Many of you will know I started this year reading “Menopausing” by Davina McCall and Dr Naomi Potter, and was stunned by how little information is out there on menopause. Given that it is something that ALL women will go through in their lifetime, (assuming they live past their 40’s) there is so little research, information and understanding on it.

It is still not a compulsory part of GP training in the UK, despite various campaigns to change that, and many GP’s mistake menopausal symptoms for depression, so women all over the place are being prescribed anti-depressants instead of oestrogen. The symptoms are so vague and wide-ranging that it is hard to pin-point what’s one thing or another. The tests are irritatingly inconclusive. Almost a million women in the UK alone have had to leave the workforce prematurely because of menopausal symptoms being untreated and unrecognised in the workplace.

I heard a lot of “Don’t be ridiculous, you’re far too young for menopause” (1 in 100 women will go into menopause under 45), but it’s just so hard to KNOW for sure. Think about the symptoms for a minute: