Hot flashes - women of a certain age!

[CoolBee]

I thought I would share something I've just started doing and it's making a difference in how I feel and respond.

I've been getting hot flashes really badly for a few weeks now, and even though the weather here is getting on for 8-9C (16F) cooler than during the summer, I'm much hotter! Anyway, I have been responding by leaping up and putting the air con on the minute it happened and then it's been staying on for hours until I remember to turn it off!

But for the past couple of days, instead, I have set up a countdown timer on my computer - set for 3 minutes. As soon as the hot flash starts, I set the timer going. My promise to myself is that IF I still feel roasting hot when it goes off, I can put the aircon on - so far it hasn't. By the time it goes off, the flash has subsided.

How does this help? Well I guess by getting me used to the idea that for me, they last less than 3 minutes and I would say I have had less than 10 today which is helping me stop inner-complaining about feeling 'boiling hot all the time' when really it's around half an hour a day. It's also reinforcing that the discomfort doesn't last long and in just 3 minutes I'll feel better.

Maybe sharing this will help someone else - I know there's a few of us knocking around on here