Breaking the silence about the menopause

Interesting article, and definitely good to talk about these issues and improve practice. But as a Post menopausal woman myself , I am uncomfortable with the idea that this makes me into some sort of invalid who needs special treatment. Personally I found menopause a bit of a non-event and the negative symptoms were far outweighed by the benefits of not having to cope with periods and contraception. Many of my friends had a similar experience. Of course women who do experience problems - I know some do, and some don’t - should be given the adjustments and consideration that are needed in their specific circumstances. As with any other long term health problem or disability. But I am worried that labelling all older women as “post menopausal” and expecting reduced performance or odd behaviour may be harmful.

Thank you for this article. Yes, not everyone has problems pre-, during or post-menopause but some of us do - and it's even more of an issue when you get past 55 and it still hasn't occurred. My institution have been very good and my schedule is pretty flexible - I can usually take a rest when needed (helped by the fact I moved to be nearer my place of work) and I have had support from occupational health. But the most important section of the article is this: why should anyone be penalised for working a full contractual load and eating, exercising and sleeping normally? In my case, I can only manage an average of around 40-45 hours a week, with less travelling around, than the 60 hours a week including lots of travel I was doing 5 years ago. The trouble is, this means I helped to sustain the current practices that now make it so difficult to change the whole environment. It's a condition with an end point (I really wish it would end - this is too many years of symptoms and treatments) and personally I get frustrated that fatigue and 'brain-fog' prevent me doing as much writing as I want too. I'm assured that too will change, with or without medical intervention (the latter won't work for everyone either). We not only need to campaign for support for menopause where it is needed but also use it to call out the work practices that push academics at all ages and levels into habits where they don't eat, sleep and exercise in a perfectly normal way.

Unlike having children, reaching menopause is not a matter of personal choice Please remember that there are many women who do not have children and that was not their choice.

“breaking the silence “ is one thing, making menopause out to be some form of inevitable chronic disease or handicap needing special accomodation quite another. Menopause is a physiologic phase in any woman’s reproductive cycle ... perhaps even more so than pregnancy . Of course it may not come without some stormy moments for some women ( for no fault of theirs ) and appropriate adjustments must be made both within work and outside of it in such ‘ extra physiologic ’ exceptions, menopause should nevertheless not be added ( wittingly or unwittingly ) to the growing list of “ Disabilities” and expected to be routinely handled as such or as a matter of course ... and that is because it (often) is not. A ‘disability image’ ( overt or implied ) is neither fair to menopause nor to the many women who go through that phase very uneventfully if not very happily . It is almost impossible to go through this piece not seeing menopause as a disability needing all of the special facilitations every disability demands. I still hope I’m wrong about that surmise of the piece ... for the sake of menopause at least. Basil jide fadipe.

interesting article, whilst a number of women go through life, periods, pregnancy etc. etc. with little difficulty others have chronic pain during periods, migraine headaches, nausea and really should be in bed for 3 days of the month. Instead they are taking very strong pain medication and dragging themselves to work. Some women are required to rest during pregnancy have complications and suffer ill health while others have none of these symptoms. Menopause is very similar some suffer chronic physical symptoms other psychological some both and some not at all! Therefore in society all phases of life should be respected and supported. One would think in this day and age that there is respect, tolerance and support for women to stay in the workforce as long as they wish. longer working lives is a reality for most and the labour market actually needs women to actively stay in the labour market contributing to society. Menopause can indeed be incredibly debilitating, for a number of women, just look at the statistics of how many women are so terrified to stop taking HRT incase they symptoms return that they take it for 10/15 yrs. l have never found labels to be useful, at various points of life we all need support to get through, there is no one out there who will not at some point experience this, its part of being human. Therefore we need work environments and HR policies to proactively ensue all staff are supported, respected and treated as a full human being not just a worker!

Having a background of working with organisations on their gender diversity and having had a number of leading universities in the UK as part of my client portfolio, my experience is that, generally speaking, the academic world is way behind other sectors in terms of diversity. So this article did not come as a huge surprise. What did surprise, however, were some of the comments (from women) that no 'special treatment' should be provided. It is true that not every woman will have a negative experience. Only around 25% of women are 'on the edge' during this natural life transition. Around 25% sail through and around 50% have a mild to moderate to sometimes severe experience. However, for the women who suffer, it can be utterly devastating. Combine that with basic business sense. Why would an organisation (public / private / education sector) invest time and money in anyone at the beginning of their career and then abandon them when they have 2, 3 or 4 decades of experience, knowledge and expertise? This is a basic bottom line issue, not a 'fluffy / nice-to-do' idea. We represent 52% of the population, so this is hardly a minority issue. What is actually needed is for this natural rite of passage for all women to be celebrated rather than feared and for the power and potency of 'midlife' to be recognised: by women and all of those around them, both personally and professionally. As a 60 year old post-menopausal woman I am busier in my professional life than I have been, more visible than ever and have considerably more confidence than when I was 30. The world benefits enormously from the power and potency of women at 'midlife', let us celebrate rather than forget them.

Like the first poster, I am ambivalent about this subject. More information and awareness is a good thing - I went through an early menopause ( I was 42 when periods stopped...) and it took me somewhat by surprise. I was actually relieved when I realised that's what it was rather than ( a) being pregnant ; ( b) being incompetent or lazy - I suffered from what I subsequently realised was 'brain fog' , struggled to concentrate and thought it was all my own fault and ( c) something more serious wrong with me - boy was I sweaty at night ! But all in all I didn't have a bad time, once I realised what it actually was. Not having any more periods was wonderful. But it was a little bit of a shock that I could have been better prepared for - and more awareness of it would have helped ME adapt better, and not blame myself for forgetfulness or bouts of vagueness. I would be very wary ( perhaps this is my generation showing, when throughout my career as a woman you could not admit to any 'female'issues,' period pains etc lest it was used against you; I never had children but my sisters who did minimised or lied about their child care commitments for the same reason... ) of making a big deal about menopause and needing adjustments (please tell me what kind of 'adjustments' would help anyway?) because this could be yet another thing that would disadvantage women - presenting us as weaklings, incompetent or incapable because of our" female issues." I know some women have a really bad time and can understand that there should be awareness of that (so if they need time off, say some sick leave, they shouldn't be dragged through some humiliating 'return to work' interview and all that ) . But it happens to all of us , is an inevitable part of aging - and being exhausted and no longer able to put in 60- hour weeks is an inevitable consequence of aging ( for both women and men.) So I wouldn't want to make too big deal of it - ALSO making too much of a deal of it will make younger women think it will always be dreadful and awful and a time to be dreaded when that is not the case for many (most? ) . I wasn't lucky going through it as early as I did ( eg it was painful to accept the finality of it all, that any chance of children was now gone) but I was lucky in that I had older sisters to whom I could talk and with whom I could compare notes. But as a work issue I would really want to be careful about that...

As a 51 year old PhD student looking to work in academia, I'm feeling very nervous...

Isn't it interesting how this has generated so many 'it wasn't that bad for me' responses? Well good for you . . . but I think many of the respondents have indeed missed the point of the article. They perhaps need to read it in conjunction with the article on the need for a re-think about caring responsibilities: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/careers-intelligence-supporting-academic-carers-care-full-approach As the nature of HE changes, as the HE workforce changes, and as we face an inevitable crisis in social care, we need to ensure that women are supported when these worlds collide . . . and that these issues are part of everyday conversations . . . not hidden beneath the worry of presentee-ism, alpha behaviours and jostling for career progression.

This issue, while not consistent with my me experience of menopause, shows me how grateful we in the US should be for the Americans with Disabilities Act, which would allow for specific accommodations to handle a challenging medical condition. Along with the accommodation, however, is the difficult area of confidentiality. The author mentioned that colleagues were not aware of the reason for her special schedule and that this caused resentment, but in the US, as an employer we would not be able to share the confidential reasons for the accommodation. Perhaps this should be addressed when the accommodation is granted. As the person needing that assistance, how would you like for the confidential information to be shared? Not sharing it may have consequences, as the author noted.