By:  Renee A. Lewis
(Visit Dee at Minnie Pauz: www.minniepauz.com)
 

 As human beings we are blessed from the day we are born with the gift of free will.  This gift allows us to choose how we direct our lives, especially in the face of adversity. 

Dee Adams is one woman who laughs in the face of adversity, literally.  She’s much too busy prescribing her own brand of medicine for a life transition that afflicts millions of women each year - menopause.  Her ‘no prescription required’ treatment is an outrageously funny, quirky and affable cartoon character appropriately called Minnie Pauz™ .  “Minnie is the new Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) for all menopausal women, except now HRT stands for Humor Replacement Therapy”, she unabashedly proclaims.

Dee was hardly a lone sufferer of this gradual biological process, as more than 2 million women enter menopause each year.  Compared to 100 years ago, menopause is now considered a “normal” event for women simply because life expectancies are greater than before. 

Adams’ herself was a relatively young woman when she was first confronted with the symptoms of menopause.  At the age of 38 she found herself not only trying to cope with the power surges but she would also be diagnosed a few years later with depression.  The next few years would prove to be life altering not only physically, but spiritually as well. 

 Originally from Missouri, Dee married at the age of 18 and found herself juggling the roles of being a wife, mother and domestic engineer for the next 15 years.  By the age of 33 she was divorced and working outside the home for the first time.  “I spent the next eleven years trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, changing jobs and locations regularly”, she said. 
 

During this period of self-discovery she worked at jobs in such diverse areas as property management, marketing, advertising and sales.  Then one fortuitous day she accidentally broke her ankle when she stepped into a hole while fishing (a theme to later be used in one of her Minnie Pauz cartoons).   Jobless and without a car or any type of health insurance, she knew she had to find a way to support herself, so she started drawing greeting cards and portraits. 
 
 
 
 

RL:  When you broke your ankle while fishing you said you started drawing portraits and greeting cards to make money.  Who did you do this for and for how long?

Dee Adams: I was working from my home while still in a cast.  I started designing greeting cards using markers and I put them on display at my cousin’s flower shop.  I probably made around $60 total for the year.  Then I started drawing pencil portraits of country western singing stars.  I finally sold 12 or so portraits to the owner of a country type bar.

RL: So how exactly did you first conceive the idea for Minnie Pauz and how did you come up with such a befitting name?

Dee: During the time I broke my ankle, I got the idea for Minnie Pauz and sketched out about 7 cartoons depicting this middle-aged, plump woman who was always fishing and having profound thoughts.  At that time I was also diagnosed as being clinically depressed and the name just came to me real easy.  Looking back, I find it very strange that such a humorous idea would develop when I was unable to see any light at the end of the tunnel.

RL: You said you started experiencing the biological changes that menopause causes at the very early age of 38.  And then five years later you were diagnosed with clinical depression.  Was menopause the cause of your depression also?

Dee: Most of the information on menopause says that depression can be a major symptom, but for me personally, I think I was a depressed person all my life.  I had been menopausal for about five years when my life kind of fell apart and I was diagnosed as clinically depressed.  So, although it didn’t help, I don’t think menopause “caused” my depression.

RL: Would you say Minnie or medication played a key factor in helping you to deal with your depression?

Dee: I would have to say the medication and therapy, along with the strong desire to learn how to be happy within myself, no matter what my current situation is.  About a year ago I took myself off the medication and found a lot of energy that was being suppressed, as well as the humor that had been buried for so long.  Now, with Minnie and sometimes a little St. John’s Wort, I find that I’m maintaining a sense of balance.  I get fearful sometimes that I might slide back into the depression, but I don’t believe you’re ever cured and I just have to accept the fact that it’s ok to feel a little down or sad once in awhile.

RL: You also have a web site design business.  Tell me about that.

Dee: Around the same time that I broke my ankle someone told me about the Missouri Department of Rehabilitation, so I made an appointment and found out they were there to help people get back into the workforce.  When I told them I would like to learn the computer they paid for a class and then bought my computer system.  I was like a crazy woman trying to learn everything at once, but finally I knew enough to start my web design business, Dream Studios (www.tir.com/~ddream).  This is my 4th year in business and I’m proud to say it’s been supporting me for the last two years.

RL: How much of a challenge is it to work both your web design business and create and promote Minnie Pauz?

Dee: It’s been a tremendous challenge lately because of the attention the cartoon is getting.  Of course, that’s because I have devoted more time marketing Minnie than I have my web design business. 

RL: Do you prefer one over the other?

Dee: I prefer the cartooning for several reasons.  For one, I can use whatever “outdated” techniques I want to create the cartoon.  It’s the final result that counts.  With the web design business, it changes so fast that it’s hard to keep up, plus it can get expensive with all the newest software, etc.  Secondly, there are millions of web designers and the competition is fierce, but even though there are millions of cartoonists as well, there’s only one “Minnie Pauz” and I thought her up!

RL:  Why doesn’t Minnie have a face?

Dee:    I initially didn’t like my drawings at all and her face wouldn’t materialize.  So I purposely drew her from behind so I wouldn’t have to worry about drawing facial features.  I also discovered that most people liked Minnie without a face.  Women related to her better that way.

RL: Do you see yourself eventually giving Minnie Pauz a face?

Dee:  I’ve thought about it, but most people like the mystery of not seeing her face.  I’ve got a questionnaire on my site (www.minniepauz.com) and one of the questions is about showing her face.  Out of 100 responses so far, only one has said “yes” to showing her face.

RL: Just exactly who is Minnie Pauz?

Dee: Minnie is a mother, a daughter, a grandmother, a business owner and a babyboomer who is just trying to cool down.

RL: What’s Minnie’s attitude towards menopause?

Dee: She has accepted what it’s all about and is determined to let other women know that it’s not all bad.  She basically is willing to try everything she can to get relief!  She definitely has a sense of humor about it!

RL: I like the line, “If you don’t get it, you ain’t there yet.”  Did that phrase come to you just as easily as Minnie’s name?

Dee: Yes, it did.  I think it came to me because I realized that there were some people who just wouldn’t “get” the cartoons, so I wanted to warn them ahead of time.  That slogan has gotten a lot of attention also.

RL: You said you’ve only gotten one negative comment about the cartoon, where a woman said, “I don’t know if you’re a woman, but you’re certainly not a feminist.”  What are your feelings about what she had to say?

Dee: It really surprised me, but also made me take a closer look at the character.  First, I had to seek out my own feelings and I realized that I AM a feminist, but not an activist.  I wrote the woman to try and encourage more of a dialog about her feelings, but she never responded.  I was kind of disappointed that she just dropped it.

RL: You say you want Minnie to stay “middle of the road.”  What do you mean by that?

Dee: Minnie is considered “every woman” at this point and she’s all about fun, so I don’t want her to take a position on issues that might distract from her mission, which is to bring a smile or a chuckle to the face of today’s mid-life woman.

RL: Is Minnie Pauz really Dee Adams?

Dee: Naturally there are some elements of myself in Minnie, but she is truly taking on her own personality.  She hasn’t exactly broadcast any opinions yet, because menopause can be so different for each individual and she understands that what works for one, may not work for another.  You won’t see her using brand name medical products, like estrogen replacements, because there is so much controversy about what is good for you, what has the most risks, etc.  In the future she may speak out more on important issues, but for now she’s just concerned about contributing laughter to the meno masses.

RL: What other surprises can be found on Minnie Pauz’s  web site to help women laugh at the “meno” blues?

Dee: You can order t-shirts and coffee mugs at this time.  Also, there’s a page to order framed, personalized Minnie Pauz cartoons.  These make great gifts because I can incorporate someone’s name into the cartoon, such as a doctor’s name.

RL:  What positive things are you hoping to accomplish with this cartoon in relation to  menopause?

Dee: I’m very serious about using humor to get through this process.  As we all know, it’s not JUST the menopause symptoms, but some underlying fears of aging that attach our self-worth.  Laughter has been proven to physically improve our health…sometimes it just has to be shoved in our faces before we remember to use it!  The art of laughter enables us to “lighten” our world, and when we are relieved of the sadness or depression around us, we are empowered with the blessing of positive thinking.  Positive thinking leads to good mental health, which leads to a happier day-to-day existence.  It also wouldn’t hurt to open peoples’ minds to the fact of how many women are dong great cartoons too!

RL: Who is Dee Adams now, compared to who she was before she found the happiness within?

Dee: I see myself as another “baby bloomer” who has finally learned to recognize what it means to “live in the moment”.  I was never able to be patient before…always wanted results the instant I had another brilliant idea.  Now I enjoy the process of attaining a goal and also peeking over my shoulder to see where I’ve been compared to where I am now.

RL: I know each day can be a challenge, especially when faced with personal challenges.  What words of wisdom or encouragement would you like to impart to other women seeking their own “self” and happiness?

Dee: Listen to your own inner voices, not for “answers” but for the “questions”.  This will help you discover your “happiness factor”.  Develop an understanding of and concentrate on positive thinking and visualization.  Thoughts are things…you will create what your mind conceives.  Have a plan, a goal, a DREAM!  Without it you are a ship without a rudder and will float aimlessly through life instead of having energy focused on where you want to go.  And finally, keep your sense of humor through it all! 

Humor can make you laugh or smile, to recognize irony, to better understand and to empathize.  Above all, it allows us to see the lightness in ourselves and our everyday life experiences.

Using her gift of free will, Dee Adams chose to confront the “normal” yet no less life-altering transition of menopause and her bout with clinical depression through the use of humor.  Once she found the humor, she found a gift that cleansed her soul.  And now, with her unique and creative talents, other pre- and post-menopausal women can see the humor behind the symptoms in a cartoon called Minnie Pauz™.  Now that’s something to laugh about!

Copyright © 1999 Renee A. Lewis