We’ve been known to have fabulous home shopping parties over Tupperware, make-up, jewelry, purses, lingerie, clothes, and even sex toys. It’s way more fun than online shopping because it usually combines a night out, cocktails & scrumptious sweet delights. The best part is that while we are busy buying the latest negligee or kitchen essential, we are surrounded by laughter, love and sharing.
Now we have another reason to party! It’s PM&M (perimenopause and menopause). We call these parties Menopause Parties! These parties are slightly different, because PM&M arrives unannounced – free and usually unwelcome! If you have a vagina you will experience PM&M and you will need a Menopause Party!
Perimenopause arrives when you are YOUNG and active! FYI: your period does not magically disappear at the age of 70, as I once thought when I was a girl (much like the tooth underneath my pillow!). Symptoms can start creeping up in your late 30’s or mid forties and last 6 – 10 years – way before you reach menopause (which is when your period is over for 12 consecutive months). There are about 34 menopause symptoms. Familiarize yourself with these so that you are not blindsided. (They are listed on pages 169-70 in Shmirshky: the pursuit of hormone happiness). At a recent Menopause Party, one gal (age 41) stood up and shared that she pretends to be busy when her friends call her for lunch. She is embarrassed because when she goes out, she can’t think clearly or remember anything. She had never heard of perimenopause, and at 41, the idea that her memory loss could be menopause related never crossed her mind. As she put it, “I thought I was losing my mind!” Imagine how shocked and saddened her friends were when she shared this with the group – they had no idea!
We need to break the taboo of speaking about perimenopause! We need to bust open the conversation and stop hiding our shmirshkies under a bush!
Help break the taboo, by hosting a Menopause Party. It’s easy and fun! Download our Menopause Party Questions and enjoy our fab Menocosmos. Some folks buy Shmirshky: the pursuit of hormone happiness for their friends as party favors or suggest they get a book themselves and read it before the party.
Menopause Party hostesses: if you send us your party pictures we will post them on our website and you will receive a Shmirshky bathrobe! These robes are deliciously, soft, and cozy! Check them out here!
Most importantly, you and your friends will leave your Menopause Party with something that is priceless: the knowledge that you are not alone and not losing their mind, a sense of calmness & well being, tools to find a perimenopause and menopause specialist, an awareness of the 34 menopause symptoms, the confidence to trust in how you feel, the determination to seek the help you deserve, and a group of women who are they to support you through your experience. You can’t put any of these items in your shopping bag, but they will fill your heart and feed your soul! Now that’s a hell of a party favor!
Remember: Reaching out is IN! Suffering in silence is OUT!
