10 Reasons we need to talk about menopause by Helen Clare
Sometimes I feel as if everyone is talking about peri/menopause. Then I realise that’s my experience because I talk about perimenopause and menopause all the time! In fact many of the people I speak to have never had those conversations before. And it’s important that we all get in the habit of talking about it.
1. When we talk about menopause we break the taboo. We lessen our own feelings of shame and embarrassment and those of others
2.When treat menopause as a normal, everyday part of life, we send out the message that it is a normal everyday part of life.
3.When we do open up, we often get a nice surprise. People are supportive. People care. Sometimes people have great advice (sometimes it isn’t that great, but there’s still a good intention behind it!)
4. When we don’t talk about menopause those feelings of loneliness and isolation can make us focus even more on the symptoms that are bothering us, and that makes them feel worse.
5. A lot of menopause symptoms – hot flushes, insomnia, mood swings, memory problems – are happening in our brains. Our brains do better when they’re not stressed and loneliness and isolation are big stressors.
6. By talking about it we are helping others who might be struggling with it and feeling alone and isolated.
7. If we don’t talk about it at work then our employees won’t be able to put adjustments in place that help us do our jobs.
8. If we don’t talk about it to our family and friends they may not understand what’s going on and won’t be able to support us.
9. Having enjoyable, supportive conversations with people who share our experience creates some really helpful brain chemistry!
10. Everyone who adds their voice to the conversation about menopause makes a small change to how menopause is treated in our society. The more voices there are the more likely it is to result in real, lasting change to the choices available to those experiencing menopause.
About the Author, Helen Clare
Helen Clare works with schools to help them to support their staff through perimenopause and into menopause so that they can carry on doing their jobs in the way we know they can.
An ex-biology teacher and life-long biology geek, she has also worked in schools as part of her work for Creative Partnerships and Arts Council England. Helen is an ICF trained coach and an associate of the British Menopause Society and has been running Menopause in Schools for 5 years. menopauseinschools.co.uk helen@menopauseinschools.co.uk
Our Online CPD event
Would you like to hear from Helen about The Pillars of Healthy Menopause in Schools? We will be featuring Helen along with a host of other expert speakers in our very first online CPD event. Based on your feedback and availability, we have developed our event online so you can simply dip in and out with a unique ‘Your Conference, Your Way’ approach. Watch and listen to the experts and speakers that most interest you, ask our speakers anything via our support team through email or over the phone. Keep an eye on our Regional Shows page https://community.amhie.com/regional-shows/ for updates on when you can book!