Woman's World

Sarah cured her night sweats for just $7 a month

After a year of suffering from hot flashes, insomnia and night sweats caused by perimenopa­use, Sarah Turino was at her wit’s end. But then she found an over-the-counter cream that changed her life— overnight!

- — Erin Flynn Jay

“Topical progestero­ne can help some women lose weight and sleep better within two weeks”

— Michael Lam, M.D.

Sarah Turino tossed off the covers as she looked at her alarm clock. Another sleepless night, she sighed, fanning herself to try to cool down.

When she turned 50, Sarah began experienci­ng extreme hot flashes that would occur randomly up to eight times throughout the day. Overtaken by heat, her skin would feel hot and prickly and she’d sweat all over— even at her knees.

Sarah was also waking up six times a night, with extreme night sweats that would disrupt her sleep. Sometimes they were so bad that she’d have to get up and change her soaked clothes. Then there was the insomnia: Some nights, she wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep at all, lying wide awake for hours at a time.

Sarah’s new routine left her tired and cranky during her workdays, during which she felt unfocused and scattered. And in the evening, it was hard to focus on her family as her fatigue took over. Working in wellness herself, Sarah knew that while the hot flashes were embarrassi­ng and disruptive, the sleep issues she was experienci­ng were bad for her overall health. There must be something that can help, she mused as she tossed and turned one sleepless night.

Relief at last

Visiting her ob-gyn to see what her recommenda­tion would be, Sarah was excited to learn that she had a few options to explore. “What you’re experienci­ng is perimenopa­use,” her doctor explained, and suggested that a progestero­ne cream might help Sarah regulate her estrogen and testostero­ne levels. Doing some research of her own, Sarah learned that the symptoms she’d been experienci­ng are triggered when the progestero­ne levels in the body begin to drop— and topical over-the-counter progestero­ne is a gentle form of hormone replacemen­t therapy designed to help alleviate menopausal symptoms.

What’s the worst that could happen if I try it? she wondered. Looking at it as an experiment, Sarah bought Smoky Mountain Nutrition Progesto-life Cream ($19 for 4 oz., Smnutritio­n.com, which lasts for about three months) and began applying

1⁄ tsp. of it daily to her wrists or abdomen 4 for quick absorption.

The first day, Sarah didn’t feel much difference, but on her second night using it, she had a breakthrou­gh. “I slept through the night!” she gasped, waking up refreshed for the first time in years.

Since then, Sarah has been religious about using the cream for three weeks of the month, taking one week off to mimic her normal menstrual cycle.

“I feel amazing!” cheers the 52-year-old, who still uses the cream today. “The transforma­tion has been magical! With more sleep, I feel more energetic and focused, less forgetful and sharper throughout the day. And that’s important to me: to live well and feel good so I can help others live well and feel good too!”

 ??  ?? “The change in how I feel has been magical!” says Sarah
“The change in how I feel has been magical!” says Sarah

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