Hi all .... I've only recently discovered this site (and could almost have cried when I did, realising there are other frazzled mums like me, but that's another topic ....) and, for my very first post I'm going to totally embarrass myself by owning up to my very "disloyal" body. What I'm hoping for of course, is that someone will respond, saying "I know just what you mean ..." ! Hope I've put it in the right place ?
I'm 40 years old (I mean young, of course) and a mum of two. A teenage "Kevin" aged 15 and a daughter aged 20 months.
I've always looked younger than my age and enjoy playing the guessing game with people who don't know me .... "how old do you think I am ?" I must also admit to feeling quite smug at getting pregnant at 38 with no trouble.
However .... and finally getting to the point, I've felt so "let down" by my body ever since having my baby girl. There I am thinking I can still be "trendy" (with a bit of effort) and scrub up not too badly - and there's my body doing all sorts of strange things I don't like.
Aside from how difficult it is to lose the baby weight (know that's an ageless problem) I now find that I have very dodgy hips which always ache even if I go for a short walk (like, a mile or 2) and perpetual & painful acid heartburn (doesn't matter what I eat, I have it most of every day). My periods are now really heavy to the point of being potentially embarassing and my hands also keep seizing up - almost like the joints lock and I have to "unfold" my fingers - this happens when I'm gardening, or cleaning for example. On top of that, I probably have the most frightful "teenage" skin I've ever had since being a real teenager - not loads of spots, but those I do have are deep and nasty, and on my chin and jaw, not to mention my back. The very worst thing though is that I seem to be sprouting extra hair all over the place !!! and double My top lip is distinctly fuzzier and I am at the mirror with the tweezers daily (I'm sure no-one wants to hear about the horror which is my bikini line). On several occasions I have gone to brush off what I've thought was a loose hair (from my head) and to my horror, found it was a great long (about 4/5 inches !!!) singular and attached hair growing in the middle of nowhere ! .... like, out the side of my neck, the back of my ear and the base of my spine.
At this point, I feel like crawling away and hibernating in a cave
Seriously, I just can't believe what my body is doing to me - it's like it's saying "wake up kiddo, you are getting older, so there". Okay, so everyone gets a few spots now and again and I got bad heartburn throughout being pregnant, but I had none of this stuff before I had my daughter.
Am I being a complete hypochondriac, or an hysterical old biddy for that matter, or must us "girls" in their 40s accept things like these as inevitable decline ?
My partner keeps telling me I should go to the doctor but at this rate I'll need to take a "shopping list" with me so I don't forget all the symptoms.
Please, someone, tell me I'm not alone !
(Oh - and thanks for trawling through this mammoth post)