Blog 15

I can't believe it is already the end of the semester! This has probably been one of the best courses I have taken thus far in college. I was able to learn so many things about myself as well growing older and hearing many touching stories from all of you. The subject that I can look back on and say I enjoyed the most even though each and every chapter had interesting aspects of their own was the chapter over menopause. Just like many other women that is a stage in their life they may dread getting to and after reading more information about it and also hearing a story from a woman I know who went through it recently has given me a different outlook on it and maybe I can dread it a little less now. I am thankful to have learned as much as I did this semster and really enjoyed all of the material covered.

Blog 14

Assult is something that no women would like to face and fortunately there are ways in which we are able to help prevent assult from happening. It is always best to know your surroundings and stay alert if you are venturing into and area you may be unfamiliar with. Also when you go out to a bar or even a restaurant make sure that you keep and eye on your beverage and do not leave your drink unattended. Trust your instincts and if something does not feel right to you then you should probably get yourself out of the situation to avoid an issue in case something could arise. One other thing is always keep your phone charged and handy so that you are able to call someone for help or even call someone to come if you feel uncomfortable.

Blog 13 Substance Abuse

I personally feel that it is a strenght when a woman admits she has a problem with drugs. I have had a very very close family member use drugs and it caused a lot of heartache for many years. Karen had many downs before she had started using drugs starting with losing her father, brother, and then husband to lung cancer. It was over a span of 3 years so losing someone close to you three years in a row can really take a toll on some people and unfortunately for Karen she turned to drugs. She thought that it eased the pain because she did not have to feel things because she felt numb. It really ruined our relationship for years but once she had admitted she had a problem and was willing to get help she began her road to recovery and now has been clean for almost 4 years. Those 3-4 years that she was using was probably the scariest years but I think she is a brave woman for admitting her problem and overcoming her addiction.

Blog 12 Mental illness

I have a really good girlfriend that suffers from mental illness. She is very derpessive and also suffers from panic attacks. She has been on medication for many years but it got worse once she had her first child. She went through severe post partum where she wouldn't even want to get up off of the couch. Thankfully her mom was able to be there for her a lot because she went through a short period of not wanting to be near her little one. I have a daughter and I thankfully never went through that but it must be pretty severe for you to not want to be around your child. She has since then stayed on her medication and also had a second child but did not suffer from post partum like she did with her first. She did have a brief depression period but nothing like the first child where she did not want to be near her child. Having children is most certainly overwhelming at times but also wonderful and after taking classes such as this one and a few other courses I have learned so much about our bodies and women in general and I guess it is more common to get the "babie blues" but for most women it goes away. I know that the first week after I had my little girl I cried almost at anything and everything and I was thinking what on earth is wrong with me. I was glad that period did not last long because I am not normally someone who cries all of the time. Children definitely change things for us all around but the are the joys of our lives! :)

Blog 11 Chronic Disease

Just last year my aunt started suffering from diabetes and so many things has changed for her. She was ill for quite some time and after many test from the doctors was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. She lost an extreme amount of weight as well as suffered from fatigue often. She had to totally change her diet and that is not always something that is easy to do but she had no other options. I remember growing up she always had diet soda in the fridge and not being able to drink her diet coke is sometimes a pain but for her health she does what she has to do. She also has to give herself a daily shot of insulin in her thigh and after time she says it is not big deal but in the begining thinking of having to give yourself a shot everyday for the rest of your like can be dreadful. She is doing well and keeping her diabetes under control.

Blog 10 Heart disease men vs women

When it comes to men and women there are many differences as all of us know but did we really think that heart disease could affect men and women differently? Heart disease remains to be the number one killer throughout the world but is more prevalent among women. Symptoms for men and women can also be different. Both men and women experience chest pain, shortness of breath, cold sweats, nausea, or dizziness, but women normally experience abdominal pain, vomiting as well as pain in their necks and backs. Women who smoke and suffer from depression also tend to have more of a serious effects on heart health than in men.  It is not entirely know as to why there are such differences when it comes to women and men and heart disease but some factors that may contribute could be that women are generally older at the time. There are many risk factors that can be controlled and help reduce your risk of having CVD  for both men and women and some of those include staying active, eating a healthy diet so that your blood pressure as well as your cholesterol can stay under control, and not smoking.

Decrease Cholesterol. (n.d.)Heart Disease Men vs Women. Retrieved on November, 3 2010 from
http://www.decreasecholesterol.com/heartdisease/heart-disease-men-vs-women.html

  Alexander, L.L., LaRosa, J.H., Bader, H. Garfield, S.  (2010). Dimensions in women's health. (5^th Ed.).  Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.

Blog 9

When it comes to physical exercise and eating healthy there are many barriers that people can face. I myself am a stay at home mom of a beautiful two year old little girl and she does have me going all day every day but I know that it is probably not quite the physical exercise I should be getting. We do go out for walks around the neigborhood at least 3 days a week but if I am tired or do not feel like it I simply opt out of going. That is definitely one of the biggest challanges when it comes to physical exercise because if I simply do not feel like it I am not going to do it. Most of the time when she is down for a nap or in bed for the night I try and do homework or spend time with my husband so physical exercise kind of gets pushed off to the side. As for eating healthy there are many challanges to face. There are so many options available for families such as going out to eat or running out and picking something up that the nutrition factor isn't probably as high as what it was when I was growing up. I do fairly well at cooking dinner at home most nights of the week especially since going out to eat has gotten so expensive but I do admit that I should incorporate more vegetables and fruits into our daily meals. I have one of the pickiest two year old eaters ever and fortunately she does eat her veggies and her fruit. I will give her fruit and veggies as much as possible as well as her daily vitamins to try and get in the habit feeding her healthy! Many excuses are used when it comes to these aspects of life but if we could only get into a routine maybe it might not seem like such a pain. :)
Melissa V.