Tom, take a 3-4" cutting from the mom tree. Dip in rooting hormone. (optional) You can either use peat pellets, peat pots, or small plastic pots. Fill w/a well-draining soil but add some peat, too. Remove bottom foliage of cutting, leaving only 2-4 leaves on the upper portion. W/a pencil or finger, make a small hole where cutting will slip in after using rooting hormone. Cover hole w/soil so cutting stands erect. Make a make-shift gh by covering w/plastic. Cut a slit in plastic for air vent circulation. Keep cutting in bright light but out of direct sun. If you plan on doing this in winter, then bottom heat in important. That's one reason it's best to attempt cuttings in late spring/summer. As soon as you see new growth, slowly remove plastic. The first day, remove about an hour and work your way up until there's no need for the plastic. The soil should be barely moist, not totally dry but not wet either. Misting helps, too.. One reason I like peat pellets is cuttings do not need to be removed after roots set..after roots are established, the entire ball goes directly in a growing pot. When plant is ready to be set in a pot, a 4" pot is best. You can also add a mild solution of fertilizer and a product called Superthrive (hormone/vitamin) to the cutting/s. Both stimulate root growth. Good luck Toni

God love ya! I've had all kinds of hot flashes the past ten years and they continue but have lessened. I've had the ones that make my face flush terribly and then I break out in a sweat. I've had the one that feel like I'm a thermometer and the heat rises somewhere from my abdomen and up thru the top of my head. They can last a minute or several minutes. The ones I get the most of now are at night. I can go to bed so tired and cold and just when I get comfortable and ready to doze off, I'm sweatin' like I'm in a steam bath. My mother was 85 when she passed and she continued to have hot flashes till then. Yes, everyone is different. I think of it as "surging" now! But, I never get use to them. Hang in there!

Hi mumblet, I am also in perimenopause, and find life very challenging, as I also have "Fibromyalgia".....whatever that ends up really being. I had to give up milk because of G/I problems. Just be careful not to make cause and effect connections that are not true. I do this all the time, and I'm finding that I'm quite possibly making wrong connections. I think the hallmark of perimenopause is that NOTHING ever is consistent! But I think it makes us feel like we have some control, in trying to figure things out. My G/I tract is going crazy.......I have to sleep in a chair! I'm blaming this on lower estrogen, since I'm having alot more headaches, nausea, some face flushing, etc. sorry to ramble.........I'm just discovering that doctors aren't much help making sense of things. I think it's perfectly "normal" in "perimenopause" to have heavy periods, and then no periods. I'm surprised your doc said periods shouldn't start up after not having some. I have always heard that if you go for a year without periods, then start having, that you should definitely be checked out for problems. I would also make sure the rest of my body was being checked out for possible problems too, and not assuming it is all from menopause. Checking hormone levels can drive you crazy. One week my estradiol was 23, the next week it was 400. The same thing happens to my OB/GYN, so she doesn't even draw them any more. I would just stick to what makes you feel the best, and make sure your inconsistent periods aren't from some other problem (i.e. thyroid, etc.). Good luck mumblet.........this time of life for some of us is just absolute CRAZINESS!!!! :)

I take soy isoflavones twice a day - no night sweats - a few mild hot flashes, no problems with dryness - my skin is fine, now and then I get hot flashes - usually when nervous or stressed - never been on HRT's....really never considered it. I know many women suffer much more than I do...I do have problems sleeping, but always have and I rest when I need to....really menopause has not made a huge impact on my life - maybe a little dent once in a while but that is all. I do not want to be on any medication of any kind unless I absolutely have to....I had a bone scan earlier this year and I have no sign of or projections for osteoporosis. I'll just keep taking the soy - I'm 55 and have been in menopause for 5 years.