Personal assistant and menopause warrior at 9to5menopause
Weight training at foundryfit
Working on www.9to5menopause.com
I started the menopause when I was 46. My first year of it was fine, but I’ve learnt that certain life events cause stresses and triggers and for me it coincided with my mum being diagnosed with terminal cancer and my job ramping up.
Thats when my menopause fell off a cliff! I wasn’t sleeping, I had night sweats and my anxiety was off the scale. I then went to my doctor to get some help as I was not coping very well. I basically hit rock bottom. My Dr. prescribed HRTand had to try a few types before I found one that was okay Eventually I ended up on patches which I used for a couple of years, then they got discontinued. When I couldn’t get hold of them I did my research and I now have the mirena coil and use oestrogel. I have to say, I feel like a human being again.
Doing my research I realised I needed to do exercise to get the blood pumping in my body and to build up my bone density. So I started doing weight training, it was hard as I needed to really push myself…but I love it.
I’ve massively stepped out of my comfort zone, but It’s given me my confidence back and a zest for life.
I didn’t tell anyone at work I was going through menopause - I had brain fog, I was tired and was forgetting things, but I didn’t go to HR for any support. I launched my Instagram 9to5menopause account two years after I started the menopause. When I first started I did a lot of research and I couldn’t find any women who looked like me (as in Black and had a job). The women I did find were all financially supported by their husbands and were suggesting things that were not financially or conveniently viable for me (private clinics, yoga in the day, a nutritionist).
It’s ironic really, because some people in work found me and started following the account, but I still never took it to HR or made it official. When the company I worked for sold to Unilever – I decided I needed to take a break and took 6 months off work. Leaving that job was the best thing I’ve ever done, as it gave me some breathing space just to be me and to see what I wanted to do next.
My forties were a write-off, maybe this is why I’ve embraced my 50’s so much. It’s given me my confidence back to go “That’s what I like, and that’s what I don’t like. That’s what I’m going to put up with, and that’s what I’m not.” I get quite emotional talking about it as I’ve come a long way volved.