Remember going back to school as a child, and being asked to write "What I Did On My Summer Vacation?" Being a child that loved to write more than talk, I always looked forward to that particular assignment and the opportunity to express myself on paper. I don't recall much of what I wrote, but I'm confident some of it was filled with details of family vacations and times like when my two siblings … [Read more...] about What I Did on My Summer Vacation
Happiness
5 Easy (and free!) Ways to Be Happier
Lately, I’ve been thinking about what makes us feel happy. Maybe it’s because it’s summer – something that always made me unequivocally happy – and right now, I’m not feeling that familiar adrenaline-fueled kind of euphoria happiness. Really, when you think about it, that’s perfectly normal, isn’t it? I mean, how can one thing – summer- erase all the other so-called stresses that enter our … [Read more...] about 5 Easy (and free!) Ways to Be Happier
Is Bruce Jenner Having a Midlife Crisis?
Yesterday at the gym while stretching post-workout, I overheard two women talking about Bruce Jenner's recent announcement that he was transitioning into a woman. (I wasn't exactly eavesdropping; if you saw the small area devoted to stretching, you'd understand why it isn't easy to ignore nearby conversations.) "Why do you think he waited so long to come out with that?" asked one. (I had … [Read more...] about Is Bruce Jenner Having a Midlife Crisis?
What Wake-Up Calls Teach Us
Not to be all depressing and morose, but this past week has been kind of sad. I've heard one bad story after another. A friend's 17-year-old daughter diagnosed with ovarian cancer; a cousin's 28-year old son's thyroid cancer diagnosis; a co-worker of my husbands with a blood disease so rare I've never heard of it nor can I pronounce it or understand just how the body can turn on itself that … [Read more...] about What Wake-Up Calls Teach Us
Menopause and Anxiety
Why do some women going through menopause feel like they're out of control, irritable, short- fused and just plain crazy? And why do others pass through seamlessly with nary a hot flash or mood swing? Back in 2005, when blogging was still fairly new, I created the blog, Midlife Matters. As a health writer, I was excited about sharing accurate and timely health information in an intimate … [Read more...] about Menopause and Anxiety
What Does it Take To Be Happy?
Happiness is such a loaded emotion. Some days I wake up feeling happy. Others, not so much. Especially in this so-called midlife, when so many things around me are in flux. But since it feels so much better to feel happy than to feel unhappy - not to mention the health-enhancing effects of happiness - throughout "those" days when I am inexplicably cranky, moody or just plain unhappy, I try to … [Read more...] about What Does it Take To Be Happy?