“Go with the Flow”
(The Reading Room at Downtown Gallery)
We were excited to have more than 20 participants attend this lunchtime talk where doctors explained why some common menstrual problems occur and what women can do to manage them. Our partners, PS Love and Freedom Cups were also on site to showcase some interesting menstrual products including menstrual heat pads and menstrual cups for that time of the month.
The event started with Dr Low Chai Ling from SW1 Clinic,
sharing about how our female hormones change during the menstrual cycle and how these changes in hormone levels affect our skin positively and negatively. She also differentiated between teenage and adult acne, and emphasized that adult acne is more deep-seated due to the slower skin regeneration process in adults. What makes it worse is that adult women use make-up more frequently and that could potentially aggravate the acne. However, there are various treatments available to help, which include in-clinic treatments that make use of ultrasound for an in-depth cleansing of the pores, and lasers that can help to reduce the size of the pores, therefore reducing skin breakouts.
Dr James Lee from The Obstetrics & Gynaecology Centre then touched on period problems, such as painful menses and heavy bleeding. One of the interesting points that he highlighted was that when women were asked to assess their menstruation, many under-estimated or felt that they had no menstrual problems. Many women simply accepted that their bleeding problems were “normal” and that they just had to live with it. As a result, most women only seek medical care when their problems worsen to a state where they either become dysfunctional during their periods or when certain drastic events happen – for example, fainting from pain or low blood levels. Dr Lee shared that some of these menstrual problems could stem from underlying conditions such as endometriosis and fibroids. If so, there are various ways to manage these conditions to improve one’s quality of life.
Many of the participants raised questions to the doctors and there was plenty of interaction between the participants and the doctors even after the event. We at SMG Women’s Health were happy to bring greater awareness to women on women’s health issues through this event!
“Anti-ageing” by Dr Julinda Lee
Dr Julinda from the Wellness & Gynaecology Centre by Dr Julinda Lee spoke at a private luncheon for ladies, where she shared about different facets of the ageing process, including what happens to our bodies as we age, and what are the environmental factors that can have an impact on our genes. She also explained about homeostasis, which is our body’s natural way of achieving a state of balance in our internal environment, and how the body’s ability to maintain homeostasis decreases as we age, especially after the age of 40.
While ageing is inevitable, there are some interventions that we can proactively take, which includes the diet we choose, the level of stress we undergo and the amount of exercise that we do. This sparked a great deal of interest with the ladies, which led to a lively dialogue between the audience and Dr Julinda. Some of the questions asked were on the issues of supplements (what to take and how much to take), exercise frequency and more.
Of course, some time was dedicated to the topic of Menopause, which is a key phase in every woman’s ageing process. While many women perceive menopause as a negative state, Dr Julinda explains there are some women who cruise through menopause. For the rest who face some problems, there are various ways that can help a woman through this transition phase.
Knowing the ageing process is important if one is keen to slow the process. Read more about wellness management.
This article is brought you by the SMG WH editorial team.
