Reframing menopause from loss to empowerment

Menopause is no longer hidden. Advances in science have given women safer treatments and more options, while social shifts have created space for open dialogue and empowerment. Together, these changes have reframed menopause as a natural, powerful transition rather than a decline.

In the UK, it’s estimated there are around 13 million women currently in peri- or menopausal phases, a third of the female population. Symptoms last for years and can vary from women to women.

Understanding the changes happening in the female body, and knowing the resources available to manage symptoms, is essential to navigating this stage of life and safeguarding our long-term health.

What Is Menopause (and Perimenopause)?

Menopause is the moment when a woman’s menstrual cycles permanently cease. A natural biological transition that typically occurs around age 51 in the UK, though it can vary. The preceding years -known as perimenopause- can begin in the late 30s or early 40s and last several years.

During this time, hormone oestrogen and progesterone levels fluctuate, leading to a total decrease of between 50-75% from pre-menopause levels.

Oestrogen and progesterone fall influence not just reproductive health but also bone density, skin elasticity, cardiovascular function, and cognitive  performance

Women may experience hot flushes, night sweats, brain fog, fatigue, joint stiffness, vaginal dryness, anxiety, mood swings, and weight gain. These symptoms often overlap and vary in intensity and duration from women to women.

How to treat menopause

Women today have access to a wide range of strategies to help manage the symptoms of menopause while safeguarding their long-term health.

👩🏿‍🤝‍👩🏻Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT): modern, body-identical HRT remains the gold standard for symptom relief and long-term health support (bones, cardiovascular, brain). It’s now more widely accepted and safer than earlier formulations.

👩🏿‍🤝‍👩🏻Strength Training & Resistance Exercise: lifting weights is among the most powerful tools in the menopause toolkit. It helps preserve muscle mass, support bone density, improve metabolism, and counteract the natural decline that accompanies hormonal shifts.

👩🏿‍🤝‍👩🏻Protein Intake: a higher daily protein target (1.2–1.6 g per kg body weight) supports muscle repair, satiety, and metabolic resilience during this transitional period.

UK Workplace & Economic Impact

Menopause isn’t just personal—it has wide societal repercussions. Women between ages 45–54 constitute 11% of the UK workforce. Recent research estimates that menopause-related symptoms cost the UK economy 14 million working days per year, due to absences, reduced hours, or early departure from work.

Surveys indicate 83% of women report no workplace support for menopause symptoms, and 67% of those aged 40–60 say symptoms negatively impact their  performance

The stakes are high: nearly 900,000 women in the UK have left jobs due to menopausal symptoms, many at the height of their careers.

Menopause and lifestyle

Menopause can also be seen through the lens of sustainability, both personal and planetary. As women navigate this transition, many naturally re-evaluate their lifestyle choices, seeking balance, resilience, and nourishment that align with long-term well-being.

Sustainable “lifestyle hacks” such as eating more plant-based protein, growing your own herbs and vegetables or walking or cycling instead of driving, not only ease menopausal symptoms but also reduce environmental  impact

In this way, menopause becomes a catalyst for aligning personal health with planetary health, encouraging women to live with greater intention, simplicity, and sustainability.

A new beginning

Perhaps the most radical change in perspective of the new menopause movement is viewing menopause not as loss, but as awakening. A natural progression into a mature, empowered phase of life. Many women discover renewed purpose, clarity, and leadership. Menopause is being reclaimed as a threshold, not a limit.

In this movement, women are finding new voices, demanding workplace support, reclaiming their health, and turning menopause into a time of embodied wisdom and reinvention. As women increasingly speak openly, the silence is breaking, and with it, a new era of midlife possibility is unfolding.