It’s that time of year again - around World Menopause Day - when the media will be buzzing with stories, advice and support on managing menopause.
Magazines will share articles, TV programmes will share tips on overcoming symptoms and social media platforms will be overflowing with supportive posts and comments. Yet, outside of this brief period, raising awareness tends to fade.
Why is the focus on menopause so limited?
- It could simply be down to the fact that people really don’t know enough about the menopause to raise awareness throughout the year. No one wants to be an ambassador for a cause they don’t know enough about.
- Despite best efforts, there is still a stigma surrounding the menopause and many people are embarrassed to talk about it. As such, the topic is ‘swept under the carpet’ and not discussed.
- It’s possible that many individuals and organisations want to avoid being conspicuous by their absence, thus paying lip service to the cause but not necessarily being fully invested in raising the awareness it deserves.
- There are many influencers out there who want to be a part of the trending topic at the time that it becomes a hot topic, but when the attention dies down, they present less interest. Ask yourself, when was the last time you saw any hashtags online relating to the menopause?
- Or it could be that many believe as there is already a World Menopause Day, the menopause probably has enough exposure once a year to continue delivering the message the year round.
Menopause is a continuous journey
Menopause happens every day of the year – it’s a continuous experience that affects millions of women every single day. Right now, 47 million women globally, including 13 million in the UK, are navigating some stage of menopause. In the UK alone, 900,000 women have given up their careers because their symptoms made it impossible to continue working.
And yet, we only talk about it in October.
But the reality is that we do not talk about it enough during the rest of the year. By not normalising these discussions, we fail to support women in the way they deserve. How can we change this?
How to make menopause a year-round conversation
- This one seems obvious, but the first step is to talk about the menopause. The topic shouldn’t be an elephant in the room. It’s happening, it’s not going to stop. We should feel comfortable about talking about it and helping women – of any age - to feel the same way.
- Understand what the menopause is. So many people who have attended one of our menopause training courses have said “there’s so much I didn’t know”. Educating yourself on the menopause informs yourself, informs others, but will also help with my previous tip – talking about it.
- Acknowledge that you do not know much about the topic. There are many women who are happy to openly discuss their experience with you and show great respect for those who admit they don’t know as much as they would like to about the menopause. Even admitting you know very little is still talking about it and will raise awareness to the fact that we should be doing more to educate people.
- Create and implement a robust menopause policy at work. The policy should include information on what training is available for people managers and champions to support women in the workplace. It should also include guidance on providing reasonable adjustments such as offering desk fans, the option to work from home, easy access to nearby toilets or additional breaks as needed. Clear signposting of information is equally important. With this in place, women will feel supported by their employers and more comfortable opening up about their experiences.
- Keep an open mind. There is one thing that I emphasise during our workshops: there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all menopause. Some women really struggle with their symptoms, experiencing night-sweats, hot flushes, dysregulated emotions and weight gain, to name a few, while others have been able to go through the process with little or no real concerns. Keeping an open mind will educate you further and will also allow you to accommodate the women in your life who are going through their menopause journey differently to one another.
- Make time for the menopause. It’s a topic widely publicised every October. But saying “We’ll leave that for October” is not going to spread the word during the 11 other months. Make time for the topic all year round. Talk about it, share stories, hold menopause cafés and support groups; anything that keeps the topic front and centre will keep the menopause trending for all the right reasons.
- Encourage learning. Attending a menopause workshop will allow you to be in a safe space where you can freely talk about what you do or don’t know on the topic, whilst gaining knowledge. You will be with like-minded people who want to know more, and you will each be able to share your stories on your experience so far, either as a woman going through or approaching the menopause, or as someone feeling like they are ‘on the outside looking in’.
Play your part: continue the conversation
If there’s anything you take-away from this article – keep talking about the menopause. Talk about what you know, what you don’t know, what you would like to know. Most importantly, talk about the menopause to support and encourage others to do the same.
Want to know more about our menopause workshops?
Please get in touch with Sian Parr at sian.parr@capita.com
Or find out how we can support your learning and development requirements:
Siân Parr
Senior Learning Consultant and Leadership coach
Siân joined Capita in 2021 and believes that learning lands more effectively when the delivery is punchy, varied and engaging. Now, with over a decade of experience, Siân loves building relationships with her clients and believes in collaboration to achieve the best result. She asks questions that get to the core of what her clients really need and encourages feedback to support in creating concepts that will fit with their vision.
