Why is the peri and menopause still Taboo?
During research for my new product which is coming next month (click here to subscribe to the VIP list) I conducted lots of research with women entering peri menopause, menopause and the time after.
When I was looking for supporting facts to go with this piece it really showed why the information isn’t widely known, coming up with age uk and grans net.
According to the NHS website:
The menopause is a natural part of ageing that usually occurs between 45 and 55 years of age
Heres a fun fact the menopause is actually the point in which your monthly period stops, it is diagnosed after 1 year of not having a period. Everything prior is your peri menopause and everything after is post. The perimenopause is actually what women are talking about when they say ‘i’m going through the menopause and i’m experiencing X Y & Z symptoms’
Due to our modern lifestyles peri menopause can begin as early as mid to late 30s, more commonly 40s & 50s. With life expectancy at 83 in 2020 for women we are potentially living more of our life in post menopause than in our reproductive years which on average begins age 12-13 in the UK. So why is there so much discussion around the latter and not the former. Why is the peri & menopause still taboo?
With over half of the UK population being female why are women living in the dark with peri menopause symptoms feeling alone, unable to talk about them and unable to even prepare so end up stuck in symptom management.
Those of you that know me, I am 33, I don’t have any children, so why am I so preoccupied with this stage of life that I haven’t yet got to?
Before my period started I was taught about why it happened, and what would happen to my body physically. Theres so much I didn’t know but it wasn’t widely available or discussed at the time, for any parents of children with female reproductive organs theres a book I wish had been available when I was 13 called period power, not only does it contain the physical effects the why’s the how’s but also how it affects our mind, our sleep our relationships and really arms you with the knowledge to prevent symptoms, down to how to exercise around your period.
So we are armed with knowledge for our reproductive years, the years where we experience a monthly cycle (for some) So why not learn in our 30s even our 20s about the peri & menopause? If there was lifestyle changes you could implement to reduce or even stop the often debilitating symptoms of the peri menopause wouldn’t you think about implementing them, or at least have the power to choose?
Wouldn’t it be nice to know what your options are before you get there?
This is my goal:
To bring awareness to my generation of women in their 30s, to open a conversation across generations, learn from each other sit in rooms together, educate men & boys so women have a support network at home that understands how incredible the female human body actually is. Women already in the perimenopause who I truly believe society has failed, you may not have had time to prepare and you may have woken up in the full side effects of sweats, depression and fog, but I have seen first hand those symptoms reversed using natural methods - there are answers, solutions and brilliant brains out there that can help. For those of you out the other side, carry on the conversation, help pave the way, what worked for you what didn’t? How did you feel?
A beautiful friend of mine runs a group called Evolve the wise women collective, earlier in the year I found myself in one of her online sessions a group zoom all about using essential oils for menopause, of course I was the youngest in the room, which of course felt odd for me and for everyone else I’m sure. So why did I want to be in the room, I wanted to learn from Lisa who is a fountain of knowledge, I wanted to learn about my body and what’s in my future, I wanted to expand my knowledge for my kyūshi community. When I voiced why I was there I wasn’t met with animosity, I wasn’t made to feel like I didn’t belong, I had just voiced something unusual. We live in a fix it society, don’t worry about it until its happened, as time has gone on, as i’ve lost loved ones to chronic diseases, my mindset has shifted to a preventative mindset within the things I have more control over.
So yes I own a skincare company, I’ve developed a product for something I am yet to experience, but its been developed alongside women in real time, for mind, skin, body & spirit. When I asked for volunteers to be my human guinea pigs, (leaping bunny certified) my inbox was flooded with stories, here are a few snippets:
“I have been struggling for a few years now, I have been on all different types of HRT and I’m now supplementing my diet with vitamins that are meant to help. My hair is a lot thinner, my skin has lost its glow and I am finding sleep not so easy and mood swings quite depressing.”
“I am in perimenopausal stage and you can mostly find me either weeping uncontrollably at stairlift adverts adverts on the telly or battling with my itchy skin and dry patches. Whenever I think my perimenopausal symptoms are under control something else on my face and body either starts sagging, drying or over produces oil, sweat or/and tears! It’s quite a journey. My whole face has changed. My skin feels fragile but strangely also quite tough and less glowy and more chip shop shiny, if you know what I mean!!”
“I’m peri menopausal. Skin is very temperamental. Can be dry, dehydrated but can be congested and I still get breakouts around my period, the joy of hormones. Also gets weirdly sensitive at times as if it’s about to have some sort of irritation but it usefully seems to pass. Mind goes between tense, sad and often confused, feels reminiscent of baby brain.”
With the help of these amazing women & my lovely talented friend Lisa I am very excited to bring the new product to you. The work is continuing to evolve, my partner Peter is a functional medicine practitioner and Kinesiologist and has a lot of clients who come with symptoms of menopause. He specialises in getting to the root cause of any other underlying health conditions that are exacerbating symptoms, one of the happy side effects is that the peri menopausal symptoms either drastically reduce but more often than not disappear. We are working on whole food supplement advice, education pieces and any way we can help really so watch this space. January 2022.
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Sending Love as always,
Alice xx