Welcome to my Moonbox: a gathering of musings, learnings, and aspirations held (perhaps, sometimes only briefly) by the many expressions of me, Sarita.
From the desk:
Why do you need an estrogen patch?
Because, [I don't have] ovaries
[I no longer have]
[I had to remove my]
[I couldn't keep my]
[I chose a chance at long life over having]
[my] [weren't safe]
[my] [were too much of a risk]
[my] [would've likely killed me]
[my aunt's] [killed her]
[dramatically, my] [had become a symbol of death]
[I had to simply let my] [go]
[fate, I suppose, took my] [from me]
Because, I need estrogen
Because, I identify as a woman
Because, I'm too young for menopause
Because, this is my life
Life updates: It’s been 12 weeks since my salpingo-oophorectomy, and 10 weeks since I was released from any restrictions and began my return-to-sport journey. This also means that it’s been 12 weeks since I’ve been using an Estradiol patch for hormone replacement therapy. I am on the highest dose possible (0.1 mg/day), as my doctor told me that guidelines were recently updated for young, post-ovary-removal patients (esp. BRCA patients who have already undergone double mastectomy) to recommend the highest dose, and I’ve been happy with this. I’ve had fairly nominal menopause symptoms: some very mild and random insomnia, and some very mild and random body/foot itchiness/dryness, and that’s it. I suppose it’s not so random, as I feel these symptoms occur more towards the end of every 7 days, when it is time to replace the patch.
The patches themselves are enormous, at least the ones I’d been given. Mine are circular and have a 3-inch diameter. I am going to jump to the perhaps-not-so-radical assumption that these patches were designed by men lol…because they aren’t very practical. If you’re curvy or have an athletic build, and most definitely if you are extremely active, then these patches won’t stay on very well. When I sweat a lot during a run, the patch begins to peel off. If I place the patch on my body where there is much movement or curviness, the patch begins to peel off. If I place the patch where my clothes can rub the edges, the patch begins to peel off (and that can vary because one day I can wear low-waist shorts and another day I can wear high-waist leggings). Again, annoyingly impractical. My doctor recommended using an even larger bandage to place over the patch to help secure it, and I have done that once, but why aren’t the patches just designed better to begin with? I know some people can be allergic to most or all adhesives, so this wouldn’t be a great solution for them.
After about 4 or 5 days, the adhesive on the patch itself becomes irritating and itchy for me, and leaves a red circle on my skin that lasts for weeks. This is par for the course, as it’s part of the instructions to pick a new spot on the skin every time to avoid further irritation and until previously used areas heal up. My doctor, in order to better accommodate my active lifestyle and to mitigate this irritation, recently prescribed a different version of the patch that is much smaller, about half the size, and is a twice-weekly dose instead. I am SO excited for this. In theory, this means I will be removing a patch before it becomes irritating, and given that it is much smaller, it should fit the contours of my skin, clothes, and movements more easily. Tonight (Tuesday, 11/11) will be my first use of the smaller patch.
There is a pill version, but my doctor highly recommended that if I can tolerate using patches, the patches are, in theory, safer for me over the long term. I am also very bad at taking pills at the exact same time every day, and I am a terrible (laughable) pill swallower, so I am rather content to deal with the patch. If you’re wondering why I am only taking estrogen and not progesterone as well, it’s because I kept my uterus and my hormone IUD, which, for the most part, takes care of that for me.
Thanks for reading my medical updates. Now, on to other things…
[Previous: Moonbox Notes #30]
Quick News:
Business Insider | At 80, I broke the world record as the oldest woman to finish the Ironman World Championship. Here’s how I prepared.
The Guardian | More than 1,500 people displaced after typhoon remnants devastate Alaska villages
GearJunkie | Trump Reopens Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to Oil and Gas Drilling
NPR | Renewables outpace coal for electricity generation in historic first, report says
YO! My film is finally out in the world! It was released online on November 1st for Día de Muertos. Here is the film website, where you can read more about the story, the folks behind the film, the route, the prayer run, etc, and of course, WATCH THE FILM!
HBD to all Fall birthdays!
Recent Top Pick Reads:
+ “Environmentalism Is Out of Ideas,” by Dr. Len Necefer, All At Once, Substack, Nov 8, 2025. A much-needed assessment of what is happening/has happened to the once-powerful environmental movement, and how current times require current measures of action, risk, and imagination.
+ “Cocoon of Sound,” by Jesmyn Ward, Keystone Story, Orion Magazine, Autumn 2025 Issue: The Natural Rhythms of Hip-Hop, Oct 28, 2025. A great meditation by the author on Black art, music, and community, and how she carried them with her through various stages and through various grief in her life.
Books/Mags in progress:
+ The Bright Hour by Nina Riggs
Recent Listens/Watchings:
+ “Mi Calaverita Tiene Hambre,” Chasquido Films, YouTube, Oct 25, 2024. A short, fictional film about life for a young boy as he faces his loneliness during Día de Muertos. A very touching and poetic film that embodies reality for many people across the globe.
+ “Lacing Up With Chicago’s Chef Tee | PACE SETTERS Ep 1,” iRunFarMedia, YouTube, Oct 8, 2025. A short highlight on Chef Tee, his restaurant along the Chicago Marathon course, and how running has impacted both his life and business.
+ “NNormal Presents | The Nomad with Elhousine Elazzaoui,” NNormal, YouTube, Aug 12, 2025. A short film about Elazzaoui’s unique life as both a professional runner and a traditional Berber nomad on his homelands of Morocco.
+ “No Life Defined: Yao Miao’s Rise as a Trail Running Icon | Salomon TV,” Salomon TV, YouTube, Oct 7, 2025. A short film about Miao’s origin story and how she has dedicated her life to becoming one of the best trail runners, choosing her own path instead of the one often expected of women in her culture.
Writing/Projects: (updates are highlighted)
+I’ve partnered with Runners for Public Lands and Ti Eversole to write about Grants, NM, and the surrounding region to explore the intersections of outdoor recreation and mining; article due for November release.
+I currently have 0 general submissions in the ether. My pitch to Orion Magazine was declined.
+The hybrid essay/memoir I wrote in 2021, “Chuckwalla,” still needs some major revision and writing.
MISC/Brags/Swag:
- Congrats to my husband, Patrick, for achieving his Master Electrician licensure earlier this month. So proud!
- Don’t forget to watch my film! –> ofrenda-film.com
- I was interviewed for a podcast: Women’s Running Stories is a site all about women with deep connections to running. Listen to my podcast episode here —> Trails, FKTs, Finding Deeper Meaning in the Outdoors
Thanks for tuning in to Sarita’s Moonbox.
¡Feliz otoño!
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