1. How old were you when you first discovered you were in Menopause?

About 51

2. How did you know you were in Menopause?

I didn’t know until l watched a documentary about the menopause and symptoms and realized l was. At school we are just told that when your period stops its menopause and no one spoke about the symptoms.

3. What stage of the menopause are you in?

I am in post menopause reading the criteria for the different stages. Although I still have symptoms.

4. What were/are your symptoms?

My symptoms are headaches, extreme fatigue, anxiety about things l was not anxious of before like parking in multi-storey car park, walking on ice/rain l know this sounds weird and l actually got kinesiology which worked on my energy level balance and finally helped me with that.

5. What effect do your symptoms have on daily life?

The headaches and fatigue can be debilitating so l get important things done first. l do gratitude and meditation and exercise as part of my morning routine which helps me with my symptoms l have trained in goal mapping both as a coach and facilitator and part of that coaching is about positive mind-set. I cry a lot more about any little thing it could be a story on the news or when l cut my daughters hair it was a trim but l didn’t do such a good job before l would have just laughed about it and said it will grow back. In this instance l started to cry. I have had to ask for help. Recently l got lost getting in a shopping centre, l got so upset came home and went to town on the bus. I got so upset when l saw my husband and explained the way l felt l was overwhelmed, felt stupid.

Didn’t know how l was going to fit in all my client work whilst l was tired and had to sort stuff out for Christmas with family coming over. Normally this is all fine, I am great at planning and having guests doesn’t phase me in fact I thrive on it. After listening to me cry and get really upset about the whole episode . He said all you need to do is tell me when you need help. I just try and manage like l always do, the thing is l always have been able to manage before and love cooking for my family and having family around. I have had to admit that l can’t do it all.

That is the truth l have had to come to terms with.

6. Have your symptoms affected your relationships with others?

I think it has, my children don’t understand when l forget things or l don’t hear when they mumble they don’t like it when l ask them the same question again, but they don’t realise l have different things going on. They seem to think l put everything in my life at moment on the menopause. I am lucky that my husband is understanding about my symptoms but he even doesn’t know about my anxiety.

7. How are you managing your menopause?

I am managing by reading about it, being in menopause groups. I would not have thought about going to the GP about my symptoms. If I had not done my own research and joined the groups that I have. Talking about it and showing articles to my husband to read has helped him to understand , but I don’t think he fully gets it.

My mum didn’t know what menopause was thinking back she lived through her symptoms without getting help. She must have thought it was part and parcel of the menopause. The thing is she had a hysterectomy and would have had a surgical menopause. I didn’t know that. I doubt if the surgeons or anyone explained any of that to her.

8. What has been the worst thing about the menopause for you?

Not knowing what menopause symptoms are. The tiredness and headaches have been the worst. If I didn't have these I would be fine! To be honest now I don’t see a light at the end of the tunnel.

9. What is the best thing to come out of your menopause journey?

Not having a period .

10. What do you want other women to know that may help them to get through the menopause?

Keep track of your dates of last period. l was asked about this so they could work out where l was in my menopause journey . I had not done this, so it was a guess. Also, it's helpful to track symptoms so you know if some food is triggering. I found out l could no longer tolerate orange juice, too much fried food or too spicy. I get heartburn with Black pepper. I discovered from the Naturopath that I am intolerant to wheat. I think some women do get this during the menopause. Since I found out and eating no wheat flour and products has certainly helped with the bloated feeling after a meal. I have made my own gluten free flour and made some Jamaica ginger cake and gingerbread using this. I buy a mix of none wheat flour from an Asian supermarket for making my chapatis.

I also have found that drinking aloe Vera Gel from Forever Living has helped with prevention of heartburn. I would rather take this then resort to Omeprazole which has major side effects.

Gratitude and meditation have really helped me . When we practice gratitude our stress level goes down . Meditation helps with this too. My cortisol levels were way too high so using this as my morning routine helps me set up for the day. I also practice breathing techniques throughout the day as this helps as well. These I love as they are natural and work with my bodies natural rhythm.

There is support available and important to know what outcome you want when you go to the doctor. The GP does not have to have mandatory training in menopause so we have to go in armed with the information and be assertive. I have been lucky that my surgery has doctors who specialise in women’s health. It is also important for those at work to ask for reasonable adjustments at work.

I also talk openly about the menopause. In my community it’s not something spoken about and l think the more we talk the more other women learn and realise they are not on their own. I have just read research which says that Asian Indian Women are more likely to have fatigue as a symptom. They don’t know why.

I have supplements l take which are glucosamine,menoserene, D3 l also take the Aloe Vera gel.

I was trying not to use HRT but the increased fatigue and headaches led me to try the first patch Evorel Conti helped with headaches but gave me period when it shouldn’t have and also it was no longer available so l have a different patch Elleste Solo MX40 with tablet Utrogestan 100mg to take daily. I will have to see how this one works. I have noticed my headaches are worse so if that doesn’t improve, I think I will just go off HRT and just keep with the rest of my routine. That’s a personal choice. Partly because I don’t know what HRT will bring so perhaps letting nature take its course may be the best for me.

The thing to remember is that there are many formulations available so it will be trial and see until you find one that helps. Also we are all different and how we react will be different. There are NICE guidelines available for the menopause which we should use with health professionals.

Me & My Menopausal Vagina by Jane Lewis which is recommended by GP’s, gynaecologists and women’s health physiotherapists. Its available on Amazon

Websites which I find useful are ;

www.menopausesupport.co.uk

www.menopausedoctor.co.uk

www.mymenopausalvagina.co.uk

https://menopause-exchange.co.uk/index.htm

Connect with Taruna:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarunachauhan

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tchauhan01

Website: https://tchauhanconsultancy.co.uk

More about Taruna:

Taruna Chauhan runs a business consultancy predominantly working in the Health and Care sector with those running a regulated activity under the Care Quality Commission ( CQC). She has recently published a book to help new providers to think about what is required for registration and the areas to think about before you even think about the application. This has received 5 star reviews.

She is a certified Goal mapping coach and facilitator helping mentees to develop their goals in work and personal life. She has used goal mapping to really move her business forward this year.

She is also a speaker and chair of the Dementia Action Alliance Coventry and Warwickshire this is a voluntary role as she is passionate about raising awareness of Dementia in her community.

She is a Business Mentor with the Association of Business Mentors.