Talking really is the best medicine
The thought of going through the menopause is not a pleasing one for most women, while those on the other side of it wouldn’t likely volunteer to go back and do it all over again.
Along with greying hair and wrinkles, it is a natural part of ageing in which we get little say over how and when it happens – until now.
The news that doctors can delay the menopause for up to 20 years, with British fertility specialists already conducting the procedure, is another major scientific landmark. The physicians who are carrying out the operation say it could save women from health problems such as heart conditions and osteoporosis brought on by the menopause, while also delaying the onset of dreaded symptoms like hot flushes and night sweats.
While I can understand why women wouldn’t necessarily put themselves at the front of the queue to go through the menopause, it is just nature taking its course as we pass our reproductive years. And I can’t help but think we were
made the way we were for a reason and when we tamper with the natural order of things it can often lead to unforeseen consequences.
On the other hand, I’m all for women being able to take control of their own destiny and decide what is right for them and when it is right. That started with IVF and the contraceptive pill, both of which have been tremendous advances in family planning and fertility.
When it comes to the menopause though, I do find myself coming down on the “nature knows best” side, and I would rather see women being helped more to deal with the symptoms than delay the inevitable.
My friend is going through it right now and when we were chatting one night she said she had no idea the menopause was going to make her feel so anxious, or that she would be kept awake with hot flushes and night sweats. She’s retired now, but she believes she would have struggled to continue to work because of the intensity of her symptoms. Her husband was also completely unaware what women had to go through before he saw it happen to his own wife. His mother never mentioned what she was going through.
Today, there is much more awareness, so rather than bat the menopause further down the line and try to outrun nature, it would be better if we could all feel free to talk about it, be supported in coping with it, and get through it as painlessly as possible.