Our health committee meetings are held on the 3^rd Mondays of the month unless there is a conflict or a holiday. Our next meeting with be March 17, at 8pm ET. We are going to start thinking about a special Health Fair/Panel for this year. Please stay tuned for more information.

If you are a former member of the health committee or would like to find an area where you could be involved, please contact me at health@nfbpwc.organd I will put you on my list. The more you can contribute, the easier it makes it for me. I’d love to have you.

Notes from the Chair:

Your Health Committee team has been hard at work. We have a long-term plan to create a Virtual Health event later this year. However, a few small pet projects have developed that you will hear about soon enough. Many thanks to my team of women who have stepped up and truly helped out.

March is the National Lymphedema Month. Your Health Committee chair Susan has this condition and will write more on this next month in honor of her birthday. In the meantime, please look at this for more information:

https://www.lymphapress.com/blog/ways-to-celebrate-lymphedema-awareness-month/

Thank you to those who helped spread the word and attended the Heart of a Woman event. The attendance numbers were higher this year than last year. Many thanks to President Barbara Bozeman for her inspiring introduction and greetings video. I am hoping to have speakers from this event join us for our events and keep the communication and connection with Houston Methodist Hospital for more than just an event.   They  provide  invaluable  resources  and information that our organization needs for future personal and professional education. Over the years we have had a great partnership for this event. Let’s continue this connection for the long term!

Healthy Thinking for the Month:

If you are dealing with some kind of condition, do not be afraid to share your story and your diagnosis. Not only are you contributing to awareness, but education. Your story could save someone’s life.

Health Awareness Dates:

March is –

Alport Syndrome Awareness Month; Clap 4 Health Month; Colic Awareness Month; Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month; *Deaf History Month (3/13 to 4/15); Malignant Hypertension Awareness & Training Month; National Caffeine Awareness Month; National Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Awareness Month; National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month; National Eye Donor Month; National Multiple Sclerosis Education & Awareness Month; National Kidney Month; National Ladder Safety Month; National Nutrition Month; National Pet Vaccination Month; National Women's History Month; Poison Prevention Awareness Month; Save Your Vision Month; Spiritual Wellness Month; Vascular Abnormalities Awareness Month; Workplace Eye Wellness Month

American Red Cross Month or Red Cross Month - https://www.redcross.org/

Brain Injury Awareness Month Link - https://biausa.org/public-affairs/public-awareness/brain-injury-awareness

Child Life Month Link -

https://www.childlife.org/resources/child-life-month

Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) Month - https://thrombosis.org/2022/03/dvt-awareness-month/

Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month - https://nacdd.org/ddam1/

Endometriosis Month - https://endomarch.org/

Lymphedema Awareness Month - https://lymphnet.org/lymphedema-awareness

National Athletic Training Month - https://www.nata.org/advocacy/public-relations/national-athletic-training-month

National Breast Implant Awareness Month - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/march-national-breast-implant-awareness-month-kantor-kantor-llp/

National Essential Tremor Awareness Month - https://essentialtremor.org/

National Snow Guards Safety Month - https://www.rockymountainsnowguards.com/

Problem Gambling Awareness Month - https://www.ncpgambling.org/problem-gambling/pgam/

Transgender Month of Action for Healthcare Equality - https://transequality.org/

Trisomy Awareness Month -

https://www.nichd.nih.gov/newsroom/resources/spotlight/031513-trisomy

If you are a former member of the health committee or would like to find an area where you could be involved, please contact me at health@nfbpwc.org and I will put you on my list. The more you can contribute, the easier it makes it for me. I’d love to have you. 

Healthy Recipes –

If you would like to submit a healthy recipe to publish in future newsletters, please send them to health@nfbpwc.org

This month, instead of a recipe, how about a health book with recipes?

This book was picked up used at a local antique store and provides a plethora of information about foods, diseases and how foods are a source of healing and sickness. There are simple recipes to work with as well as menus for various conditions ranging from diabetes to gout. It’s a great way to learn about the foods we eat and how they react with our bodies.

You can get more information and purchase the book here: https://www.amazon.com/Healing-Foods-Ultimate-Authority-Nutrition/dp/0878578129

Article courtesy of Health Committee member Denise Robinson (PA) via Chantla Israil

Periods, Poverty and Menopause: The Joys of Being a Woman (Send Help)

Let’s talk about two of the most glamorous aspects of womanhood: periods and menopause. One brings monthly chaos and expenses we never signed up for, and the other sneaks in like uninvited guests, flipping our internal thermostat to "lava" and stealing our ability to remember why we walked into a room. And yet, society still acts like these are niche topics we should discuss in hushed tones.

But here’s the real kicker: while some women are scrambling to afford basic period products, others are battling a society that barely acknowledges menopause exists. Welcome to the full-circle experience of reproductive injustice.

Period Poverty: When Your Wallet is the Real Villain

Imagine walking into a store, grabbing a box of tampons, and realizing they cost as much as your lunch. Now imagine having to decide between buying those tampons or eating that lunch. That’s the reality of period poverty. Menstrual products are not a luxury, yet many girls and women in the U.S. including right here in Pennsylvania struggles to afford them. In Fayette County, poverty rates are higher than the state average, period poverty is a real crisis. Some girls miss school because they don’t have the right supplies, and others must rely on makeshift solutions like toilet paper or old socks (which, in case you’re wondering, is not recommended). And let’s not forget menstrual products are still taxed like designer handbags. Because nothing screams necessary medical expense like a “luxury” tax on the thing that keeps your jeans from looking like a crime scene.

The Silent Struggle of Menopause

Now, for the grand finale of the menstrual journey: menopause. Just when you think you're done buying pads and tampons, your body decides to hit you with hot flashes, mood swings, and a metabolism that suddenly moves at the speed of a snail. Menopause is like that coworker who doesn’t do anything but still makes the whole office miserable. One minute, you're freezing; the next, you're sweating like you're auditioning for Survivor: The Sahara Edition. And let’s

not even start with insomnia, brain fog, and joints that suddenly feel like they belong to a 90-year-old.

What’s worse? No one talks about it. There are a million books on how to survive puberty, but menopause? Silence. Doctors often brush it off with a “that’s just part of aging” as if that’s supposed to make you feel better while you’re fanning yourself with a restaurant menu at dinner.

How Period Poverty and Menopause Are Weirdly Connected

You know what’s fun? The fact that if you’ve struggled with period poverty when you were younger, chances are menopause won’t be much easier. Lack of access to proper healthcare and menstrual education doesn’t just disappear when your period does. Many women in low-income areas—including Fayette County -- face menopause without proper medical care, support, or even basic knowledge of what the heck is happening to their bodies.

And let’s not forget just because you technically stop needing menstrual products doesn’t mean you don’t need some form of protection (hello, surprise bladder leaks). But just like pads and tampons, incontinence products also come at a price that feels like a personal attack.

So, What Can We Do?

If we can have an entire aisle dedicated to flavored water, we can surely make menstrual products and menopause care is more accessible.

Here’s what needs to happen:

• Menstrual products should be free in schools, shelters, and public spaces. Because no girl should skip class over something she can’t control.

• Menopause needs a PR campaign. We need education, better healthcare support, and workplace policies that don’t treat menopausal women like malfunctioning robots.

• Stop taxing period products. If we’re not taxing essentials like food, then why are we taxing the bodily function that happens every month?

• More research on menopause. Because "just deal with it" is not a medical treatment plan. At the end of the day, whether you’re battling poverty or trying to figure out if your sudden rage is hormonal or justified (spoiler: it’s both), one thing is clear: women deserve better.

So, let’s talk about it, fight for it, and make sure the next generation doesn’t have to navigate this nonsense alone. And in the meantime, let’s keep pushing for change because dealing with periods and menopause is hard enough without having to fight for basic dignity too.

Bio: Chantla Israil, is a passionate advocate for menstrual equity, women’s health education, and empowerment. As the founder of Moment of Maturity, I work to break stigmas surrounding menstruation and menopause through workshops, curricula, and public speaking.

I have developed educational programs for young girls, women, organizations, males and vulnerable communities, ensuring they have access to critical reproductive health knowledge and resources. My dedication to advocacy led me to appear on The Tamron Hall Show. Through my YouTube channel/talk show and community initiatives, I want to continue to inspire, educate, and uplift menstruators and people of all ages.

Additional Information from Emily VanVleck on Period Poverty

Vice President of Advocacy, Emily VanVleck, serves as NFBPWC’s representative on the National Coalition to End Period Poverty. The coalition, consisting of nonprofits and various stakeholder groups dedicated to ending period poverty, meets once a quarter to discuss any developments and legislative action.

In the last coalition meeting priorities were set for 2025, including H.R.922 which would set aside social service funds for states to use to increase availability for menstrual products to low-income individuals. The Good Samaritan Menstrual Act which extends liability protections to organizations in efforts to encourage donation of menstrual products is expected to be reintroduced by Representative Meng, however, nothing has been introduced yet.

Period Poverty Awareness Week will be May 12-18, 2025. We encourage all members and chapters to host period product drives to donate to local organizations supporting women. Please get in touch with the advocacy committee for more information on how to host a period product drive or view ourinfographicon the national website!

If you are a former member of the health committee or would like to find an area where you could be involved, please contact me at health@nfbpwc.org and I will put you on my list. The more you can contribute, the easier it makes it for me. I’d love to have you. We will meet on the 3^rd or 4^th Monday of the month unless there are any conflicts or holiday forthcoming. Next meeting is March 17, 2025.

Remarkable Woman – Valerie Oser

Growing up, my mom worked as a nurse as an LPN through hospitals, nursing homes, hospice and wherever she could use her medical experience. So, I learned a lot about medical things from her over the years. When I was in high school, she would be a guest speaker talking about health medical issues, giving a tour of the nursing home she worked at, and inspiring them to do good work. Whenever someone had a medical question among friends or family, she always had her knowledge to share. I think I’ve gained some of that from growing up and having her take care of me.

She was married to my dad Paul Oser for 45 years until her passing and she was a very spiritual person. She loved to sing in the choir and was active in the church.

The Woman I’d like to honor for Women’s History is my own mother Valerie L. Oser. She passed away 3 years ago March 12, 2022, from stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. She survived stage 1 breast cancer for at least 9 to 10 years until Covid returned as Stage 4. So, it makes sense to honor her for Women’s History Month since it is the same month in which she passed.

She was also a very outspoken person on issues and was never one to shy away from politics.

She was a member of BPW/Michigan and earned Woman of Achievement honors in the early 2000s.