Dr. Borislava Burt-Libo is back to tell you how to be a healthy woman—and stay a healthy woman—all the days of your life.

Life is busy, especially for a woman. If you are like most women, you are constantly running around taking care of everyone in your life—significant other, children, parents, grandparents, etc. And  you go to school or work and run a household. You are a comforter, a healer, a confidante. But are you running on empty? On most days, there just isn’t enough time in the day to take care of your own needs. And let’s face it, even the most tireless of us need to take a little time off for ourselves—to reboot, to manage our health and to be taken care of—so that we can continue on our quest to take care of the world around us. Don’t let this idea of rebooting daunt you. The truth is that all you really need is a little time each a day and just a few days each year to ensure that you stay a healthy (and happy) woman.

What To Do On a Daily Basis

Stress is our worst enemy, it contributes to ailments and aging. Here are a few tricks that take only minutes a day to help fight stress:

Stay active. Take time each day (25 to 30min is all you need) for some form of exercise, be it power walking, yoga, pilates, swimming, jogging (strollers with babies are allowed). Your pulse will go up in minutes and you may even break a sweat as you dance around the house while cleaning or washing dishes or as you chase after your toddler who is no doubt feeling mischievous.

Make the right choices with food and drink. Do have vegetables and fruits, do eat lean meats and cheeses, do drink six to eight glasses of water per day. Do stay away from greasy, fried foods, from simple carbohydrates, from sodas, etc. Ladies, we all know what’ s good and what’s bad, and what works for us and what doesn’t.

Do get enough sleep. That means six to eight hours work for most of us.

Do stay away from vices such as smoking and alcohol.

Take time to breathe.  Five minutes is all you need sometimes. Close your eyes, tune out the noise around you and take nice deep breaths, thinking of something pleasant or nothing at all. Find time to do your favorite hobby—read a good book, sing– it’s good for the soul.

Treat yourself. Go for a mani/pedi on your lunch break or on the way home. A nice, relaxing massage is even better if you can find the time. And above all, no matter what happens, even if the world is crashing down around us – try to remain positive.

What To Do Yearly

Make time in your busy schedule to see your doctor. Just one or two visits per year are vital to staying healthy. Prevention is key.

Besides a thorough history and physical examination, your age and presence or absence of certain risk factors will gear your doctor towards screening for certain conditions. Here are the screening landmarks to expect at your annual visit:

Ages 13-18

Your doctor will make sure that all your immunizations are up to date— namely Tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis booster; hepatitis B vaccine, if not given previously; meningococcal vaccine before high school; and human papillomavirus vaccine. If sexually active, girls in this age group will be offered screening for sexually transmitted diseases as well as counseled about safe sex and pregnancy prevention.

Ages 19-39

Starting at 21 years of age, women will be offered a cervical cytology examination, otherwise known as Pap smear, which is a screening test for cervical cancer and can detect presence or absence of HPV. Screening for sexually transmitted infections, such as chlamydia is once again offered. Women in this age group will also be instructed on self breast examinations.

Ages 40 -64

Besides cervical cytology screening, women will now be referred yearly mammograms for breast cancer screening. Colorectal cancer screening is advised starting at 50 years old with colonoscopy (as dreaded as it is by some – it is the gold standard for diagnosis and hopefully need not be repeated sooner than every five to 10 years). Your doctor will order cholesterol screening, which is usually done every five years starting age 45; screening for thyroid disorder also done every five years starting age 50; and screening for diabetes, which is done every three years starting at 45 years old. Calcium intake with vitamin D as well as exercise will be stressed for the importance of bone strength.

Age 65 and older

For women of this age, the same screening applies as the women over 40, with addition of one important test: bone density evaluation, also known as Dexa scan. Also, women will be offered a very important pneumococcal vaccine.

Women of all ages should also remember yearly skin cancer screening. Do wear sunblock and limit sun exposure to 15 to 30 minutes per day. And don’t forget the dentist, your teeth and gums have a lot to do with your health.

So, my dear ladies, this is the basic rundown of the standard testing that most of us will need to undergo in our lifetime to remain healthy. Certain screening and preventive measures may be offered earlier depending on presence or absence of certain genetic and environmental health risk factors.

Your life will probably always be busy and at times even hectic. However, taking care of yourself need not be an overwhelming task. Hopefully, you can find a little time to make the right choices and get the appropriate care with just a few doctor visits each year. Staying healthy on a daily basis must be made into a top priority so that we can keep on taking care of the world and be a healthy woman, mind, body and soul.

To get on your healthy woman track, call 732.431.1616 to book your appointment today.

Ch-ch-ch-changes—when it comes to a woman’s health, they are never ending.

Just when we settle into each phase of our lives, a new one rolls around to throw us for a loop.

What can we do? Well, we can start by getting educated on what to expect and how to handle what’s coming our way. After all, forewarned is forearmed, right?

On Thursday, October 20 at 7:00 pm, in conjunction with CentraState Medical Center’s Live. Laugh. Learn.: Ladies Wellness Workshop, Healthy Woman’s own Dr. Susan Pacana dishes on the many splendored changes you’ll go through from adolescence to menopause, including the latest ways to deal with heavy periods, fibroids and endometriosis.

Join her for this not-to-be-missed open and honest seminar.

It’s more girl talk than lecture, so come prepared with questions!

See you at the Star and Barry Tobias Ambulatory Campus 901 West Main Street in Freehold!

For more information, go to www.centrastate.com/livelaughlearn or call us at 732.431.1616.

Okay, so maybe the lyrics don’t go quite like that, but for women of a certain age, it’s the burning question—and not just because of hot flashes. Wondering what to look for when it comes to perimenopause? Here are some of the telltale signs:

Hot flashes. This hallmark of perimenopause—a sudden feeling of warmth, usually around the face, neck and chest—got its reputation for good reason, as up to three-quarters of perimenopausal women will get them at some point.

Irregular periods. As your body prepares to stop menstruating completely, your periods could become more erratic. They may become shorter, longer, heavier, lighter, closer together, farther apart, or just completely unpredictable.

Breast tenderness. About a third of women in the early stages of perimenopause will experience tender breasts, but it often subsides later on.

Mood swings. Feeling sad, irritable or just plain blah could be a sign that menopause is on the horizon.

Decreased sex drive. A lack of libido can have many different causes, but the hormonal changes your body goes through as it prepares for menopause can zap some of your desire, as can other symptoms, such as vaginal dryness and fatigue from lack of sleep.

Bladder issues. Needing to urinate more often, leaking when you cough or sneeze, and urinary incontinence (leaking randomly) are three of the ways your bladder control might change with perimenopause.

Every woman is different and might experience all or none of the above signs. If any symptoms are interfering with your well-being or you have questions about perimenopause, contact your Healthy Woman doctor.

Whether it’s a time of love or a time of hate, a time of war or a time of peace, a time you may embrace or a time to refrain from embracing, it’s a time that—turn, turn, turn—comes for every woman, in every season.