Many of us are turning up the heat this time of year, but Felice Lewis is feeling a different kind of heat.
She says, "I was just burning from head to toe, you know, just hot."
Felice started getting hot flashes a week after her hysterectomy.
Her body was thrown into menopause by the surgery - and she wasn't ready for the changes!
"The mood swings, the not being able to sleep, all of that just started right away, I was really surprised."
Gynecologist Mark Firestone says, "they call it going through the change, the change of life".
The Doctor says most women reach menopause by age 57.
But symptoms can start much earlier, including hot flashes, difficulty concentrating, loss of sex drive, insomnia and mood swings.
Felice says it drove her crazy when her mood would change in a heartbeat.
"You just can't pinpoint it or know ahead when it's going to happen," she says, "It just happens."
It's issues like these that make many women seek out hormone replacement therapy. But there can be serious side effects.
"It could increase her risk of developing a blood clot, it could also increase her triglycerides, and affect her cholesterol", says Dr. Firestone.
Felice was willing to try anything to get relief. That's when Doctor Firestone told her about a new medication called Evamist. He says, "It's made from a natural form of estrogen. It's plant-derived from soy and yams."
You spray Evamist on your arm. It goes through your skin directly into your bloodstream.
Dr. Firestone says it provides a more stable release of hormones throughout the day.
And the mist has fewer side effects because it's not a pill that has to be processed by your liver.
"You can give a woman a much lower dose and that will be much more effective for her", says Dr. Firestone.
Felice sprays her inner arm once in the morning, and she's off!
She says, "Within a couple of days I saw relief, I could not believe it."
Now instead of snapping at her husband, Felice is laughing with him again.
As for her hot flashes, she went from five a day to zero!
She says. "It has changed my life, it has changed my life."
For most women, menopausal symptoms last about two years or longer.
For more information on Evamist, log onto whdh.com and click on 7 Healthcast.
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