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THE podcast for navigating all things midlife with honesty, humor, and heart
Did you like the new music? A little peppier, a little funkier. But don't worry. You're still listening to the Evolving Together podcast, and I am still Heidi Sexton, your host. This brand spanking new, very special edition is called Girls Night In, And it's a little something new I'm trying out, and you might be wondering why.
Heidi:Well, you've asked for it. And, well, at least some of you did. Completely unfiltered, unscripted, and possibly at times undone and unhinged girlfriend conversations about all the things that we talk about in our midlives. These conversations can get a little spicier, not totally off the rails. But if you're a listener with sensitive ears, I just wanna say I still appreciate you so much, and I do want you to listen.
Heidi:But be forewarned, you're probably better off sticking to the regular episodes. This is Girls Night In, where we are in our PJs by 8PM and 09:30 if it's a really wild and crazy night. Wine optional. Honesty required. And this first girls' night in, I'm having some much needed girlfriend time with Gabby, and we are about to talk all about perimenopause, oof, and the unfun party for one.
Heidi:So buckle up, girls. Let's do this together. Based on our pre conversation, it could get real, real fast. So if you have sensitive ears, get some Actually, if you have sensitive ears, this is not the podcast for you. We don't know where we're going to go with this because it's real conversation and it's all about being honest.
Heidi:And today we're talking about one of the biggest topics in midlife, and that is all the shifts that our bodies go through. So Gabby, hope We this will be one of talk about all kinds of stuff. But, when I wanted to have you on, I was like, okay, what's on your heart right now? And she's, and I'll let you, I'll let you explain what's on your heart right now.
Gabby:What's on my heart right now is exactly what's going on inside my body. I'm hot.
Heidi:Yes. Yes.
Gabby:I'm burning up. Perimenopause. Repeat it with me. Perimenopause. I'm telling you, it's like, what the hell?
Gabby:What is this?
Heidi:You were saying that like, what did you say? Like the old people didn't know what My you
Gabby:mom and my grandfather, they always talked about menopause. That was like, when they talked about when they got in, when they was in their fifties, their sixties, I'm in their forties. I have friends who are in their thirties and all of a sudden now I'm hearing the word perimenopause more now than I've ever heard it before. I don't know if our mom and our aunts and our grandmothers didn't know they were going through this in their thirties and forties. That's why they were batshit crazy.
Gabby:I don't know. They only talked about menopause, but perimenopause is just as bad as menopause.
Heidi:Yeah. Actually it's worse because I speak now from, I am now post menopausal. I just had get the
Gabby:sound of this.
Heidi:Oh, thank you. And I'll tell you what, one of my future guests wrote an essay, and it's called The Granny Effects. She said, Is menopause a promotion? I'm like, Hell yeah, it is. And I get it now because I'm on the other side of it, but, the whole perimenopause thing is mind blowing because when I was going through it, I did not know what was happening.
Heidi:Still think we don't I really know what's went through it for about eight years and I didn't even know that I was in perimenopause until four years in. But then there wasn't that discussion. I'm 57. So this was, I don't know, thirteen years ago, maybe it's hard for me to say. I don't even know when it started officially, but there wasn't this talk.
Heidi:There was, yeah, menopause. People talked about the menopause, but the shit that happens before that, oh my God. It's like No, that
Gabby:really talks about it. I don't know if that generation, my mom was a part of the baby boomers.
Heidi:I don't know
Gabby:if the baby boomers knew what they were doing, like what were they experiencing, what were they feeling in their bodies, we are so aware of what's going on in our bodies. So it hit me and it was like, you know, I mean, what the hell is this?
Heidi:See, it crept up on me, I think. Was like kind of irritated, but see, I was also, it was towards the end of my marriage. So I was like, what was I just had enough of that? Or was it just also hormones? I think it was probably a combination of things.
Heidi:I never was a good sleeper since I had babies born. I did not sleep. So I was like, I don't even know where the overlap was with perimenopause and waking up at night. I slept like crap all the time. So I don't know really when it started.
Heidi:I mean, I'm glad that there's the conversation now that we're like, okay, there's this thing called perimenopause and it can last for a really long time.
Gabby:Right, right, right. And it can put you through hell. Yeah. Have it every for night, somewhere between twelve and three. It's just by myself.
Gabby:It's me and Perry.
Heidi:Me and Perry.
Gabby:It's me and Perry every night. It's like clockwork.
Heidi:And Perry is not some hot guy.
Gabby:No, it's not. It's not at all. He's not what happened. He's not.
Heidi:He's not invited to the party, He but he shows up
Gabby:shows up anyway. Whether I'm tired or whatever, whatever could be going on in life, he will meet me there.
Heidi:Did this come on all of a sudden for you? Was it just kind of like
Gabby:It was gradual. Was gradual, but I think it has reached its peak. And I kind of thought it was so strange. I thought it was kind of a premature celebration because I hadn't had a period in about three, four months. And I went to the doctor, no, I did go to the doctor and I said, I think I'm in full menopause.
Gabby:I was so excited.
Heidi:Feeling sassy, oh yeah.
Gabby:Sassy, you hear me? I had some news to share, okay? Right before I went to the doctor, I had a little bleed. She said, Well, when was your last period? I said, Let me tell you something.
Gabby:I went three, four months, almost four months, when all of a sudden I'm doing a little bleeding. She said, You gotta be a full year. A full year menopause, no period. I said, Are you serious? I really thought I was getting somewhere.
Gabby:She said, It has to be one full year consecutively. So, I really, really thought I was going to hit full menopause.
Heidi:Nope, nope, nope. Wait, how old are you now?
Gabby:47.
Heidi:Okay. Oh, you're older than I thought you were. I don't so bad with ages and how long I've known somebody. Like we've known each other since your youngest in fifth grade.
Gabby:Fifth grade. Yeah.
Heidi:And he's 19?
Gabby:19. Yeah. That'd be like almost
Heidi:like nine years or so. Yeah, lose track. I just kind of do the numbers. I'm like, well, fifth grade and dah, dah, dah, you know, like.
Gabby:No, big four, seven. Let me tell you about the big four, seven. Every time, it's been the last few years, every time I have a, right around my birthday, I have this mysterious illness. Somebody asked me to say, I know you got lit for your birthday. I said lit?
Gabby:My dashboard was lit. I had the check engine light, flat tire, put some water fluid, washer fluid, all of this, like my dashboard health wise be lit. I can't even enjoy my birthday party. I can't even enjoy my birthday because it's crazy stuff. Out of the norm stuff going on almost every time for my birthday.
Gabby:So yeah, it's lit all right. Dashboard Yeah,
Heidi:not lit in the old days of No, I know, No, the
Gabby:not having a good time. Well, that dashboard, check engine, higher.
Heidi:A whole new definition of lit.
Gabby:A whole new definition. Had
Heidi:one margarita last night and I woke up with a hangover. I kid you not. I'm like, you've got to be kidding. I know what it was. It was too late in the day.
Heidi:I can only do day drinking. I cannot do, I gotta have that alcohol out of my system by like 05:30, 6PM. Cause my bedtime is like eight, 08:30.
Gabby:I feel you on that, but Lord. Yeah.
Heidi:So I can only, it's just day drinking and then I have to, you know, figure out what's not going to bother me, but it's forget red wine.
Gabby:Lordy. That's awful.
Heidi:I know. It's not fair, honestly.
Gabby:It's not. It's not.
Heidi:But you, you had a recent health scare. Was that last year?
Gabby:Last year I had a TIA, which is a mild stroke. Once again caused by the, right around her birthday, this thing of getting old. I had a cough that would not stop, and this went on for about three months. And they kept equating into an allergy cough, and they was giving me allergy medicine treatment like I had allergies, and the cough got so bad. I was having shortness of breath, I was having difficulty just breathing, I mean just coughing all the time, throwing up as I'm coughing, it was horrible.
Gabby:Finally, something broke loose in my brain and that's what happened. It was by the time we got down to the reason why I had a TIA, it was due to reflux. You would not believe that reflux caused all of this, but it was reflux cough that caused something to break a loose in my brain because I had been coughing for months.
Heidi:Oh, so like the force of the cough was?
Gabby:Force of the cough And it was coughing so much. I mean, I couldn't even talk to I would have to get off the phone, because my cough was just that bad. Yeah.
Heidi:So would they, that's interesting. So did they do anything for the cough? I mean like-
Gabby:They treated the reflux. I've always had reflux.
Heidi:Oh, okay. But
Gabby:I didn't take you seriously, but not seriously. Yeah. That's crazy. Yeah, it was a hernia and all of that on top, causing a reflux, and a reflux causing a cough, and a cough actually was so bad that it actually broke something loose in my brain.
Heidi:Oh, I didn't know that could happen.
Gabby:I didn't either until it happened. But that's why I told you. I mean, weird stuff happened around my birthday. I mean, dash water's just lit.
Heidi:That's the only thing lit. The only thing. Are I mean, and you're really physically active too. I mean, for anybody that doesn't know Gabby, she is a badass pickleball player, and she has been playing pickleball since before pickleball was the thing to play.
Gabby:2017, okay.
Heidi:Oh, really? Yes. Oh, you're coming up on your ten year anniversary of Absolutely, pickleball next
Gabby:yes. Wasn't always in shape, so I stayed injured most of the time, but I did.
Heidi:Wait, wait. In the beginning you stayed injured most of the time?
Gabby:Because I was a fat ass, of course. You can't be that heavy trying to run around the court. You're going to twist her ankle, hurt her knee, plantar fasciitis, it was something always that was preventing me from playing pickleball. Although I wanted to play because I was so heavy, it would not allow me to.
Heidi:So you had that mini stroke last year and I had no idea coughing could do any of that stuff. So that's interesting. And I wonder, you're saying you get a lot of health stuff around your birthday. I'm just wondering if there's like, do you think there's like any kind of emotional connection, like worry about getting older or it just, you just happen to notice it? So wait, when your birthday's in May, right?
Heidi:Isn't it? No, '30. Okay. I knew it was Yeah. Really That's sweet.
Gabby:I'm not working. The thing is I want to, I want to party like it's 1999
Heidi:and it
Gabby:always seems to fail. Okay.
Heidi:Yeah. It's, not like it's near a holiday. Cause I was going say like, you know, around the holidays, people get sick and stuff. That's just interesting.
Gabby:It's been happening lately around, like this year I had some, I had some crazy dizziness going on, fatigue, and I'm just getting over this. My birthday was April 30, it started April 21, and I'm just getting over it now, but I've been to the doctor like four times. They had me on antibiotics, they had me on steroids, because I had dizziness, blurry vision. Oh, I'm sorry about blurry vision. Twentytwenty vision is gone.
Heidi:You had twentytwenty? You girl
Gabby:had twentytwenty vision all her life.
Heidi:What? I'm jealous, not me.
Gabby:But don't be jealous because I'm doing this now. Oh,
Heidi:well Well, I my night vision was so bad at one point I wouldn't drive at night. Was like, yeah, was-
Gabby:Tell me you did.
Heidi:Honestly, I think it was my Juice Plus berry capsules. Yes. Because when I started taking that, I was doing the fruit, vegetables, and the berries. But the reason why I think it was the berries specifically is so I stopped driving at night. I went to visit my friend Susan, and I was helping her out when she had a surgery and I was chauffeuring her kids around at night, and that's what friends do, right?
Heidi:And I'm like, I don't know where I'm going. I don't know the neighborhood. I'm North Of Georgia or Atlanta. I don't know where I am, and I I can't even don't know where to turn. I was like, I cannot drive at night anymore.
Heidi:I think it was about six months after I started taking the Juice Plus Plus, I was driving to just, just from my house to my in laws, which was like a mile away. And I'm like, I can see, this is so weird. And the only thing I can think of is there's one ingredient in, in it's, a berry. I can't remember. My mind is going blank right now, but it's one of the berries known for better eye functioning.
Heidi:Cause I used to study herbalism. So when I saw that, I was like, wait a second. Starts with
Gabby:a B.
Heidi:It's not Burberry, but it's something I can't remember. I'm drawing a blank, but I'm drawing a blank. I thought I was post menopausal. Maybe I
Gabby:don't You sound like you parrot. You just slid right on back.
Heidi:Oh, that happens. Trust me. But it was interesting, you know, so I do drive at night now and my, my vision is kind of stabilized, but it is weird. I can't wear my contacts because then I have to wear my cheaters. And then if I wear my cheater readers, I can't see people's faces.
Heidi:So like right now I don't have anything on my eyes or face and I can see you good and all that stuff. But if you were in the same room, I'd be able to see you, but not if you're too far away. I just went to glasses. I'm like, I can't, I cannot. So it's But see, you don't have to wear glasses.
Heidi:That's good. You just wear like the readers. Readers. Yeah.
Gabby:Yeah. But I told my doctor, I said, my vision was young and tender, sir.
Heidi:You just might want to stay 30. Right.
Gabby:He said, Well, you're to be doing the trumpet like this. Called it the trumpet.
Heidi:I would say that's pretty good though. If this just started for you, you're doing really good.
Gabby:But it's all, didn't I tell you my dashboard is lit? It's all at one time.
Heidi:Yes. Always.
Gabby:The vision, the blurriness, the dizziness, all of this is hitting me at once. I mean, can it come in stages?
Heidi:Have they checked hormones? Because I'm wondering if like some of that dizziness stuff could be hormone related. I don't know enough about the hormones. I want to have some people on for, you know, to talk about that because I don't do the HRT, the hormone replacement. Because honestly, I feel better now than I did before.
Gabby:Well, here's what-
Heidi:Well, I mean, not peri, not peri. Let's get that really clear. I mean, I'm saying before that. I'm like my 30s and mid early forties. I feel good now, but
Gabby:That's I don't have wonderful to hear.
Heidi:Yeah. There's There's hoe hoe sisters.
Gabby:I'm sorting it all out right now. At one point I felt really, really good, but I'm at that age and at that stage where everything is just hitting me all at one time. And the hormone replacement, it goes back to the TIA because I've had a stroke, mild stroke. My doctors don't want to put me on it because there is an increased chance of having a stroke or having a heart attack or having these kind of things. So, need to be really, really careful with me with taking the hormone replacement.
Gabby:Otherwise, I'd be on it. My doctor is pro hormones, but my situation is a little bit different. I've had a TIA.
Heidi:Oh, I see.
Gabby:I didn't
Heidi:I did not know that. I know a friend of mine had breast cancer last year and she did the pellets and she had to stop doing those because of the risk of, I guess, of the type of breast cancer she had. Said, you know, you can't do that. I, I didn't know that about the stroke. I know there's a lot of contraindications, like you can use this, you can't use that, and you have to be more aware of stuff like that.
Heidi:It was, I have a funny story. I guess it's funny. Same thing with the whole going a year without a period. You know, I was all over the place, and I was so excited. I had not had one for, I think, about four months.
Heidi:Nothing. Know? And I was like, oh, this is it, baby. Yes, this is it. Maybe it was even longer than four months.
Heidi:I woke up on my fiftieth birthday with the mother I of all was so mad and disappointed. And it was just, I stayed in bed. I didn't want to do anything. And my husband at the time had put together this, well, him and my sister-in-law, this beautiful fiftieth birthday party at another friend's house. It was a total surprise.
Heidi:I had no idea. I didn't want to do anything. I stayed in bed. Pity party for me because I was cramping. It was everything.
Heidi:It was that flow that doesn't stop. And I'm like, you gotta be kidding me. It didn't just come back a little bit. And then of course I had to get up and go. I thought we're going to have dinner with friends and it turned out to be this really nice birthday party, but I was like, this sucks.
Heidi:I'm 50 and this shit, this, no, I'm done. Then it wasn't for a few more years that it actually went away. It's almost like that fiftieth kind of like restarted something. I was so mad. So disappointing because you think you're in
Gabby:cruise control and you're going up and then all of a sudden, you have a period or you spot me and it's like back to square one, really?
Heidi:Think you're home safe and you're like, No, mm-mm, no. But then eventually, and I remember thinking, Oh, that day, the day after it's one year, I'm going have a party. I'm going to have a lit I didn't because I just kind of lost track. So I don't know what the day was. I wish I had and I'm such a record keeper.
Heidi:I have my calendar.
Gabby:Brainfog. Brainfog.
Heidi:Yeah. I shoulda I still could have a party, I guess, but you know, party of one. At 12:30 in the morning.
Gabby:Right. 12:30, one between twelve and thirty.
Heidi:Super sorry to interrupt this fun conversation. I promise we will get back to it in a minute. But first, for your next sugar fix, you must get yourself some buttery, melt in your mouth, authentic New Orleans pralines from Gabby's family recipe that's been passed down through generations. As a special offer just for Evolving Together listeners, Gabby is giving you a 30% discount with code PERI. That's p e r I.
Heidi:Now, you know you need some, and you might as well get some to share with specialty flavors like bourbon, rum, Jack Daniel's, coconut kalua, chocolate, and of course, traditional, my favorite. You probably need to get a few more just to have on hand because you know you'll end up eating what you ordered to share. Gabby says, everybody on a diet, but ain't nobody losing weight, so just eat pralines. So why not, as we say in the South, get you some? Order today at sugarfixpralines.com.
Heidi:That's sugarfixpralines.com. The link is also in the show notes. So you've got two boys. Do they notice a difference in mom or not?
Gabby:They notice that different things is going on. They don't know the perimenopause, they know the mom who lost weight, the difference in the mom. Oh. Big Gabby and Lil Gabby is different. Big Gabby was very, very conservative, Salem.
Gabby:But Lil Gaby is something else, and I'm not little, little, but I'm one hundred and thirty pounds lighter. Just experiencing life.
Heidi:That's great. Yeah, go ahead, sorry.
Gabby:No, no, no. They see the difference as far as the weight loss change. They see that aspect.
Heidi:But they're out of touch with a lot of what you're going through physically right now with the hormones and all They do.
Gabby:Yeah,
Heidi:I think the age, because EJ's how old?
Gabby:He's 21 and Gabe
Heidi:is 18.
Gabby:Babies know mama always hot. You know, they'd be like, it's freezing. I'd be like, I'm fine.
Heidi:You know what I mean? Yeah, that's true. They're at the age where they're, you know, they're supposed to be self centered at that age. You know, that's their job. They're still in that kind of end of teenage area.
Gabby:Self centered? They're just clueless. Well,
Heidi:too. That too. And plus I think, yeah, and they're also men, young men. And I definitely want to talk about that later. It's interesting because usually in perimenopause and menopause, women gain weight And you actually lost weight.
Heidi:Because when I met you, I think you were big Gabby, as you say. Think Yes. You were And I actually remember I ran into you- At Walmart. Walmart. Yes.
Heidi:And I was like, holy shit. What are what are you doing? And you looked so good. And I but I don't even know if I could put my finger on that you had lost weight. I wasn't really sure what it was.
Heidi:And I hate to say to people, oh, did you lose weight? Because sometimes people haven't, or they want to gain weight. It's different for everybody. It's like going up to somebody and say, Oh my gosh, what do you do? They're like, I'm pregnant.
Heidi:I just try to keep that to myself sometimes because sometimes I'm way off base, but I just remember you looking really good. And then that's when you're like, Yeah, I've lost weight. I'm like, Oh my God, that's what it is. Like, yeah. And you, and you just from pickleball, right?
Heidi:From just being more active?
Gabby:You don't keep it off. Most people who have the type of surgery that I have, which is the gastric sleeve.
Heidi:Oh, right. That too. Yeah. Yeah.
Gabby:They usually gain their weight back. I had them in 2018. We're in '26, almost eight years. Most people gained their weight back at least half. I've kept it all off, and actually sometimes I've gone under because I've always been so sick.
Heidi:That's not good though.
Gabby:Right, so I lost weight, but no, I've kept it off through pickleball. Pickleball has definitely reshaped my body and definitely kept the weight off. Because unlike in a group of Facebook, most of the people who I had weight loss surgery with in 2018, they gained it all back plus something.
Heidi:Yeah, I've noticed that too. I've known quite a few people that have had it and I can only think of maybe one person that probably has maintained. Yes. And it's heartbreaking because you go through all that and then it's, you know, but yeah, and you're, I remember when I went to try playing pickleball and you let me borrow that paddle. I went out there and I saw you play and I'm like, Oh shit, I'm never going against her.
Heidi:I'm like, No way. I was like, You are insanely good. You are so wow. Mean, of course, you've been playing a long time.
Gabby:I've been playing a long time.
Heidi:But I thought I will not be ever playing pickleball against you. I was terrified.
Gabby:Well, thank you, thank you, thank you. Mean, You're so no, there are people that can beat me. I mean, you're never really at the top. I mean, I'm a professional, but I do consider myself a contender.
Heidi:You are. Yeah. That's great. I mean, that's really impressive. There was something else I wanted to ask you.
Heidi:I don't know.
Gabby:Are you still in menopause? The brain fog. You're to go.
Heidi:Know. Know. Like sometimes I'm like, wait, I came into this room for and then I have to go backtrack my steps. I also, my mom has, early stage dementia, as you know. And so when I don't remember something, it makes me nervous because I'm thinking, okay, is this the beginning of that?
Heidi:And do a lot of exercising as well. I say a lot. Okay. I exercise. I go to SilverSneakers a couple of times a week.
Heidi:I try to walk at least once a day.
Gabby:Yeah, you do good. You do yoga.
Heidi:I do yoga and I try to do some weights and things like that, and some wine. That's a good, that's a, that is, that is a fun weight to practice.
Gabby:Happy lifting. Lifting. Cheers.
Heidi:Next time I'm bringing my wine, telling you, I won't have
Gabby:a No, you can't
Heidi:drink I'll be day drinking with you. But so yeah, I do wonder sometimes, like I will go into a room and I'll forget something or I do have a lot going on. That's why I have my calendar and I try to keep track of things like that. But it's always in the back of my mind. I always try to not get freaked out about it, but I do.
Heidi:I'm aware. I'm aware. And I think too, and you had mentioned about injuries when you first started playing pickleball because of your weight, but as we get older, the things that we could do all the time, all of a sudden, it's like, oh, I turned the wrong way and my I hip almost popped out of stretched. Yeah. Yeah.
Heidi:Yeah. I was walking over a, I was walking over the railroad tracks in my neighborhood and it was like a slight hill. And I'm coming down and I swear if I hadn't stopped, I think my left hip would have just popped out of joint. And I'm like, I didn't, I was just walking. I wasn't doing just walking.
Gabby:Just nothing's right.
Heidi:Crazy. And I thought, and I don't know how to prevent that from happening. I mean, I'm trying to keep my muscles good and my mom has all joint replacements. Her knees, she's on her second set of knees. She's got one set of hips and her shoulders.
Heidi:Yeah, that's all she's had done. But I don't want to be in that position. And my joints are okay, I guess. I don't know what would cause a hip to pop out of socket. I don't even know if that's what was going to happen, but that's what it felt like.
Heidi:I don't know. I'm on the other side of where you're at, but it is, we have to be kind to
Gabby:ourselves. Absolutely.
Heidi:Somehow. Not get frustrated, it's hard. It is hard. I mean, I'm ten years older than you, but I think for the most part, it's a lot of attitude, but sassitude.
Gabby:Listen, I don't think it's that much of a difference. Once she hit over 40, all the symptoms and everything just keep going along. It depends on how well or how good you've been to your body at this point. I was not very good to my body, so I think I'm getting these symptoms early on, sooner than I should have. Remember you asked me, is there anything that scares you around your birthday?
Gabby:You know, that maybe you could be having anxiety or something like that? My sister and my brother passed around my age. My brother was 46, my sister was 47. My brother died from stomach cancer, my sister died from appendix cancer. So everything I feel like I'm going to die because I'm at that age, you know, with them passing away.
Gabby:So I take my health seriously, any little thing, I'm going to a doctor, I don't care if I break a toenail. No,
Heidi:that's good because catch it early, especially given the history in your family.
Gabby:I'm not so proactive because especially at that age, so it's like at 46, 47, that's when they died, am I going to die? So maybe that's that. Maybe talking to you probably helped answer what's going on in my mind. That maybe at this age, I'm very, very, very scared of dealing with they're dealing with.
Heidi:That's legitimate. I think I've heard a lot of times people will say when they're approaching the age that their parents died or a parent, don't think they're going to be able to live past that date. It's like a subconscious thing that they're just thinking, Oh, I wouldn't live past that. They didn't, so why would I? And so I remember my mom getting to that point.
Heidi:I think my grandmother, I think she was like 63. She was young. I never met her. My mom's mom. And I remember her saying something like, this is the age died, my mom died, and I hope I make it past.
Heidi:But I, that stuck in my head and I thought, oh, that's kind of strange. I never really even thought about that. But yeah, it could be. I mean, there's a lot of things that happen in our mind and our hearts that we don't even, unless we're really tapped in, but even then, sometimes we don't pick up on the nuance of what's really going on. Then the body's like saying, I'm here.
Heidi:It's bothering me and I'm going to do what I have to get recognition.
Gabby:Well, I probably don't know subconsciously that I am having these kinds of anxieties, which is causing these things to happen
Heidi:around would not be my surprised. There's something to look into there.
Gabby:Losing two siblings around the same age, and then I'm that age, so it probably had something to do with it.
Heidi:Yeah, I'd be surprised if it didn't, honestly.
Gabby:Well, thank you for helping me solve
Heidi:Oh, good. That's why it's good to just talk, you know,
Gabby:it's like, it is. And it wasn't until the light bulb went off with you and you asking me about my, you know, about my sister and sharing the information and like, Hey, this is what's pressing me, that I made it to 46 and 47.
Heidi:And you do take really good care of yourself. We don't ever know obviously how long we have, but the chances are very high that you are going to live many, many years beyond that. Maybe there's
Gabby:stuff. Well,
Heidi:and maybe too next, when your birthday comes up next year, knowing that that could be, maybe there's a way to honor, honor that. We could talk more about that. That's another whole
Gabby:That's whole another issue.
Heidi:Yeah, it is. For real.
Gabby:I mean, who loses two siblings?
Heidi:No. So uncommon. Yeah. When you told me that I was like, oh my God, that's like a, that's a double, that's an exponential loss. But I think your, I think your exercise, you know, the pickleball and seeing so active makes a huge difference.
Gabby:I think it's even in and out. But yeah, I try and play at least almost every day. That's great. So.
Heidi:Well, that's awesome. You kick ass.
Gabby:I just don't know, but hey, I'll give it a try. I thought when retire, you're just as busy. I don't know.
Heidi:Shit. I'm having fun now. See, I had fun in different ways before, but now I'm doing Every part of doing this podcast and getting to talk to my friends has been so much I love all of it. All the nerdy stuff with the papers and keeping up with notes. I love all of it.
Gabby:Good. Also, at our big age, we're raising parents.
Heidi:Yes. That's another whole thing. I mean, all the stuff that happens in midlife, the transitions is just like, I mean, you can't make this stuff up. And if someone had told me ten years ago or even fifteen years ago that, Oh yeah, this kind of stuff is going to happen. I'm like, Yeah, probably not.
Heidi:I don't believe that.
Gabby:Well, to me, you know, maybe to you, but not to me.
Heidi:Well, it's like the situations too. Having my mom with me and her dementia, you just kind of think you have forever to figure it out. And then you get here in midlife and you're like, oh, wait a minute. Even if you live a super long life, you're still, you're on the other side of that, of that whatever. I mean, it's, it's, that's just the nature of it.
Heidi:So it kinda, it makes you see things a little differently. We'll come back in another conversation because I wanna talk about relationships and things. I appreciate you coming on and being honest. It's like, it's the best because we don't get to see each other face to face that much. And if you are interested in, getting in touch with Gabby, her information will be in the show notes.
Heidi:I didn't even get a chance to mention your business, your Pralines. She makes these killer New Orleans authentic New Orleans pralines. They're not pralines.
Gabby:I'm a New Orleans girl, y'all. If y'all didn't catch the accent, you know It's where it's coming not, I don't know what to say. It's Norwood. Live in Mississippi.
Heidi:A 100%. So you have to get yourself some pralines, and they're really, really good. Sugar
Gabby:Fix pralines, yes.
Heidi:Sugar Fix pralines, yes. And she started this business about ten years ago, but we will, we're going to actually talk about business in another episode because I think that's a huge thing in midlife. We want to start businesses. We want to change things. We want to like things that served us no longer serve us, and we're going to circle back around to all that.
Heidi:So don't go anywhere. I'll be back in another episode with Gabby. Thanks, Gabby.
Gabby:All right.
Heidi:You're intrigued by the berry I was talking about earlier when I mentioned how my night vision got much better, it's bilberry. It's part of the superfood antioxidant Juice Plus Berry Blend. Now, I cannot say for sure that it was only the Billberry that helped my eyesight. But what I do know is that after about six months of taking my Juice Plus Fruit, Vegetable, and Berry capsules, was able to drive at night again. This happened along with a host of other improvements I experienced, like way more energy and no more sinus infections or constipation.
Heidi:Yeah. I know. TMI, or for those not hip with the acronyms like me, TMI is too much information. I know. No one likes to talk about poop, yet it's the foundation of our health, so I threw that in there.
Heidi:Anyway, nine years later, I am still driving at night, haven't had a sinus infection since starting, and my energy and stamina is still great. I haven't missed a day of my Juice Plus fruit, vegetable, berry, and omega capsules except once, and that's when I had my obligatory fun midlife colonoscopy at age 50. If you want to poke around and learn a little bit more about Juice Plus plus including the research that backs it, my personal affiliate link is below. And one more thing. Before we get back to the episode, if you're enjoying the Evolving Together podcast, can you stop what you're doing and give us a five star review from wherever you listen?
Heidi:You're sharing and listening and five star review means everything. It helps the podcast grow and reach more people, and isn't that the point of all of this? We aren't trying to keep what we share here a secret. Thanks for listening. And now for the disclaimer.
Heidi:This podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only and is not intended as professional advice. The views expressed are our own and should not be taken as medical, legal, or financial guidance. Always consult a qualified professional regarding your specific situation. By listening, you agree that we are not liable for any actions taken based on this content.