That's great, thank you for this. This is illustrative of why one issue voters who refused to vote for Kamala were blind and, frankly, stupid.
The door is always open. The voices of dissent are heard. In this case, based on the story you linked to, it looks like he didn't need persuasion because it was simply attached to the new budget bill, presumably with specific provisions for managing the costs in a way that prevents insurance companies from passing on any associated cost increases. I'll update this post. Thanks again.
“keep this brief history in mind. Keep in mind, too, that shortly after his ill-fated marriage to Kimberly Guilfoyle and an icky relationship with a 19-year-old when he was in his late thirties, he received treatment for alcohol use disorder.
He’s been married to filmmaker Jennifer Siebel since 2008, and apparently has been on his best behavior since meeting her.”
It seems to me that older men always get a pass when dating younger women. Why is Newsom’s relationship with a 19 year old different? And icky? Your comments about his history are particularly interesting since this would apply to many men. Why is his history of 17 years ago of relevance? I’m just wondering because it shouldn’t be. He should be judged on who he is now, imo.
Just to be clear, I’m not a fan of men dating women 30 years younger than them. Apparently ageism flows rampantly in the male population. It pisses me off, tbh.
Good for Halle Barry. I hope she continues to be proactive for women’s health issues. I also hope that Newsom changes his decision about menopausal health care. To his credit, he ‘has led the charge’ with women’s self governance over their bodies and reproductive care. 🇨🇦🇨🇦
I think that's a fair question of you to ask. As an older man myself, I don't have an answer for why I'm uncomfortable with it beyond the question of whether there was a power angle involved in that relationship when it happened. I was living in SF at the time, and I mostly remember the relationship raising questions. One of his closest advisors, a male, quit because of it, which is a red flag.
I personally have always preferred someone contemporaneous to me in my relationships, just for the relatable aspects of things. Like shared music history, films history, books to a lesser extent, just those shared common experiences that someone close to my age has. But I realize that's just my personal preference.
As for whether everything is in the past with him, I agree that he should be judged on what he's doing now. Our society punishes too severely on our past, whether mistakes were made or just assumed.
Still, a presidential candidate should be scrutinized more closely than the rest of us don't you think? I am curious to know how much of that scrutiny will be tossed aside once the predator in chief is out of the picture.
Thank you for your response. There is always an imbalance of power in all relationships that differ in age of 20-30 years. Newsom was allegedly in a consensual relationship with an adult woman. Whether we agree with it or not, it was their business. This makes him no different than many older men.
Sorry to have to tell you this but his close advisor quit because Newsom had an affair with his wife. 🤦♀️ This certainly doesn’t help his image, I know. But I stand by my words that he should be judged on who he is today, married for 17 years, 4 children, Governor X 2, someone who had the guts to stand up successfully to trump.
I totally agree a presidential candidate should be scrutinized more closely. It doesn’t seem to matter to many in the US though, since trump is now in his second term. He’s a rapist, a sexual abuser, a con artist grifter, a criminal autocratic henchman of putin, his business dealings have all been fraudulent, etc. etc. Yet he was voted in a second time.
On a different matter, I really enjoyed your recent article about Pete Hegseth. The poster was brilliant. Thanks for the laughs. 🇨🇦🇨🇦😀
Thank you for the conversation. I always appreciate perspectives I haven't considered. And to be clear, I'd vote for Gavin over any Republican, even if they ran what people might consider a decent human being (they won't).
Republicans have lost all their participation privileges in my book. They have been enabling this freak for 10 years now almost.
1. I’m male. I don’t/wont/can’t pretend to know about the issues women face in menopause. So I defer to their expertise. As a philosophy, providing appropriate care strikes me as a no brainer. Why shouldn’t women be able to access care for all that comes with menopause? I don’t see any valid, legit reason for this care to be inaccessible. Uninsured. Neglected. Oh… it’s about the money, you say? Great. On to number two.
2. As a professional in the health care industry with both a Background in clinical care and on the administrative side, it is appalling that for profit healthcare systems (I’m in a non profit org), are literally getting rich off of our ailments, injuries, and disease. But not just the hospital executives. Pharmaceuticals, medical equipment suppliers, tech, etc. all are complicit in profiteering off the populace on their times of need and vulnerability. Our healthcare system is broken.
This is just one more yet example.
Not only should women be able to receive covered care for menopausal domains, but the healthcare system as a whole must be revamped to focus on wellness, decrease costs and increase access. It can be done. Other countries do it. The US is unacceptably behind on this.
I agree. It's not something we should be yelling at Newsom about because there shouldn't be a discussion about insurance costs.
My only fear about a future national healthcare plan, which we need, is that we'll screw it up by adding a layer of cost prevention to it and create something similar to what we have, where bean counters are given the power to reject procedures.
There are successful systems in the world. We have a unique opportunity to take the best features of each to create a great one leveraging the best aspects among the world's huge existing laboratory of various healthcare plans.
"Unlike the walking boil that now occupies the Oval Office" 😂
I learned so much from this...very good essay! I wonder what his real reason was to veto that bill. As a woman of a "certain age", ahem, I'm here to tell ya menopause is REALER than real. Imagine having virtually no testosterone ... UGH.
I also wonder what happened to Kimberly... in Greece, doing whatever ambassadors do, I suppose. I hope she's eating sandwiches cause that girl didnt look so good last time I saw her.
Kudos! Well researched and in-depth essay. Adding my two cents as a native Californian and registered Democrat since less than one week after turning eighteen, which seems like a millennium ago. Looking up AB 432 (legiscan.com), I note one of the co-authors was my State Senator, who is also a MD. She writes and introduces a lot of healthcare related legislation. The legislative votes were truly non-partisan, a rarity in Sacramento, with Democrats holding super majorities in both chambers. 77-1 (2 abstentions) in the Assembly and 39-0 (1 abstention) in the State Senate. (The Republicans in Sacramento typically vote ‘no’ in mass or abstain on Democratic introduced partisan bills.). Newsom’s veto message claims he is for perimenopause and menopause care, but in his words objects to care “as deemed medically necessary by a health care provider [but]
without utilization management (UM).” Essentially, he’s saying he wants insurance company pre-authorization veto rights on this type of care. I call bullshit.
Some health insurance industry organizations were against AB 432 and various medical associations were split on support. [source: calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org].
A report on AB 432 by the California Health Benefits Review Program (CHBRP) at UC Berkeley found implementation of AB 432 would “increase total premiums by … 0.05% …. and enrollee out-of-pocket expenses for noncovered benefits would decrease….. as a result, total net expenditures would increase by …. 0.04%.” So again, I call bullshit on Newsom’s stated reason for his veto. The CHBRP report also states many of the perimenopause and menopause treatments and medications are already covered by insurance plans.
So let’s dig deeper - i.e. follow the money. According to Consumer Watchdog and other sources, health insurance companies Blue Shield, United Healthcare, and Anthem Blue Cross have all been large donors to Newsom and the California Democratic Party since 2012.
Yes, Newsom is yet another corporate politician. He is similarly indebted to California’s three large investor owned utilities, having received large campaign donations from all three, which helps explain why he takes their position on limiting, in fact now strangling, residential rooftop solar in this state.
I really, really hope he is not the nominated candidate of the Democratic Party in 2028. He certainly won’t get my vote in the primary.
Thanks for that in-depth response, Michael. Awesome. I was way too lazy for all that effort. :-)
I'm never been a Newsom fan, and I suppose it shows in my post. I lived in SF when he was mayor, and I didn't like him then.
That said, I appreciate anyone who takes a chainsaw to the maga jungle of toxicity. If folks want him to be the Dem presidential candidate, fine, but I do think they need to be aware that he's very much a corporate Democrat. Obviously, I'll vote for him in the general election if it comes to that, but my fangs are probably out until then.
One of my biggest concerns about a 2028 Newsom presidential candidacy is, besides being yet another corporate democrat, is how easily it would be for the Republicans to paint him as yet another California Elitist. They wouldn’t be far off the mark. He may not have been born into the elite, but with developed corporate connections and Hollywood backing, he sure looks like one now.
Charles, I sense you’re far from a lazy person and for my in-depthness, my wife will quickly tell anyone I’ve never passed up a rabbit hole that I quickly didn’t go down.
"Before the predator-in-chief took over the Oval Office the first time..." good one!
As much as I know women's health care is way underfunded and under studied, menopause is a natural occurrence as mentioned, not a disease. I went through menopause decades ago. Never once would I have considered in the fifteen years of the process going to a doctor or taking drugs.
Then again, I concur with another woman's response: I hate going to the doctor, and I have to be really sick to do so. Since I don't consider menopause a disease or an illness, I guess I don't think the menopause part of the bill should be important. What is? The entire rest of it!
And Newsome should show his ability to take in new information and un-veto the bill, even if it includes the word "menopause". Too bad the sponsors didn't just call it something else, and it probably wouldn't have been vetoed. "Marketing 101 error" I think.
The funny thing is, the more I read up on Newsom as I wrote this, and how he's changed over the years, the more I liked him. When I lived in SF, I kind of thought he was smarmy, but people really do change, and he did have an admitted drinking issue. He seems now to be the kind of politician who will reach out, so I'll be surprised if he doesn't have a nice long chat with Halle Berry and they figure something out. It's something to watch, because if he does, it would be pretty cool, and unsurprising, from what I'm learning about the guy.
Yes, I agree. I lived in SF for 30 years, but back then, he was still a twinkle in his Daddy's eyes! Everyone changes over the years. Think about it, when one looks for a tech job, it's only the last 10 that count. So who knows what might happen?
I think Newsome/Pritzker or visa versa might work. Although I've been hoping to see a woman president in my lifetime, nominating another for the Dem ticket would be the worst decision possible (even as a VP). As long as the Electoral College is in place, we have to go with a sure thing, because this might be the last chance we get!
Everyone's hackles are up, including the Latino vote in FL (heavily Cuban). It's time to take advantage and take back the House, Senate, and then the Executive Office :-)
I’ve always said I don’t have enough money to be a Republican. Since I could first vote, at 21, I’ve been a Democrat. Social programs are necessary to keep people from falling through the cracks.
I’m staunchly anti racist, and pro choice. If we shared the wealth more proportionally, all of us would be better off than we are now. I believe there should not be multi billionaires, but that they should pay taxes in order to increase the quality of living conditions for those living in poverty. POC do not have the opportunity for developing generational wealth because they live on the very edge of existence. I guess that may make me a Democratic Socialist, like the Mayor elect of NYC. If that is the case, so be it!
As a 61 year old woman and lesbian, I can honestly say no one has ever mentioned menopause to me. Of course, here in Maine, you can wait up to a YEAR for an appointment with a GP. And, no, I’m not being hyperbolic.
I was very lucky. I sailed through menopause with only a handful of hot flashes and I had one unusual period cycle and then I never had another one. As I started my first period on the day I turned 11 (worst birthday gift EVER, BTW), I was thrilled to be done with the whole mess. The sad truth is this…women, like many farm animals, lose their value as they age and they are unable to produce anymore. The wave of pedophilia sweeping the world today is nothing new. Until women are truly valued as human beings, we are only going to have value as a commodity for men.
Thanks for the comment! That's pretty crazy. Is that rural Maine or urban where the wait time is taking place? I know that rural hospitals are shutting down all over the country.
And it’s not just issues related to menopause. Many more women suffer from chronic fatigue syndrome than do men. My daughters and I laugh because the only reason that CFS is getting more attention now is due to long Covid, which shares some symptoms, and big surprise, men do end up with this. And there is an array of dysautonomia syndromes that primarily affect women , like postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) that are poorly understood. For years women were told they had ‘anxiety’. My apologies for this diatribe, but these maladies greatly diminish quality of life!
Maine health care is collapsing. Many facilities are shutting down and remaining offices are scrambling trying to absorb extra patients. I could write a book about my experiences at MaineGeneral in Augusta. Nightmare. Maine has an old population and rural areas in central and northern Maine have few choices available. Southern Maine is more urban, but wait times are still nuts. I was born here and I wanted to die here, but I’m giving serious thought to leaving next spring.
What a drag, being forced to leave a place you've lived in all your life (assuming you enjoyed living there, of course). If you ever decide you want to write about it and you don't want post your own Substack on it, let me know and I'll give you a forum and/or help editing/writing the piece, with the understanding that I have my slow reply days thanks to a stroke I had last November that affected my vision, so I sometimes just give the proverbial finger to the laptop, lol.
It looks like Newsom is including menopause care in the next budget.
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5635695-halle-berry-gavin-newsom-menopause-bill/
That's great, thank you for this. This is illustrative of why one issue voters who refused to vote for Kamala were blind and, frankly, stupid.
The door is always open. The voices of dissent are heard. In this case, based on the story you linked to, it looks like he didn't need persuasion because it was simply attached to the new budget bill, presumably with specific provisions for managing the costs in a way that prevents insurance companies from passing on any associated cost increases. I'll update this post. Thanks again.
Great! Thanks Charles.
Thats great news. And thanks for the update!
“keep this brief history in mind. Keep in mind, too, that shortly after his ill-fated marriage to Kimberly Guilfoyle and an icky relationship with a 19-year-old when he was in his late thirties, he received treatment for alcohol use disorder.
He’s been married to filmmaker Jennifer Siebel since 2008, and apparently has been on his best behavior since meeting her.”
It seems to me that older men always get a pass when dating younger women. Why is Newsom’s relationship with a 19 year old different? And icky? Your comments about his history are particularly interesting since this would apply to many men. Why is his history of 17 years ago of relevance? I’m just wondering because it shouldn’t be. He should be judged on who he is now, imo.
Just to be clear, I’m not a fan of men dating women 30 years younger than them. Apparently ageism flows rampantly in the male population. It pisses me off, tbh.
Good for Halle Barry. I hope she continues to be proactive for women’s health issues. I also hope that Newsom changes his decision about menopausal health care. To his credit, he ‘has led the charge’ with women’s self governance over their bodies and reproductive care. 🇨🇦🇨🇦
I think that's a fair question of you to ask. As an older man myself, I don't have an answer for why I'm uncomfortable with it beyond the question of whether there was a power angle involved in that relationship when it happened. I was living in SF at the time, and I mostly remember the relationship raising questions. One of his closest advisors, a male, quit because of it, which is a red flag.
I personally have always preferred someone contemporaneous to me in my relationships, just for the relatable aspects of things. Like shared music history, films history, books to a lesser extent, just those shared common experiences that someone close to my age has. But I realize that's just my personal preference.
As for whether everything is in the past with him, I agree that he should be judged on what he's doing now. Our society punishes too severely on our past, whether mistakes were made or just assumed.
Still, a presidential candidate should be scrutinized more closely than the rest of us don't you think? I am curious to know how much of that scrutiny will be tossed aside once the predator in chief is out of the picture.
Thank you for your response. There is always an imbalance of power in all relationships that differ in age of 20-30 years. Newsom was allegedly in a consensual relationship with an adult woman. Whether we agree with it or not, it was their business. This makes him no different than many older men.
Sorry to have to tell you this but his close advisor quit because Newsom had an affair with his wife. 🤦♀️ This certainly doesn’t help his image, I know. But I stand by my words that he should be judged on who he is today, married for 17 years, 4 children, Governor X 2, someone who had the guts to stand up successfully to trump.
I totally agree a presidential candidate should be scrutinized more closely. It doesn’t seem to matter to many in the US though, since trump is now in his second term. He’s a rapist, a sexual abuser, a con artist grifter, a criminal autocratic henchman of putin, his business dealings have all been fraudulent, etc. etc. Yet he was voted in a second time.
On a different matter, I really enjoyed your recent article about Pete Hegseth. The poster was brilliant. Thanks for the laughs. 🇨🇦🇨🇦😀
Thank you for the conversation. I always appreciate perspectives I haven't considered. And to be clear, I'd vote for Gavin over any Republican, even if they ran what people might consider a decent human being (they won't).
Republicans have lost all their participation privileges in my book. They have been enabling this freak for 10 years now almost.
👍
Two things
1. I’m male. I don’t/wont/can’t pretend to know about the issues women face in menopause. So I defer to their expertise. As a philosophy, providing appropriate care strikes me as a no brainer. Why shouldn’t women be able to access care for all that comes with menopause? I don’t see any valid, legit reason for this care to be inaccessible. Uninsured. Neglected. Oh… it’s about the money, you say? Great. On to number two.
2. As a professional in the health care industry with both a Background in clinical care and on the administrative side, it is appalling that for profit healthcare systems (I’m in a non profit org), are literally getting rich off of our ailments, injuries, and disease. But not just the hospital executives. Pharmaceuticals, medical equipment suppliers, tech, etc. all are complicit in profiteering off the populace on their times of need and vulnerability. Our healthcare system is broken.
This is just one more yet example.
Not only should women be able to receive covered care for menopausal domains, but the healthcare system as a whole must be revamped to focus on wellness, decrease costs and increase access. It can be done. Other countries do it. The US is unacceptably behind on this.
I agree. It's not something we should be yelling at Newsom about because there shouldn't be a discussion about insurance costs.
My only fear about a future national healthcare plan, which we need, is that we'll screw it up by adding a layer of cost prevention to it and create something similar to what we have, where bean counters are given the power to reject procedures.
There are successful systems in the world. We have a unique opportunity to take the best features of each to create a great one leveraging the best aspects among the world's huge existing laboratory of various healthcare plans.
This is exactly right. We have the knowledge. We have the money (if we allocate and tax appropriately), and we have the staffing/clinical expertise.
We could do it. If the politicians were willing. And if we got those special interest out of the way.
"Unlike the walking boil that now occupies the Oval Office" 😂
I learned so much from this...very good essay! I wonder what his real reason was to veto that bill. As a woman of a "certain age", ahem, I'm here to tell ya menopause is REALER than real. Imagine having virtually no testosterone ... UGH.
I also wonder what happened to Kimberly... in Greece, doing whatever ambassadors do, I suppose. I hope she's eating sandwiches cause that girl didnt look so good last time I saw her.
Lol, "I hope she's eating sandwiches..." :-)
Kudos! Well researched and in-depth essay. Adding my two cents as a native Californian and registered Democrat since less than one week after turning eighteen, which seems like a millennium ago. Looking up AB 432 (legiscan.com), I note one of the co-authors was my State Senator, who is also a MD. She writes and introduces a lot of healthcare related legislation. The legislative votes were truly non-partisan, a rarity in Sacramento, with Democrats holding super majorities in both chambers. 77-1 (2 abstentions) in the Assembly and 39-0 (1 abstention) in the State Senate. (The Republicans in Sacramento typically vote ‘no’ in mass or abstain on Democratic introduced partisan bills.). Newsom’s veto message claims he is for perimenopause and menopause care, but in his words objects to care “as deemed medically necessary by a health care provider [but]
without utilization management (UM).” Essentially, he’s saying he wants insurance company pre-authorization veto rights on this type of care. I call bullshit.
Some health insurance industry organizations were against AB 432 and various medical associations were split on support. [source: calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org].
A report on AB 432 by the California Health Benefits Review Program (CHBRP) at UC Berkeley found implementation of AB 432 would “increase total premiums by … 0.05% …. and enrollee out-of-pocket expenses for noncovered benefits would decrease….. as a result, total net expenditures would increase by …. 0.04%.” So again, I call bullshit on Newsom’s stated reason for his veto. The CHBRP report also states many of the perimenopause and menopause treatments and medications are already covered by insurance plans.
So let’s dig deeper - i.e. follow the money. According to Consumer Watchdog and other sources, health insurance companies Blue Shield, United Healthcare, and Anthem Blue Cross have all been large donors to Newsom and the California Democratic Party since 2012.
Yes, Newsom is yet another corporate politician. He is similarly indebted to California’s three large investor owned utilities, having received large campaign donations from all three, which helps explain why he takes their position on limiting, in fact now strangling, residential rooftop solar in this state.
I really, really hope he is not the nominated candidate of the Democratic Party in 2028. He certainly won’t get my vote in the primary.
Charles, Since you noted you’re to the left of Bernie Sanders, I chuckled. Bernie got my primary vote twice. 2016 and 2020.
Yeah, me too. Unlike a lot of folks, I didn't think the DNC took him down, it was the South, IIRC.
Thanks for that in-depth response, Michael. Awesome. I was way too lazy for all that effort. :-)
I'm never been a Newsom fan, and I suppose it shows in my post. I lived in SF when he was mayor, and I didn't like him then.
That said, I appreciate anyone who takes a chainsaw to the maga jungle of toxicity. If folks want him to be the Dem presidential candidate, fine, but I do think they need to be aware that he's very much a corporate Democrat. Obviously, I'll vote for him in the general election if it comes to that, but my fangs are probably out until then.
Thanks again!
One of my biggest concerns about a 2028 Newsom presidential candidacy is, besides being yet another corporate democrat, is how easily it would be for the Republicans to paint him as yet another California Elitist. They wouldn’t be far off the mark. He may not have been born into the elite, but with developed corporate connections and Hollywood backing, he sure looks like one now.
Charles, I sense you’re far from a lazy person and for my in-depthness, my wife will quickly tell anyone I’ve never passed up a rabbit hole that I quickly didn’t go down.
"Before the predator-in-chief took over the Oval Office the first time..." good one!
As much as I know women's health care is way underfunded and under studied, menopause is a natural occurrence as mentioned, not a disease. I went through menopause decades ago. Never once would I have considered in the fifteen years of the process going to a doctor or taking drugs.
Then again, I concur with another woman's response: I hate going to the doctor, and I have to be really sick to do so. Since I don't consider menopause a disease or an illness, I guess I don't think the menopause part of the bill should be important. What is? The entire rest of it!
And Newsome should show his ability to take in new information and un-veto the bill, even if it includes the word "menopause". Too bad the sponsors didn't just call it something else, and it probably wouldn't have been vetoed. "Marketing 101 error" I think.
The funny thing is, the more I read up on Newsom as I wrote this, and how he's changed over the years, the more I liked him. When I lived in SF, I kind of thought he was smarmy, but people really do change, and he did have an admitted drinking issue. He seems now to be the kind of politician who will reach out, so I'll be surprised if he doesn't have a nice long chat with Halle Berry and they figure something out. It's something to watch, because if he does, it would be pretty cool, and unsurprising, from what I'm learning about the guy.
Yes, I agree. I lived in SF for 30 years, but back then, he was still a twinkle in his Daddy's eyes! Everyone changes over the years. Think about it, when one looks for a tech job, it's only the last 10 that count. So who knows what might happen?
I think Newsome/Pritzker or visa versa might work. Although I've been hoping to see a woman president in my lifetime, nominating another for the Dem ticket would be the worst decision possible (even as a VP). As long as the Electoral College is in place, we have to go with a sure thing, because this might be the last chance we get!
Everyone's hackles are up, including the Latino vote in FL (heavily Cuban). It's time to take advantage and take back the House, Senate, and then the Executive Office :-)
I'd love to see a woman president, too. Sadly, this next go round will probably not be the best timing for an attempt. Completely ridiculous.
I’ve always said I don’t have enough money to be a Republican. Since I could first vote, at 21, I’ve been a Democrat. Social programs are necessary to keep people from falling through the cracks.
I’m staunchly anti racist, and pro choice. If we shared the wealth more proportionally, all of us would be better off than we are now. I believe there should not be multi billionaires, but that they should pay taxes in order to increase the quality of living conditions for those living in poverty. POC do not have the opportunity for developing generational wealth because they live on the very edge of existence. I guess that may make me a Democratic Socialist, like the Mayor elect of NYC. If that is the case, so be it!
Sounds like your politics align pretty closely to mine. Zohran fascinates me. I hope he does well.
I have never had a doctor mention menopause to me, regardless of their gender. Mind you, I spent many years avoiding doctors as much as possible.
I've never had one mention it to me, either. :-) I also have avoided them, but I don't think that's why it's never mentioned to me.
Maybe the doctors never thought you were susceptible to menopause. IDK
lol
Instantly love this article when I saw the infographic. Thank you for the honesty.
Writers are supposed to write about what we know! :-)
When I don't know, I research, but even then, I would have sounded silly. Thanks for reading!
As a 61 year old woman and lesbian, I can honestly say no one has ever mentioned menopause to me. Of course, here in Maine, you can wait up to a YEAR for an appointment with a GP. And, no, I’m not being hyperbolic.
I was very lucky. I sailed through menopause with only a handful of hot flashes and I had one unusual period cycle and then I never had another one. As I started my first period on the day I turned 11 (worst birthday gift EVER, BTW), I was thrilled to be done with the whole mess. The sad truth is this…women, like many farm animals, lose their value as they age and they are unable to produce anymore. The wave of pedophilia sweeping the world today is nothing new. Until women are truly valued as human beings, we are only going to have value as a commodity for men.
Thanks for the comment! That's pretty crazy. Is that rural Maine or urban where the wait time is taking place? I know that rural hospitals are shutting down all over the country.
And it’s not just issues related to menopause. Many more women suffer from chronic fatigue syndrome than do men. My daughters and I laugh because the only reason that CFS is getting more attention now is due to long Covid, which shares some symptoms, and big surprise, men do end up with this. And there is an array of dysautonomia syndromes that primarily affect women , like postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) that are poorly understood. For years women were told they had ‘anxiety’. My apologies for this diatribe, but these maladies greatly diminish quality of life!
No apology needed, thanks for the info.
Maine health care is collapsing. Many facilities are shutting down and remaining offices are scrambling trying to absorb extra patients. I could write a book about my experiences at MaineGeneral in Augusta. Nightmare. Maine has an old population and rural areas in central and northern Maine have few choices available. Southern Maine is more urban, but wait times are still nuts. I was born here and I wanted to die here, but I’m giving serious thought to leaving next spring.
What a drag, being forced to leave a place you've lived in all your life (assuming you enjoyed living there, of course). If you ever decide you want to write about it and you don't want post your own Substack on it, let me know and I'll give you a forum and/or help editing/writing the piece, with the understanding that I have my slow reply days thanks to a stroke I had last November that affected my vision, so I sometimes just give the proverbial finger to the laptop, lol.