Media Coverage |
Article URL: Article appearing on CBSHealthWatch.com
Jane Schwanke, Medical Writer
Introduction
"Knowing that others have experienced what you are experiencing is uniquely beneficial," says Leslie Jameson, PhD, a psychologist and author in Chappaqua, New York. "Your doctor may tell you you'll get through this, but having another woman say, 'That's exactly what happened to me--and I got through it,' has a different value." "At no other time in a woman's life does she need as much support as she does now," says Alice Stamm, creator of Power Surge, an online community for women at midlife and menopause. Yet, she says, at a time when women could really use some nurturing, "many of them are still nurturing everyone else." So, it's not surprising that women across the country are coming together to share common midlife concerns and are gaining a new perspective by offering and receiving advice. And whether they meet in round-table discussion groups or anonymously on the Internet, experts say mutual support groups are having powerful effects on the mental and physical health of women. Helping Self by Sharing "Doctors, social workers, and
psychologists can't be all things to all people all the time," says Edward
Madara, MS, director of the American Self-Help Clearinghouse in Denville, New
Jersey, a national organization that provides information on starting and
finding support groups. When you share your experiences, he says, "you feel a
sense of closeness and connection no professional relationship can match. People
need social support. They need to be able to talk to somebody who truly
understands what they're going through. And they need education--not just a
flood of information, but enough to know how it applies to their life."
Thousands of women are getting peer support and education through groups like
the Red Hot Mamas--organized programs dedicated to menopause education and
psychosocial support. Now available in 21 states, Red Hot Mamas support groups
are offered free through hospitals and health organizations, and cater to women
from 35 to 70.
"Women are looking at menopause today in a positive way," says Red Hot Mamas
founder Karen Giblin, who is also president of Prime Plus, Inc. "We're living
longer than previous generations and we are looking at midlife as a time of
renewal. It's really a time to become well informed, and we know that educated
women are healthier women."
In a typical support group, women participate in lively question-and-answer
periods and identify what's happening in their own bodies. "They feel more
confident knowing that they're not going through this alone," Giblin says. "It's
very powerful."
Led by healthcare professionals, participants delve into hot topics like
alternative therapy, relaxation techniques, mood swings, the mind-body
connection, and hormone replacement therapy.
"Women are frustrated when it comes to understanding the facts about
menopause," Giblin says, "which is primarily due to having so little time with
their physicians. And I'm sure this frustrates physicians, too. I see the
Internet helping women in a big way when it comes to getting information."
Support a Click Away According to Health magazine,
Power Surge is one of the top health sites for women. Now in it's eighth year,
the site connects women through lively discussions and also educates them
through guest chats with prominent experts like doctors Christiane Northrup,
Susan Love, and Robert Atkins, and author Gail Sheehy.
Alice Stamm, founder, facilitator, and host of Power Surge, says women can't
live in a vacuum. "If you wake up in the middle of the night with palpitations
and you're frightened, you can go to a site like Power Surge and find hundreds
of other women who woke up the same night with the same symptoms. That's
amazing."
"As a baby boomer, I learned nothing at all about menopause from my mother," says Mary Kelly O'Connor, a long-time and frequent participant in Power Surge chats. "Menopause is a very scary time for women, especially for those of us who are clueless about what's happening to our bodies. I find the benefits of sharing my experiences online to be fascinating and educational. There is such a wider group of women to learn from and share with--women from all over the world, not just my circle of friends. "Online . . . we can share our symptoms, discuss what really works, and what doesn't," O'Connor says. "We can learn about medications and alternatives. We can see women who are further along in the process and realize that it will get better. There's always a shoulder to lean on, day or night, and there's always someone who understands."
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