POWER SURGE NEWS
FOR AOL AND THE WEB
A Free E-Mail Newsletter
of the Power Surge Women's
Midlife and Menopause Community
The Power Surge Web Site
www.power-surge.net
Dearest (Alice Stamm)
Founder and Facilitator

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 
POWER SURGE GUEST CHAT
Thursday, Oct. 24, 9 PM, ET
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
Straight Talk About Menopause!
with Harvard OB-GYN,
MARCIE RICHARDSON, M.D.
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  *** ***

"Helping individual patients have more healthy
lives is my passion." -- Marcie Richardson, M.D.

Marcie Richardson, M.D. went to Med School at UCSD,
and trained in Ob-Gyn at Beth Israel, a Harvard Hospital in
Boston. She has been in practice in Massachusetts since
1979, first in private practice and then associated with an
HMO -- "I got tired of being on call every third night --
which is now reinventing itself as a multi-speciality group
as the insurance business has gotten more and more odious."

A board certified OB-GYN and a generalist, Marcie has
developed a personal and professional interest in menopause
over the last decade. She is the co-director of the Harvard
Vanguard Menopause Consultation Service - where "we see
women with difficult menopause issues." She is also am on the
board of the North American Menopause Society, a national
organization devoted to the issues of menopause and beyond.
Marcie has a long-term interest in consumer education and
has helped write many pieces for her group. On the advisory
board of the Harvard Women's Health Watch, a monthly health
news letter for women, Dr. Richardson recently helped
Harvard Health Publications put out a special report,
"Menopause; Managing the Change of Life." Marcie says,
"Helping individual patients have more healthy lives
is still my passion."

Read & Listen To Marcie's previous chat with Dr. Susan Love and Dearest

Join Dr. Marcie Richardson
THURSDAY, OCT. 24th,  9 PM, ET
With all your questions about menopause!
IN THE
Power Surge Live! Chat Room

Read the transcript here

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
LAST WEEK'S FABULOUS GUEST CHAT!
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

Stuart Shipko, M.D., Psychiatrist & Neurologist
joined us last week to discuss, in his inimitablly honest,
outspoken, professional and articulate manner. An expert in
psychopharmacology, who specializes in anxiety and panic
disorder, he answered questions about anxiety, panic,
antidepressants / SSRI's, and the potential side-effects
of the many medications on the market today.

Read Last Week's Transcript With Dr. Stuart Shipko

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
AFFIRMATIONS / QUOTES
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
Use quotes / affirmations / positive thoughts
"The vibes you give out come back to you!"

*  If you are never scared or embarrassed or hurt,
    it means you never take any chances. -- Julia Sorel
*  The real art of conversation is not only to say the right
    thing at the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong
    thing at the tempting moment. -- Dorothy Nevill
*  The secret of success is sincerity. Once you can fake that,
    you've got it made. -- Jean Gieraudoux 
*  I was wise enough never to grow up while fooling most
    people into believing that I had. -Margaret Mead
*  The hardest of all is learning to be a well of affection, and not
    a fountain; to show them we love them not when we feel like it,
    but when they do. -- Nan Fairbrother 


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
THE HRT CONTROVERSY AND
OTHER MUST READ TRANSCRIPTS
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

Hysterectomy & Hormones:  With Elizabeth Plourde, C.L.S., M.A.
Eating Disorders:  With Dr. Denise Lamothe
Soy Isoflavones & Menopause:  With Aaron Tabor, M.D.
Naturally Compounded Hormones:  With Pete Hueseman, R.Ph
Anxiety-Panic Attacks:  With Bronwyn Fox
Naturally Hormones/Menopause:  With Erika Schwartz, M.D.


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
POWER SURGE'S RECOMMENDATIONS
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

One of the most popular areas of the Web site is the
Recommendations area. 

Midlife is generally a time of awakening, but not always a gentle
one! By the time most women are 40-something (give or take a
few years), they suddenly find themselves being introduced to an
unfamiliar body, but as their transitional years pass, they will
become more familiar with that body than ever before in their lives.

Read about your options for treating menopause


* * * * * *  * * *  * * *  * * *  * * *  * * *
THE INNER GROUND SHIFTS
by STEPHANIE MARSTON
* * *  * * *  * * *  * * *  * * *  * * * * * *

At midlife, our inner ground shifts. Our ego takes a back
seat and our authentic self becomes our center of gravity--
our reason for being. We can no longer afford to allow our
fears or the need to prove ourselves to continue to drive
us. Many of us feel an urgency to reassess our motivation. I
certainly did.

I had already felt a vague sense of dissatisfaction with my
life when my mother died suddenly. I was 46 years old, and
my world tipped off its axis. I had just spent the previous
year and a half pouring my energy into a television project
only to have it canceled two weeks before shooting. I had
had such high expectations of what this was going to do for
my career that when it all came crashing down, I became
disillusioned and depressed.

Until that time, I had thought that my need for success was
normal, in fact, admirable. But following my mother's death,
I began to wonder why I had pushed myself so hard, why I had
continually strived for ever greater recognition. No matter
what I accomplished, why did I need to do more?

During the days and months that I mourned the loss of my
mother, it began to dawn on me that I had always been a
doer. In fact, looking back I recognized that I had been a
type-A toddler. Without having realized it, much of what I
had done had been motivated by a need to prove myself, to
show my parents, the world, myself that I was worthwhile. On
some level, I was continually trying to justify my
existence, as if I wasn't good enough, and that I had to
make up for some huge personal deficit. Don't get me wrong,
it's not that I hadn't done good work. But I was never
satisfied. It finally occurred to me that I had been looking
in the wrong place.

Like so many of the women I spoke with, I wanted something
deeper to be the guiding force in my life. I yearned to let
go, to do what had always been so difficult for me--to
trust. As frightened as I was, I wanted to find out what
would happen if I stopped pushing so hard. It's not that I
wanted to give up what I had been doing--that wasn't even a
consideration. I wanted my motivation to be different. I
wanted to surrender to the river of my life and allow its
current to carry me. I wanted whatever it was that I was
going to do to be motivated from the deepest place I could
find within me. Anything else would be intolerable.

I began to do something I'd never done before--I began to
pray. I still can't tell you who or what I pray to, but
every morning I give thanks for all that I have in my life
and then I ask to do thy will above my will. Then I sit and
focus on my breathing and watch the zillions of mundane
thoughts float through my mind. This time has become my
anchor. It sets the tone for my day. It helps me to connect
with something larger than myself. It helps me to keep
things in perspective, at least most of the time. I'm not
going to pretend that I haven't had my moments of panic--
well maybe, more than moments. Committing ourselves to a
deeper calling is a major shift for most of us. It's
certainly not something that we're going to find a lot of
support for in our culture. But when we make the commitment
to respond from the core of our being, a burden is lifted.
When we finally admit that we don't have all the answers and
we surrender to something deeper, we experience a tremendous
sense of relief. What we choose to do in the world will be a
natural outgrowth of this connection with our soul. It will
emerge from the deepest sense of who we are.

When we pray, we're declaring a sacred intention. We're
reaching out across the universe and giving voice to our
deepest longings. Prayer is our attempt at communion with a
higher power--be it God, Goddess, nature spirits or the
place that connects us to a larger wisdom. When we pray, we
enter into a dialogue with this other, we open ourselves to
a wiser voice. Meditation serves a different need.
Meditation is a process of observation, of centering. It's a
quieting of the mind, a time of introspection, a time when
we can achieve a dispassionate distance from which to look
at our dreams, fears, and the concerns that occupy our
attention. In meditation we have an opportunity to drop
below the turbulence of our lives and connect with the calm
place within us.

Stephanie Marston's, "If Not Now, When?
Reclaiming Ourselves At Midlife"

Read the series of chats with Stephanie: Reclaiming Ourselves At Midlife


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
THE MOST SUPPORTIVE, CARING
AND INFORMATIVE DISCUSSIONS
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

Forbes Magazine's Best of The Web Message Boards

Join other women in menopause and choose from
over 60 menopause and midlife-related message
boards filled with compassion, information, support
and caring. Be prepared for an abundance of support,
information and love!  The Web Message Boards


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
A "PAUSE" FOR HUMOR
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

Q:  Why do they call it "PMS" ?
A:  Because "Mad Cow Disease" was already taken!

THE PERKS OF BEING OVER 40

1.  Kidnappers are not very interested in you.
2.  In a hostage situation you are likely to be released first.
3.  No one expects you to run into a burning building.
4.  People call at 9 PM and ask, "Did I wake you?"
5.  People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.
6.  There is nothing left to learn the hard way.
7.  Things you buy now won't wear out.
8.  You can eat dinner at 4 P.M.
9.  You can live without sex, but not without glasses.
10. You enjoy hearing about other peoples operations.
11. You get into heated arguments about pension plans.
12. You have a party and the neighbors don't even realize it.
13. You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.
14. You quit trying to hold your stomach in, no matter who walks
      into the room.
15. You sing along with elevator music.
16. Your eyes won't get much worse.
17. Your investment in health insurance is finally beginning to
       pay off.
18. Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the
      national weather service.
19. Your secrets are safe with your friends because they can't
      remember them either.
20. Your supply of brain cells is finally down to manageable size.

Remember, you don't stop laughing because you
grow old. You grow old because you stopped laughing.

Visit the Humor, Trivia and Other Distractions Board


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***
EDUCATE  YOUR BODY!
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

Informative articles on menopause and midlife-
related issues in Educate Your Body


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***     
SAFE AND EFFECTIVE SOY PROTEIN
AND ISOFLAVONES FOR THOSE WHO
CAN'T OR PREFER NOT TO USE HRT
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***   

The one thing that eliminated my hot flashes, depression,
fatigue, vaginal dryness, mood swings, lowered my
menopause-related cholesterol by over 100 points and
generally gave me back my life the past 4 1/2 years has
been Revival Soy Protein. I've seen Revival with its 150+
soy isoflavone count help not only me, but thousands of
other women experiencing the typical symptoms of
perimenopause. Soy is SAFE and has been used as a
staple in the diet of Japanese women for thousands of years.
They are considered among the healthiest women in the world.
Soy is effective and reliable, especially for those who can't
or choose not to use hormone replacement therapy. The FDA
approves the use of SOY in lowering cholesterol and providing
general heart health. It's made from non-genetically engineered
soybeans, as are most of the soy products out there and the
isoflavones are taken from the "heart" of the soybean where
they are most concentrated. Read more

Ask Medical Director, Aaron Tabor, M.D. aything at
Ask The Soy Doctor
View Dr. Tabor's last transcript in the Library 
Click Here


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***     
YOUR FEEDBACK
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***     

How are you handling menopause and
how is Power Surge helping?
We'd love your feedback!  Click here


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***     
IF YOU CHOOSE HRT, THE OPERATIVE
WORD IS "NHRT - OR HIH, HUMAN IDENTICAL
"NATURAL HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY"
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***   

If you're dealing with menopausal issues you can't resolve
with other natural modalities and with all the controversy
surrounding conventional / synethetic hormone therapy, you
if you want to switch or start using hormones, make sure they're
NHRT (natural hormone replacement therapy) or HIH, Human
Identical, naturally compounded, plant-derived hormones.
Pete Hueseman, R.Ph., P.D., Power Surge's
Pharmaceutical Consultant for seven years will discuss
with you and your doctor low-dose natural hormones to suit
your body's needs, not the typical "One size fits all."

Ask Pete Hueseman directly at Ask The Pharmacist
View Pete's last transcript in the Library: Click Here

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***     
HUNDREDS OF GUEST TRANSCRIPTS
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***   
You can read more of what the most prestigious experts
in the area of women's health have said when they've
guested in Power Surge chats in the Library

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***     
EVERYONE IS WELCOME
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***   

Feel free to FORWARD THIS ISSUE of our Newsletter
to a friend who would appreciate what Power Surge
has to offer. If you're on this mailing list, you've already
found out :)  Tell them they can easily sign up for the
mailing list here: Click Here

If you're receiving this mailing, it's because you signed
up for it. Should you wish to unsubscribe, Click here
Type in your E.mail address and click on "unsubscribe"

If you have problems subscribing or unsubscribing through
the Web site, simply reply to this E.mail and type in the
subject line: "Subscribe" or "Unsubscribe"

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  

I hope to see you at the chats and on the boards.

Until then, remember... menopause may have you
feeling like you're going to hell in a handbasket, but,
there are treatments that work for your issues. It isn't
terminal and it does eventually pass.

Books! Books! Books!