These days my definition of being “good in bed” refers less to sex and more to getting a decent night’s sleep. Like many adults I am challenged with bouts of nighttime wakefulness (aka insomnia). And I am not alone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “Insufficient sleep is a public health problem.” An estimated 50 to 70 million U.S. adults have sleep or wakefulness disorder. Source The reality is: What most people are not getting enough of in bed is a good night’s sleep. Hopefully by having better Zzzzs you’ll feel more on your A-game. What I
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One of the toughest challenges for me when I was diagnosed with breast cancer was enjoying food. Here I was a well connected professional food and wine consultant with a welcome seat at all the great restaurants in New York City, and food no longer appealed to me. It wasn’t that I stopped liking food. It’s just that while I was undergoing chemotherapy treatment the smells, sight and taste of many foods were off putting. I simply either had no appetite or was fearful of become nauseous from eating anything. Constipation from medication was a constant, and that only added to
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When my father passed away from cancer in 2009, I remember one of the most frustrating things my mother and I dealt with was getting access to his various accounts and unlocking his mobile phone. We didn’t know the passwords. I have forgotten passwords to numerous accounts. I reset one, carefully file it away and then forget where the file is on my computer. It happens all the time, and I’m still sound of mind. Imagine 20-30 years from now! It’s more than just passwords that you should share with someone you trust. If you become incapacitated at any age,
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February is Heart Health Month. Heart disease is the #1 cause of death among women. The American Heart Association’s “Go Red For Women”campaign stresses the importance of a healthy diet, weight management and regular exercise to maintain heart health. I agree heart health starts with taking care of your body, but I also believe it means fixing what may be going on in your head. Anxiety and anger also stress the heart. Many of us have experienced a broken heart due to a failed romance, loss of a loved one or an emotional setback. Time is the best healer. But a bitter heart can be harder to
Read more →Women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant and who experience symptoms of anxiety or depression should think twice about taking prescription antidepressants due to ongoing concerns about potential birth defects associated with these medications. An estimated 15% of women in their reproductive years take antidepressants. Depression, a debilitating condition, affects 30% of women between 18 and 44 years. Left untreated, depression can lead to additional mental and physical health risks such as heart disease. The Centers for Diseases Control (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report stated January 28th “Antidepressant use is common among women of reproductive age, and research
Read more →I’ve been an exercise fanatic since my mother took me with her to her fitness studio in Chattanooga when I was a young girl. I’d roll around the mats and stretch with bands while my mother jiggled on machines. I started ballet at the age of 5, modern dance at 12 and performed in my high school modern dance troupe, Terpsichord. Over the years I’ve joined both fancy gyms and YMCA’s and taken numerous classes and personal training sessions. I have Dancercized and aerobicized, practiced Pilates and various kinds of yoga. But the fitness program I believe delivers the best
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It was the first and last time I’d bare my derriere for a man I’d just met, but this was for a a colonoscopy, and I believe in taking care of my health. The last time I had this done was Thanksgiving week 2009 with my internist who was also my gastroenterologist at the time under another health insurance plan. This doctor was arranged by my wonderful oncologist, Maria Theodoulou. She’s my doctor yenta; I look up to her to fix me up with the right specialists to tend to my well-being. It was like a medical blind date without much
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At SHARE‘s annual fundraiser, A Second Helping of Life Sept 21, Valerie Smaldone congratulated me on my radio show, Fearless Fabulous You!. Coming from Valerie, I was honored. She’s hosted radio for years in the NYC area and is a respected media talent. Then she told me about a women named Wendy Baruchowitz who was diagnosed at the age of 39 with a disease I had never heard of and could barely pronounce: Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). Valerie said Wendy’s mission is to raise awareness of this little known disorder. I was curious to learn more. How did a healthy mom with two young
Read more →“Oh my aching knees!” I used to roll my eyes when older family members and friends would moan and groan about aches and pains in their knees. Now, I’ve become one of them. My right knee sends me a reminder that it’s time to “get up and move” with a dull ache. Is it age or something else? It turns out females are four to six times more likely to injure their knees over men. And we’re not necessarily talking only about older women. Young women athletes are more likely to injure their Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL), the most common knee injury.
Read more →When I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009 I was running a successful wine and food public relations agency, eating at the top restaurants and visiting the world’s great wine regions. Five years later, I came to a point where I considered applying for food stamps. My income was dried up and I was behind on my house payments. How did this happen to me? I learned I was not alone and should not be ashamed. I decided to speak out and learn more. According to a University of Michigan study 25 percent of breast cancer survivors reported financial
Read more →In the early 1990s, fashion industry executive Ann Odgen Gaffney found herself cooking and caring for a designer in the industry fighting AIDS, The experience taught her to be fearless which was especially helpful when she was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2001. Fortunately, Ann recovered following her surgery and her life went back to a new normal….well, sort of. A second diagnosis of unrelated breast cancer came later and was a more difficult journey with surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Ann learned from this experience that cooking was solace and nutrition was essential to manage side effects from treatment and support
Read more →Recently I was at a birthday dinner where a mother shared her experience with lice. Both her sons had contracted lice at their school. I’ve heard this story from other parents whose children contract lice-or fleas-and infected the rest of the family. It made me curious: How can you keep your kids safe from germs at school? Also, how can you keep your self free from germs that your kids bring home from school? No one can live in a bubble. I’ve invited Columbia University Medical Center Pediatric Specialist Dr. Clare Bush to join me September 28th to discuss how to keep
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