People are willing to embrace menopause, says Labour MP

People are willing to embrace the conversations around menopause, the Labour MP Carolyn Harris has said at a conference in London.

Speaking at the Women’s Health Innovation Summit UK, the Swansea East MP said more and more employers recognised they had a responsibility to their staff, and a responsibility to society to talk about menopause.

“I think it’s a willingness to embrace, to talk, to open up spaces for people to have those conversations around the menopause,” Harris told the event.

“When I first started talking about the menopause in the House of Commons chamber, I was worried because I didn’t know what the reaction was going to be.

“Now menopause is cool. If you’re talking about menopause, then you’re up there with some of the great celebrities. It’s really heartwarming.”

Thousands of women deal with the mental health impact of the menopause, Kathy Abernethy, menopause specialist and chief nursing officer at the digital health platform Peppy, explained.

“They think that they’re mad, they blame their partner, they blame themselves, but they never blame their hormones,” she said.

“When that then hits into the workplace, what do women do? They close down, they don’t communicate, they don’t tell the manager. They may come to work, but they’re not really present. And that’s unproductive for them as an individual, and for their company.”

Asked how employers could fund menopause treatments and support women in the workplace, Harris said: “The money we currently waste by not dealing with the menopause is absolutely phenomenal.

“We know that many women on long-term sick with mental health or suspected mental health issues are actually menopausal. Finding a way to get them back into the workforce and give them the right support would make a huge difference.”

The Labour MP told the audience she would like to see a society where women are given back “their right to normality”.

“I would like every area of social policy to give the normality back to women to experience life without having to be afraid to say they are menopausal. I would like all women to have access to the right support and medication they need when they need it.”