail.
“What’s wrong with my car? I’m going to have to take it in to the dealership.”
He just couldn’t figure it out.
Finally, my husband piped up, “Just open the windows. My wife is having a flash.” It’s all true. Every word. I swear it.”

Jill Pic submitted this wonderful poem:

The heat-
growing in my belly and it spreads.
Wet skin.
Wet hair (I keep it boy short now, miss my ponytail) and sweat trickles between my breasts. I ease out of my pajamas and moan,
stretching, desire for something to bank my
burning fire consumes me
although I am already consumed.
To write it so sounds sensual, sexual,
stuff of fantasy.
It is in hot fact an F-ing hot flash.
I am young at 47 and quite vibrant,
alive and happy in my skin,
passing on the secret woman-knowledge
every day at work
to new mothers.
What I need is someone cool
to pass on the
secret woman-knowledge
to an initiate crone.

Our own Theresa Venus writes,  “Oh – so many memories regarding those power surges however following is one of my favorites.
I was in a very important real estate meeting, trying to negotiate some tense issues between a contractor, cabinet builder and a “high-energy” buyer – all men. As the REALTOR (and only female in the room,) I was having to keep egos in line, keep issues on point and at the same time, leave each one of the participants in a “win-win” situation. Very calm on the outside but certainly a stressful situation. Never-the-less, out of the blue, ta-da! Starting with that deep down warning glow, the heat spread faster than the Angora wildfire throughout every molecule of my body. It was intense and before I knew it, try as I might, I couldn’t make out what was being said. I saw their lips move and then I saw a look of bewilderment on their faces. Soon – all eyes were on me. Finally, what sounded like Darth Vadar, a voice said, “are you alright?”
Guess what intelligent words spouted from my lips?

“I MUST TAKE OFF MY CLOTHES!”

Needless to say, those men grabbed their clipboards and ran like hell.

The transaction ended smoothly.”

First runner up Liz Jorgensen shared a flashback from her teens.

“I don’t remember much about my high school Spanish class. But the one thing I remember like it was yesterday is when Senora got a hot flash. All of a sudden she was jumpy, she was pacing and she was fanning herself. Finally, after raising her arms to the ceiling and getting no relief, she opened the window and let in the sub-zero Wisconsin air. But that still didn’t cool her off. Next thing we know, Senora is out the window all the way to her waist. She stayed there for a few minutes, then re-entered the classroom as if nothing happened. We were so spooked, we just got back to work, as if nothing happened, too.”

And our winner is Edwinna Margheim with this hilarious recounting:

“I used to work in the Admission office at our local community college. We had been working hard and going through the arduous task of implementing new software and had one of the guys from IT over giving us a hand. As I was sitting at my desk entering grades, I leaned back and groaned “Oh my God… power surge!” as I began to have a hot flash! The IT guy jumped out of his chair and ran over to me saying “Where? Did you lose the data? What’s going on?!” I wasn’t sure I would ever stop laughing.”

Neither were we.

$120 worth of At Last Naturals hormonal support products is awarded to Edwinna. And I personally will be very cautious about using the term  “power surge” in the future, you can be sure of that.

Stay cool, dear goddesses. And hey, just because the official contest is over doesn’t mean we shouldn’t share our humorous, humiliating, enlightening experiences. Keep ‘em coming. We can use all the smiles we can get.

Hot Red Ginger

Is it hot in here or is it just me? Girlfriends, it appears the latest hot flash research blog entry hit a nerve for many of our sister goddesses. One comment thread on Facebook had us rolling on the floor, clutching our sides and gasping from the laugh attacks.

As goddess Michelle G. MD shared, “Dude! We got ZERO education on menopause in medical school. THIS SUCKS!! If Pfizer can give a man an erection, can’t they come up with a way to make me stop sweating in a 50 degree room?”

Yeah, baby. What she said!!! I got a whole paragraph in my 1200 page women’s health textbook in nursing school. “Menopause is the cessation of monthly cycles in females and the end of reproductive function.” Just how that was supposed to be helpful, I haven’t a clue.

Thankfully, our generation of women is not quiet or complacent. We are taking matters into our own hands by sharing our voices and being proactive about our health. We might be sweaty, we might be cranky, we might be weepy. We will be heard.

With that in mind, Menopause Goddess Blog is partnering with At Last Naturals sponsoring a contest to get your best hot flash story. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Sharing our stories is one of the ways we get through the Big M. It helps us realize that we are NORMAL and that we will get through this transition. With a little help from our girlfriends.

Here’s the details:
They can be funny, irritating, poignant, or embarrassing. Hot flashes take the prize as the signature symptom of Menopause. Here’s your chance to get even. Share your favorite hot flash story or experience and win $120 worth of natural products for women from At Last Naturals.

Your story can be absolute truth or fiction, prose or poetry, 10 words or 1000, your own experience or seen through the eyes of another. Like your husband. Or your cat. Anything goes. Think of this as therapy – really cheap therapy where at best you win a prize and at worst you offer up a written commiseration for the benefit of Menopause Goddesses everywhere.

At Last Naturals are a line of natural products for women, created by a woman, to help us through these transitions and restore our bodies to balance. They sent a box for our review, which I immediately shipped off to one of our Menopause Goddesses who is just going through H-E-L-L with her perimenopause. She has promised to give us a full report.

In the meantime, to find out more, visit At Last Naturals web page and/or like them on their Facebook page. And they will be in our Menopause Marketplace very soon.

Okay, sharpen those pencils or warm up that keyboard and  send your hot flash story to me at lynette@9points.com. You may also  post it in the comment section here on the blog. Winner will be announced March 31. Women sharing wisdom (and wise ass humor). That’s what we are all about.

.

Goddess Becoming © lynette sheppard

Last blog post, we focused on getting what we really want. Wanting, even defining may not be enough. As we create the second half of our lives, we may have to let go of some previously cherished identities; stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.

The Venuses pondered this quandary in our third meeting, a week long exploration in Hawai`i. The following exercise provided tears, laughter, and enlightenment.  (excerpted from “The Big M”,  Humor, Heart, and Help For the Menopausal Journey.”)

“Cultivating A New Relationship with Ourselves

The mantra of midlife women “I just don’t feel like ME anymore” serves as an call to awakening. Who WAS I?  More important,  who AM I now?  Perhaps our increased need for time alone has a purpose.  We need to become acquainted with the changeling emerging from the upheaval of our bodies, psyches, and beleaguered spirits.  We must question ways in which we have known ourselves prior to now.

We identify ourselves by the roles we’ve played in family and society. We also have ideas of what describes us – quiet, outgoing, sensitive, impulsive, etc.  Identities and descriptions make up much of what we think of as ‘myself’.  These roles and ways of being are familiar and comfortable, if not exactly the dreams we thought we would live.  In getting to know a new SELF, we must first relinquish these familiar identities.  We need to let go of them however much they may resemble a life preserver tossed upon the stormy seas of so much change.

“Letting Go of the Old Me” Exercise
Cut up heavy unlined paper or cardstock into pieces big enough for one or two words to be written.  (approx. 1/2 inch by 3 inches each is a good size.)  Give each woman 30 pieces of paper and a pen.  In silence, each Venus writes down one role or description on each piece of paper,  eg.  homemaker, nurse, artist, spiritual person, wild woman, sister, daughter, mother, and so on.  When finished hold all your roles and identities in your hands.  One by one, put them down, feeling the sensations and emotions of letting go of each one.  Take as long as needed – noticing how it feels to shed each identity.  When all your papers have been relinquished and your hands are empty, just sit quietly and notice what is left.  How does it feel to be without your roles?  Without your descriptions of who you are?  Don’t forget to breathe.

After 5-10 minutes of sitting quietly in this fashion, slowly begin to pick up your roles and descriptions one at a time.  Notice this time how it feels to reclaim each identity.  Are there some that are easier to take back?  Some that are burdensome or seem irrelevant?  Are there surprises?

If you’ve done this exercise in a group, those Venuses who wish to may share their experiences.  This serves to deepen and validate the experience for all.

For some in our Venus group, this exercise was deeply emotional, with great pain experienced on ‘giving up’ some of our most cherished identities.  Others were equally surprised at the ease with which some roles dropped away, like burdens laid to rest.  We found ourselves re-thinking the roles we have adopted until now and contemplating releasing those that no longer serve us or others.

The most important epiphany of the exercise involved feeling what was left when we let go of all our supposed roles and identities.  “Something” essential still remained.  An authentic being with value apart from what she does or how she is perceived exists when we give up all our identities.  Each goddess might be well served to acquaint herself with this essential ‘she’. “

You can try this exercise alone, although it is even more valuable when done in the presence of your Menopause Goddess girlfriends. Shedding roles that don’t serve us any longer opens space for us to become the women we wish to be. As we grow into our new Selves, what we want may change as well. All of this is just focusing our vision, clarifying our dreams, and finding our path as we travel this next part of the post menopausal journey.

(For more exercises in creating our Second Act, as well as surviving and thriving on the Menopause journey, get your own copy of The Big M. And get a copy for a girlfriend at half price when you order yours.)

Emerald Bay Sunrise © lynette sheppard

Remember in our first act of life, before the Pause, when you really wanted something? Perhaps it was a lover, a job, a new car, or moving to another state.

Finally, through perseverance, circumstance, or luck, you got it. And then? The letdown. Because the desired object it wasn’t nearly as satisfying as you thought it would be. What’s that about?

Maybe, just maybe, what we thought we wanted isn’t what we really wanted. We thought this sought after “thing” might fill us up and when it didn’t, we were left confused and bereft. Soon, we replaced it with another desire. Ah, this would be the one. Or ones.

In our second Act, we hope to be clearer about what we want, about how we wish to live, about who we will become. Because not to put to fine a point on it, but time is running out.

In one of our meetings, the Venuses did the following exercise to discover what it is we really want. This exercise is not a “secret” for manifesting – nor will you be writing affirmations or calling on a Higher Power.

No, this involves a deeper inquiry into what we really desire; what we really want to claim a fulfilled life. and it changes moment to moment.

So here’ s the exercise, (excerpted from our book The Big M.) It’s simple, but not to be taken lightly.

“The Want List exercise

Take a piece of paper and divide it into two columns vertically down the page.  In the first column, quickly write down at least 10 things that you “want”.  Don’t censor yourself or overthink this process.  Avoid beauty contestant answers like “world peace”, unless that truly popped into your head unbidden.  Don’t worry if any of your ‘wants’ seem silly or bizarre.  No one else needs to see this list.  It can be as mundane as a new toothbrush or as exotic as a cruise around the world.

When you have finished making your list, in the second column next to each ‘thing’ that you want, write the one or two words that describe how you will feel if you get it.  Examples:  successful, clean, adventurous, smart, loved, happy, peaceful, etc.

Now read over the list in the second column.  This is the more important list.  These feelings are what you really want.  The feeling may or may not be  met by the ‘thing’ or item that corresponds to it on your list.  How many times have we wanted something desperately, thinking it would make us feel a certain way, only to find that it didn’t deliver what we’d hoped?  If I get this new haircut, I’ll feel beautiful.  Well, maybe or possibly I’ll just feel different.  If I get this degree, I’ll feel smart.  Maybe yes, maybe for awhile, or maybe I’ll just feel in debt with a piece of paper to put on my wall.

Most important is that we really want the feelings in our lives, and the ‘want’ we attach to the feeling may or may not provide it for us.  There’s a clarity in realizing that we actually want the feeling, as we discover that there may be multiple ways to achieve that feeling.  Sometimes to our great surprise, we discover that we already have this feeling in our lives, and have simply failed to recognize it.

To complete the exercise, we call for the feelings to manifest or reveal themselves in our lives.  And we stay open to the many ways these feelings can show up, rather than remaining attached to the ‘thing’ we wanted.  Hey, it may even be the ‘thing’ that brings the feeling, but at least we’re not blinded to the possibilities that the feeling we want may come from other venues.

If you should happen to do this exercise in your own Venus group, you may wish to share the list of feelings you want to bring into your life.  Voicing them aloud, in the supporting presence of the group, serves to give your desires importance and legitimacy in your own eyes.  The whole group can witness, not only for the feelings you want to attract in your life, but the commitment you have toward manifesting them.

As we’ve said before, there is a synergy and a magic to visioning, planning, and creating the second half of our lives in a community of supportive, like-minded women. Together we are SO much more than the sum of our singular parts.  Connected to each another, we become more amazing and powerful than any single goddess, mythical or real.”

If you don’t have a sisterhood or Menopause Goddess Community, you can do this exercise by yourself. It will likely be immensely enlightening. And you can do it over and over again as you feel yourself changing.

Still, I can’t overemphasize that any clarity you gain is so much more profound when illuminated in the community of other women. Because they witness, really hear your desire, they can also keep you on track when you forget. As we inevitably do.

Try it for yourself. Let us know how it goes. (For more exercises in creating our Second Act, as well as surviving and thriving on the Menopause journey, get your own copy of The Big M. And get a copy for a girlfriend at half price when you order yours.)

red maple leaves, Zion NP © lynette sheppard

The first menopause book I bought when I first started into perimenopause languished on the shelf for a couple of years. It was…Ginormous. Gargantuan. Encyclopedic. Just lifting it was too much effort to expend in my then fragile state. Besides, I boggled at the commitment I’d be undertaking to read its 500 or so pages.

So I left it in the bookcase as a placeholder.

When I finally managed to garner enough fortitude to tackle it, I found it pretty good. Yes, I know, damning with faint praise. Still, it was a decent treatise about the change with some great stories from real women going through it. The author wasn’t shy about sharing her own journey of menopause and subsequent divorce.

Here’s where she lost me (and many of the Venuses). She posited that many of the emotional symptoms were caused by unresolved life issues; problems unattended to prior to the Big M. Indeed, she recounts her own story and that of other women to back up her premise.

While that is an authentic experience for many women, it is not the only one. A number of us in the original Menopause Goddess group had worked hard to resolve life and relationship issues and were pretty happy, content, satisfied when the Change hit. Wham. End of equanimity. Enter emotional maelstrom. Out of nowhere. For no freaking reason other than the soon to be ubiquitous “it’s hormonal.”

Christiane Northrup MD makes a really important point in her book: any important life issues that you have not dealt with prior to The Big M are going to loom larger than any elephants in the living room. You will be compelled to notice them.

However, sometimes there is no large unresolved issue to be dealt with. It just feels that way. The Big M can make you so uncomfortable in your own skin that you feel like shaking everything up: work, relationship, friendships, where you live, you name it.

So how do we know? How do we know if we actually have an unresolved life issue; if we need to make major changes before we move ahead with our second Act, or if we are just caught in the tornado effect of the Change?

Good question. One that each woman will have to answer for herself eventually. But, one thing the Venuses have learned over the years of meeting, sharing, learning, and growing together. And this is the most important advice we can give regarding any and all aspects of Menopause.

TAKE IT SLOW.

Do Nothing.

Feed your soul and your spirit in gentle, caring ways without major upheaval. Elsewise, you may end up throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

We live in a “Do something” world. This is our time to slow down and contemplate. Sure, try new things. Always wanted to be an artist? Don’t quit your day job just yet. Explore art. Make things. Do it just for you. If it grows into something more (like a new career) great! If now, you have a nurturing passionette to fill yourself up to overflowing. Not a bad deal.

Mortality, that other “M” word that overtakes the Scrabble center squares at this time of life, steamrolls us with urgency, too. Not only are we feeling emotionally jittery, depressed, anxious and pissed off; we suddenly feel the press of time.

If not now when? When will I travel the world, become a famous chef, move to the country, find my soulmate? While the Venuses would be the first to say, “You go, girlfriend. Follow your dreams and live boldly,” we’d first say this: take it easy. Wait til you start to come out the other side of Menopause. Yes, you’re mortal but there likely is time.

Imagine making huge life decisions at fifteen, in the maelstrom of puberty. Sheesh, we’d never let our kids do that. When in the midst of the hormonal sh*tstorm, they are rarely able to make those choices. Things change in a heartbeat.

Well, Menopause isn’t much different. Except it’s bigger, kind of like puberty to the 10th power. And we have driver’s licenses. And responsibilities. And we think we know better, because we are adults and have life experience. Hormones The great equalizer.

So go ahead, reevaluate your life. Dream your biggest dreams. Imagine who you would like to become. And then, do nothing for awhile. If hormones are causing turmoil, it will calm in a year or two. If there really IS a life issue that you need to address in a big Change, it will still be there. we guarantee it. You can work on it then.

For now, go slow, go safe, go inward. And most of all, go with girlfriends. They will keep you sane, and hopefully keep you from making any big life moves that you’ll regret.

Menopause Awareness Month is a fine idea. Not like any of us confronted with the Big M have any choice but to be aware of it. Nor are our loved ones, friends, and coworkers allowed to be oblivious.

Still, the changes wrought by Menopause seem to bring more than an awareness of symptoms. We may look at our lives differently as we are shaken, not stirred, out of our comfort zones.

What has Menopause made you aware of? Perhaps you are aware of things you never contemplated; perhaps you simply have a heightened awareness of things within your sphere of consciousness. What, besides hot flashes and mood swings, has menopause brought to the forefront for you?

Share your thoughts and feelings here. I’m musing on this question myself for the next blog entry. Stay tuned, dear goddesses. This is how we take the next steps along the journey post menopause to Aging Gracefully and Second Adulthood: by sharing with one another.

Thankfully, the process has been relatively easy. Oh sure, I’ve had hot flashes on occasion. Especially at night. Still, none of them has been of the severity or duration of my pre-HRT surges.

Every woman is different. I know I sound like a broken record here, but it’s true. No single remedy, help, or idea fits each woman during her menopause transition.

With that in mind, here are a few things I’ve learned that may be of help if you are considering stopping your HRT or even your herbal remedies.

#1. Take it slow, sistah.
While there are few absolutes, here’s one. Do not go “cold turkey” off your HRT, herbal remedy, or other ‘natural’ solution. Why would you want to rush it? Give your body time to adjust.

Give yourself a chance to notice if side effects are going to show up, and if they might diminish over time. Look for other ways to remain cool, rested, and emotionally balanced. Remember that your body has a feedback system built in to monitor hormone levels – let’s not take it to condition Red, stress overload, shock to system just because we’ve decided to stop HRT.

Believe it or not, other parts of your body start manufacturing estrogen – oh sure, not in childbearing young woman amounts, but more than you might think. So the slight drop from decreasing your HRT stimulates the body to make a little more. Sometime later, after 6 months or so, you may decrease your hormone therapy again, giving your body another little signal to kick it up.

Likely, we’ll have enough to keep us from chronic insomnia, mood swings, and intractable hot flashes.

2. Exercise helps with all the menopause symptoms. Seriously! I did not want to believe this, but sure enough, if I get my walk in every day, I have few to no hot flashes, I sleep soundly through the night, and my mood is calm and upbeat. If I skip it for more than a day, my symptoms kick up a little more.

3. If you try other remedies to take the place of your HRT, remember to try only one at a time and give it at least 2 weeks to work before adding or trying something else. For more info on Natural remedies read Natural Symptom Relief for Menopause. Always tell your trusted health care partner about everything you are taking, to avoid adverse medication interactions.

And be sure to avail yourself of non-medical, non-herbal remedies like fans, wicking sleepwear, hypnosis (I swear it works – studies prove it and I’ve tried it myself with great success.)

4. Be gentle with yourself. Treat yourself with kindness and generosity during this change. This is yet another transition and it needn’t be a “should” but a gradual lessening as a choice. I’m getting better at this – I still tend to expect too much of myself or push too hard. Rest, chocolate, me-time are all important adjuncts to leaving HRT.

5. Finally, I cannot underestimate the power of girlfriends in getting us through every part of the menopause transition. If you have a group of like-minded, like-afflicted gal pals, make sure you spend lots of time with them. When women ask me what the single most important menopause remedy/help/fix is, I tell them it is Girlfriends with a capital G.

Girlfriends will get you through getting off HRT, too. Something wonderful happens when women get together and share their experience and experiences; a special synergy that is more healing than ANY herb or medication, oil or cream. And if you don’t have such a group, here’s how to start one: Creating Your Own Goddess Group. Of course, you can always join the rest of us right here on the Menopause Goddess Blog.

For much more info, try the search engine on our blog or order your own copy of The Big M where the Venuses share ALL.

butterfly blues © lynette sheppard

When I asked for ideas for the third theme for the Menopause Goddess Blog, I was deluged with creative titles from goddesses. I heard from women post pausal and those simply looking forward to that happy day. One thing is for sure, creativity is definitely blooming in the Menopause years.

There were so many good ideas that it was hard to choose. Yeah, yeah, I know. Everyone says that with every contest, but I’m not just blowing smoke here. It was tough, tough, tough. And I will say that most of the ideas will now be subcategories of the main theme.

As you know, we needed a theme that in 16 characters described all the ramifications of the post pausal years (save aging and menopause, since those are the other two themes.) This title had to include our being and becoming for our second Act. It had to suggest growing into our “new” selves, what we might leave behind, and our life’s journey from here on.

Before I announce the winner, here are themes that are the runners-up. These are all first runners-up and deserve admiration and contemplation because each describes at least one facet of the post-pausal journey.

Meaning of Life, Voila, Eureka, Pause to Play, Embracing Wisdom, Elder Wisdom, Evolution, Nirvana, Legacy, Grace, YouPlay, Vision, Return to Sanity, Age of Wisedom, Pausitive Changes, Our New Chapter, New Beginnings, From Now On, LIfe after Menopause, Our Act 2, Past Pause, Beyond Big M, Elderiffic, Journey Part 2, Pause Then Effect, Living Our Dreams, Life’s Vision, Being and Becoming, Wise Woman Phase, Phase 2, Meaning Full.

Whew. And just a few more noteworthy entries.

“Theia” was suggested by Laura S. She is the elder Titanis goddess of sight and the shining light of heaven (“aither”). She was the mother of Sun, Moon and Dawn. Her name is also connected with words meaning “foresight” and “prophecy”. I love the symbology.

One of my favorites is AfterPause (thanks, Carol). However, my good friend Dee Adams of Minnie Pauz cartoon fame has actually begun a section on her site called Afterpause. Check it out if you haven’t already.

I also loved “AARP Why Me? I’m not Ready” submitted by Mrs. V. even though it exceeds the 16 characters; it’s so apt.

Okay, finally. Drum roll please. The winner is Jennifer Worsham with her theme title: “Second Adulthood”. This title encompasses everything: the celebration of Voila, the leaving a mark of Legacy, the looking ahead of Vision, and all the permutations of Wisdom, Play, and Living Our Dreams that our post-pausal journey will unfold.

So Jennifer, please send me your mailing info to lynette@9points.com and I’ll send out your copy of “The Big M” right away. Congratulations.

And congrats and thank you to all the goddesses who so generously gave of themselves and their creative wordplay to all of us.
We all win when we make it out the other side of the Pause, no doubt about it.