We are a group of women who meet on the  fourth Thursday of the month in Pakefield Church Hall, beginning at 2.00pm, unless otherwise stated.

Our aims are:

*  Promoting friendship, support and social activities for women in the local community

*  Raising funds for our charitable causes.

All women are welcome (whether or not you are a wife !)

PAKEFIELD WIVES’ GROUP

After a welcome and a short prayer, Sheila introduced Cathy

Cook, a Physiotherapy Health Adviser, who talked to members about just that – women’s health – giving a frank, candid and knowledgeable account of the various problems we encounter as we get older.

There is an ongoing campaign to bring certain health problems, which are not generally talked about, to the fore and Cathy did just that! Therefore, much of her talk is not appropriate for a church magazine but were greatly appreciated by members on the basis that we all think “am-I-the-only-one?” Her talk was very relevant to members of a certain – shall we say – mature age and she pulled no punches addressing the problems we can face and which we don’t want to talk about. It worked! as reflected with the many questions put to her and the smiles of relief and nodding of heads as we discovered, no, we are not suffering alone.

Simple, but effective, methods of helping ourselves live a more comfortable life were offered during Cathy’s talk. Getting up from a chair can be difficult. Always try and get a chair with arms, lean on them as you prepare to get up whilst leaning slightly forward.

Exercises, as advised by physios, especially those involving the pelvic floor muscles which play such an important role by holding many organs up and in! Breathing exercises, which we practised on instructions. Easy to do anywhere when sitting or lying down. Make sure your diet contains plenty of fruit and vegetables, cereal and fibre. A reasonable amount of liquid, which can include tea, coffee and squash drinks, 1.5 litres is a good amount each day.

Every month the committee finds speakers of interest and we also enjoy our social meetings but Cathy was a speaker who got to the heart of many mature adults on an important topic relevant to our members, our health as we grow older and how we can help ourselves by making life that much easier.

Complex as some problems are, Cathy delivered her talk with a great deal of humour! Elizabeth gave a Vote of Thanks.

Our next meeting is on the 23rd October and is a talk given by

Cheryl Lewis about East Suffolk Air Ambulance.