The Brain Catches Fire???

Click here to read an interesting article I came across titled "The Brain Catches Fire at Menopause". Since I am in the process of going through "the change" as it used to be called or maybe it is still called that, the article title caught my eye. I found it very interesting, especially the part about the SAD(Seasonal Affective Disorder). It made sense to me that it is related. I do have issues with SAD. Some years it is worse than others. I still don't like dark rooms. That is why all the paneling in our home has been painted a soft white. Otherwise I would feel like was living in a cave. I can't stand that. I need the light to come in. Then in the summer it is frustrating to have to block it out to keep the house from getting too hot. Seems I can't win here.

At one place we lived, our room was paneled. But since it was a rental, I could not paint it or change it. In the summer time it was especially dark in there because of the sun's position being nearly directly overhead. In the Fall, Winter and Spring it was much better with the sun position towards the south. Our window faced south. There was also a tree outside the window so in the winter more light came in because the leaves had fallen off. So I started trimming some of the branches so there weren't any touching the house. That allowed more light in during the summer even with the leaves on them. I did my sewing in that room and had the ironing board under the window. The light became important to me while we lived there.

When I think of the brain catching fire, I think of the numerous "Hot Flashes" I am getting these days. Last night I had one so intense I had to open the other half of the window near my side of the bed so I could get the flow of the cool air from outside. Finally I was able to go to sleep and actually got cold eventually and needing to close the window again. My body can't make up its mind. But when I get the hot flashes, it feels like it starts with my brain and rushes from head to toe. I used to get hot flashes periodically. Now I get them daily and nightly too. But that is the stage of my life I am in right now.