Nick Panay gives Katharina Dalton Memorial Lecture
Join the NAPS' annual meeting on December 15, 6-9pm at The Kings Fund in London to hear Nicholas Panay, the eminent international menstrual health specialist and chairman of NAPS, give a special Memorial Lecture to honour Dr Katharina Dalton, who researched and was the first to define PMS and develop trail-blazing treatments.
She also helped establish NAPS and was a founder of the Royal College of General Practitioners. Quite a woman! We look forward to welcoming you at the meeting.
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Book early for NAPS Annual clinical conference
The next NAPS' national clinical conference takes place on Friday 17 February 2006 at Derby City General Hospital.
NAPS members are eligible for a preferential rate of £45.00. For other delegates the cost will be £65. This includes access to the full day of presentations, refreshments and buffet luncheon.
This will be an unrivalled opportunity to hear from and speak with the top experts in the country - a day packed with interest for GP's, practice women's health nurses, complimentary and alternative therapists and patients. There will be a number of exhibitors and sponsors at the event, including a number from herbal and natural products. To join us please complete the application form by following the link.
Click here for details of presenters
Click here for the programme
Click here for the application form
Ease PMS with qarma Evening Primrose Oil
Be one of the first 100 new and renewing members to join NAPS and win a free 60 capsule pack of qarma Virgin Organic Evening Primrose Oil capsules worth £7.99.
Premenopause or premenstrual?
For a number of women entering this phase of their life, it can be difficult to discern whether symptoms being suffered are due to the onset of menopause, or Premenstrual Syndrome. Dr Claudine Domoney, PMS specialist and NAPS Trustee, helps define the symptoms.
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PMS wrecks sex
A new NAPS study shows that Premenstrual Syndrome has a major adverse effect on sexual relationships.
NAPS surveyed 500 men and women and established the impact of PMS on sexual relations. The study found that 85 per cent of those surveyed said their sexual relations were adversely affected by PMS. The findings follow an earlier 1000 people investigation that we undertook, which found PMS to be the root cause of stress, tension and breakdown in over 95 per cent of relationships.
Commenting upon the latest findings leading agony aunt Susan Quilliam says: "These are startling findings. We already know that PMS impacts on every aspect of a woman's life - and the lives of those around her. This study gives a glimpse of the most intimate aspect of couple relations and shows that PMS is a significant factor in the bedroom. Those involved in relationship support need to take on board these findings. Thankfully NAPS is raising awareness of the consequences of PMS and providing valuable support to men and women affected."
NAPS says currently PMS as a cause of relationship stress is largely ignored. This study shows that sexual relations are a major casualty in relations affected by PMS. We will be urging couple and family support advisors to recognise that PMS can be a hidden factor destabilising relationships.
NAPS online forum on www.pms.org.uk shows that the impact of PMS on relationships is, by far, the biggest concern of users. Yet many women with PMS do not benefit from advice that will reduce their symptoms and help their relationships.
CERVICAL CANCER VACCINE -YOUR
VIEWS
Cervical cancer claims 1000 lives a year. A new vaccine will be launched next year which can protect girls against the virus that causes most cervical cancer.
Click here for full article
New Year launch for Femal
Femal, the pollen supplement offering nutritional support during the monthly cycle and the menopause will be starting the New Year off with a fantastic special NAPS launch, particularly aimed at women going through the perimenopause. Watch this space and be the first to take advantage of this exciting new launch.
Major PMS and lifestyle study in Australia
As more and more women juggle careers and family life, researchers at The University of Western Sydney are conducting a major study into domestic irritability and depression in women who do too much.
This will also consider the impact of relationships and PMS on a woman's ability to cope at stressful times. The team, headed up by Professor Jane Ussher, from the UWS Gender, Culture and Health Research Unit is looking for women from around Australia to take part in the study. "We're interested in hearing about women's experiences so we can identify the times when they feel vulnerable, angry or unable to cope," comments Professor Ussher. For further information and details about how to take part in the study, please click on the link. Women's Health/OBGYN News Article Date: 29 Oct 2005 "Avoiding the 'Desperate Housewive's syndrome".
Coping with Premenstrual depression
Premenstrual depression is a major problem for many women and is a popular topic for discussion on NAPS Forum.
We are frequently asked for information on studies that have been conducted into premenstrual depression. During the next few editions of Once a Month we will be reproducing relevant studies.
NAPS links up with family support charity
NAPS has established a working relationship with Home-Start, a nationwide charity which provides emotional and practical support to young families with at least one child under the age of five years.
NAPS National Officer, Christine Baker, recently gave a presentation on PMS and menstrual health to around 20 volunteers working for the South West Kent scheme, which supports around 100 families and groups in this area, each year. The aim was to empower the volunteers with much needed information on menstrual health and PMS matters, so that they, in turn, can advise and help the women they support, a number of whom are single parents.
Penny Chatfield, Scheme Manager for South West Kent Home-Start says: "Everybody really enjoyed Christine's presentation. We hadn't realised how much information there was to pass on to our support families. The volunteers asked a great deal of questions, some about specific families they are looking after, so the information was going straight back to the women that needed it. There is definitely a need for our volunteers to have this kind of information available, particularly about the kinds of treatments that really help."
Christine comments: "The Home-Start presentation really highlighted that there is a need for reliable and quality information on menstrual issues." http://www.home-start.org.uk
Membership promotion
Recommend a friend to join NAPS and get a six month extension on your own membership.
NAPS is celebrating the New Year with a special membership promotion to help us improve and expand our information services further. If you have a friend in need and you would like to take advantage of this special offer, e-mail christine@pms.org.uk for further details.
NAPS welcomes new volunteer
NAPS would like to welcome Kathryn Davis onto our team of volunteers.
Kathryn, who is the daughter of another of our volunteers, Liz Davis, is a bit of an IT whiz and will be helping us with a number of computer projects in the future. Welcome Kathryn.
Book Review
"Coping Successfully with Period Problems" is the latest book from specialist health journalist, Mary-Claire Mason.
Written in easy to understand language, it takes a comprehensive look at period patterns and medical help for the main problems that can occur, such as painful periods, irregular or missed periods and heavy periods. The author takes the reader through changes in menstruation patterns caused by childbirth or pre-menopause and examines psychological difficulties and stress control, diet, exercise and PMS. It is published by Sheldon Press and costs £7.99. You can order a copy from any book shop or contact Sheldon Press direct on www.sheldonpress.co.uk.
Penny sets her hormones racing
Penny Tindle, President of the Badby & Fawsley WI, is a budding female racer who intends to give the Formula One boys a run for their money when she meets them.
Said Penny: "I've never believed that rubbish that men were better drivers than women. My mother was a great driver and loved racing and was actually faster than my father. She sparked off my interest in the sport. Both my parents adored fast cars and our favourite family past time was attending racing clubs for MGs and Aston Martins." However, she had done no competitive racing at all until a short while ago. "I was an 'armchair driver' till I saw the Formula Woman Challenge and immediately wanted to do it. I would love to do Formula One racing and am working my way towards competing with men".
She was surprised at how quickly she took to racing but was concerned that her concentration and co-ordination would be thrown off balance on days when she had PMS.
She said: "Whenever I have PMS I find my focus is a bit harder to maintain and I can be more easily distracted. Also, my co-ordination and ability to judge space and distance is affected so that parking becomes more difficult. I lose my temper more easily and get impatient with other drivers and waiting for lights to change".
However, PMS does lend her advantages on the track.
She says: "When I am racing on days when I have PMS, I find I am more aggressive and determined to win. The adrenaline surge and competitive edge overcomes the slight downturn in concentration and pushes me harder to focus and win.
"However, I class myself as a 'good driver' so I don't like it when easy things like parking cause me problems on my PMS days so I started trying various supplements to relieve these and ease other symptoms of PMS like sore breasts and migraines. I tried Chinese herbs but found that they didn't have much impact. I was recommended Femal by a friend and was delighted to find that my concentration returned to its normal level and my co-ordination improved. I felt more in control of myself and did not get impatient or angry quite as easily. The physical symptoms like headache and sore breasts also reduced so I was felt I was back on track mentally, physically and emotionally with Femal."
Penny undertook her first Motor Race in the Formula Woman Novice Challenge at Pembrey in South Wales. Penny, who is sponsored by FEMAL, qualified in 10th place on the grid of16 identical Caterham K series. The race was over 12 laps and at the end she had climbed through the ranks, avoiding spinning cars and a car crash to finish a creditable 4th place.
FEMAL is a pollen supplement offering nutritional support during the monthly cycle and the menopause. Femal retails at £9.99 for a 30-tablet pack and is available from Boots and selected Lloyds pharmacies nationwide. For more information see www.femal.co.uk
Christmas Drinks
As this is the last issue before Christmas, we thought we'd share a festive non-alcoholic punch recipe, courtesy of Waitrose.com
This lightly-spiced non-alcoholic punch is suitable for all ages and only takes a few minutes to prepare.
157kcals/0.1g fat/trace saturated fat/ trace salt/37.2g sugars per serving
Serves 8
Ingredients
2 x 1 litre packs Apple Juice
2 cinnamon sticks, plus 8 to garnish
12 cloves
8 wide strips orange zest, pith removed
2 knobs stem ginger in syrup, sliced,
plus 3 tbsp of the syrup
Large pinch ground allspice
Instructions
Put all the ingredients in a large saucepan and place over a high heat. Bring to a gentle simmer, turn the heat down to low and leave for 20 minutes for the spices to infuse.
Strain the punch and use a ladle to pour into 8 heatproof cups or mugs. Serve, garnished with cinnamon sticks.
This recipe was published courtesy of on Waitrose.com in November 2005
