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So how do you survive a whirlwind month of office parties, family get-togethers and gift giving and still find the time to truly enjoy the holidays? Here's a game plan in five steps: 1. Create a firewall between work and personal time. Being focused throughout the day will help you accomplish more. That means no online shopping when you're at the office and shutting off the work email or phone when you should be spending time with your family. You might even specify times each day or days of the week when you'll focus solely on work or family life. 2. Consider alternatives to those traditions. Can your sister-in-law or your adult children take over hosting the family holiday meal? Maybe you can order parts of the meal for restaurant carryout or from the grocery store deli. And reconsider those annual plans for long-distance travel during the holiday season. The technology that's built into your smart phone can create a free virtual get-together with faraway family. You can plan a visit when it's not the busiest travel time of the year. 3. Find ways to scale back some of your holiday. If you want to keep your sanity until the new year, ask yourself if you need to attend every party, wrap every gift and prepare every holiday dish like you've always done. Explain the changes to others and don't worry about disappointing people. Your family will appreciate you being fully present more than any meal you cook or party you plan. 4. Get the rest you need. You need adequate sleep to deal with the extra physical and psychological stress of the holidays. If that means leaving the festivities early, then do it. Burning the midnight oil to accomplish everything will only leave you exhausted when you should be enjoying time with friends and loved ones. 5. Practice saying “No.” This is good advice all year long, but it's even more important in the next few weeks. Taking on more tasks or accepting every invitation simply because someone has asked is unfair to you and to the people who want to spend quality time with you during the holidays. Be generous with your time when you can, but keep enough of it for yourself, too.
Using deodorant or antiperspirant doesn't cause breast cancer. This myth is fueled by claims that specific chemicals found in these products mimic estrogen and raise a woman’s breast cancer risk. But there's no evidence that antiperspirants and deodorants can cause breast cancer or make it return. Wearing an underwire bra (or any bra) doesn't cause breast cancer. Studies have found no association between wearing a bra and an increased breast cancer risk among post-menopausal women, regardless of how long a woman wore a bra each day, what type of bra she wore, or at what age she started wearing a bra. Exposing breast cancer to air will not make it spread. This old myth suggests that surgery allows cancer to spread throughout the body. Surgery may uncover a more aggressive case of cancer, but it cannot cause it to spread. A double mastectomy won't necessarily save your life if you have cancer in one breast. More women diagnosed with breast cancer are now choosing to undergo a higher-risk double mastectomy, but a long-term study of 200,000 women showed that the 10-year survival rate for women who had a double mastectomy was just a few percentage points higher than those who chose a less-invasive lumpectomy followed by radiation. These are some of the myths, but what are some truths that can help you in the fight against breast cancer? Trying to lose some weight can help reduce the risk of breast cancer. Estrogen is found in fatty tissue and post-menopausal women may have excess estrogen being made in these fatty tissues. Losing weight lowers your breast cancer risk and can benefit your health in many other ways. Regular exercise can help reduce the risk of breast cancer. And you don't have to head to the gym. Experts say 30 minutes of brisk walking five days a week may be enough, but more exercise will work even better. Limiting alcohol can help reduce the risk of breast cancer. Studies have shown that women who drink two or more alcoholic drinks per day have a 50-percent higher risk of breast cancer compared to those who don't drink. They say knowledge is power, and with more knowledge about what does and doesn't cause breast cancer and by taking some simple steps to protect yourself, you'll have more power in the fight against this deadly disease.
An IUD is a small, T-shaped piece of plastic that could fit in the palm of your hand. It is inserted into the uterine lining. The IUD has a short string attached to it to make removal easy for your doctor. Except for the string, the IUD cannot be felt and will not interfere with sexual activity. IUDs come in two general types – with or without hormones. The non-hormonal IUD uses a wrapping of copper wire that releases ions to disrupt sperm and keep it from fertilizing the egg. The hormonal IUD uses a small amount of a synthetic hormone that goes into the wall of the uterus to prevent fertilization. Both types are inserted and removed the same way. An IUD is more effective in preventing pregnancy than the pill or shots. In fact, the IUD is nearly as effective as permanent sterilization, but it's temporary. Your doctor can remove an IUD and the contraceptive effects stop immediately. An IUD is also foolproof because it's implanted once and you're done. You don't have to remember to use it every day, and it lasts much longer than other contraceptive method. A non-hormonal IUD can work for up to 10 years and a hormonal IUD can be effective for up to five years. If you've had unwanted side effects from the pill or just want to avoid using hormones, a non-hormonal IUD may be right for you. If you'd like to minimize the symptoms of a period, a hormonal IUD may help to reduce or eliminate menstruation. So who's using this amazing method of birth control? Not many American women. Only about seven out of 100 use an IUD, but a special group of women are the exception. Surveys show that female OB/GYNs are three times more likely to personally use an IUD than any other form of contraception. If you want to learn more, talk with your health care provider about all forms of birth control and find out if the IUD is the right birth control choice for you.
Ovarian Cancer: This cancer that starts in the organ that makes female hormones and produces eggs causes more deaths than any other gynecological cancer. Unfortunately, early diagnosis is very difficult and uncommon, as there is no effective screening test. Pelvic ultrasounds, Ca-125 testing, and genetic testing can be utilized in high risk women. Advanced ovarian cancer can have symptoms such as: Vaginal bleeding or discharge that's not normal for you. Cervical Cancer: This is a cancer of the lower, narrow end of the uterus that connects to the vagina. Cervical cancer is highly preventable because of screening tests and a vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV) infections that are linked to cervical cancer. Cervical cancer may not have any symptoms in its early stages, and that's why a pap test at the appropriate intervals for a particular woman is important. Advanced cervical cancer may cause unusual bleeding or discharge from the vagina, such as bleeding after sex. Uterine Cancer: This cancer begins in the uterus, the pear-shaped organ where a baby grows when a woman is pregnant. A common form of uterine cancer is known as endometrial cancer because it forms in the lining of the uterus called the endometrium. Uterine cancer may cause vaginal discharge or bleeding that's not normal for you, especially if you are already menopausal. It may also cause other symptoms, such as pain or pressure in your pelvis. Vaginal and Vulvar Cancer: These cancers occur in the outermost parts of the reproductive system. Vulvar cancer starts in the vulva, the outer part of the female genital organs with two folds of skin called the labia. Vulvar cancer most often occurs on the inner edges of the labia. Vulvar cancer can cause itching, burning, or bleeding on the vulva; changes in the color of the skin of the vulva making it look redder or whiter than normal, or skin changes in the vulva, including what looks like a rash or warts. Early-stage vaginal cancer may not have any symptoms, which is one of the reasons that annual pelvic exams are still recommended, even if you are not having a “Pap smear” that year. 98,000 American women will be diagnosed with a gynecological cancer this year, and almost 30,000 will die. Don't be part of that grim statistic. Monitor yourself for these symptoms, and schedule an annual visit with your provider who can conduct screening and testing.
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We all dread the rush and chaos that can rule our lives during the holidays. Surveys show that 40 percent of people find work-life balance to be impossible this time of year and say they end up missing the chance to spend time with family and friends during the holidays. Often the job of making it all come together perfectly falls on women.
It's something that affects four out of five women during and after menopause and might put the brakes on your sex life. It's also a taboo subject for many women who think that vaginal dryness is just part of getting older, but it doesn't have to be.
It seems like everyone is aware of breast cancer in the month of October, with waves of marchers, many of your favorite products and even NFL players all awash in pink. But awareness isn't knowledge, and there are some important things you should know about breast cancer. Let's start by debunking a few popular myths.
When we say “birth control” what's the first type that comes to mind? Probably the pill. But what if there were an alternative that's safe, more effective, and long lasting? That's the intrauterine device, or IUD.
September is Gynecological Cancer Awareness Month and a good time for a pop quiz – can you name all of the types of cancer that can affect a woman's reproductive organs? Many of us know a few of them, but there are others with their own symptoms. According to the Centers for Disease Control, there are five main types of gynecological cancer:
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