Real Food Stories

109. It's Time to Start Talking About Menopause in the Workplace

• Heather Carey • Season 4 • Episode 109

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Have you ever considered how menopause might be affecting your career or your workplace wellbeing? 

Many women, despite making up half of the workforce, grapple with challenges during menopause that often remain unspoken, from brain fog and fatigue to anxiety. In this episode of Real Food Stories, I address a crucial conversation around menopause in the workplace that needs to be addressed.  By sharing startling statistics and real-life experiences, we bring to light the pressing need for workplaces to become more menopause-friendly, much like they've adapted to support mental health and parental leave.

I delve into strategies that can break the silence and create a supportive environment for those navigating menopause. Encouraging open discussions with coworkers, friends, and HR departments can foster a workplace culture of understanding and compassion. This episode is a call to action for companies to recognize menopause as a legitimate workplace issue and for individuals to prioritize self-care. 

Together, we can create environments where women feel empowered to share their experiences without fear of stigma or career setbacks.

My Linkedin Article - Menopause in the Workplace: Why It’s Time to Start Talking About It

I would love to hear from you! What did you think of the episode? Share it with me :)

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Speaker 1:

Hi everybody and welcome back to the Real Food Stories podcast. I'm so glad to be back here. It's been a few weeks. I had to take a couple weeks off because I finally, after five years, got COVID and I was starting to think that I had some super immunity against it. And clearly I thought wrong and I got hit really hard with it. Now, not sure if it's because I've never had it I am up to date on my vaccines but nonetheless I still got it and it would not let go of me for a few weeks.

Speaker 1:

So I've blogged about this last week and the week before because that's literally all I could do. I could not talk for a couple weeks and I was not really feeling good, and I'll link those in the show notes if you want to read a little bit more about my experience. But if I could say one thing about recovering from illness that I have learned, it is this Be as kind and as compassionate to yourself as you can possibly be, allow yourself to get taken care of by others. I mean also some obvious other things that some people neglect Hydrate and rest like it is your full-time job. I hope this never happens to me again, but it very well might, and for someone who is a recovering perfectionist who, like I said, almost never gets sick. This was a huge learning lesson for me. And okay, well, I'm back and happy to be back, because being sick is no fun at all. All right, so, as you know, I coach women in midlife and the menopause transition to help them feel their best and be their healthiest during this time of their lives. But there is a piece of this equation that rarely gets talked about, and that is women in midlife and menopause and the workplace. In addition to working with women one-on-one and in group settings, I also run corporate wellness programs for companies, group settings. I also run corporate wellness programs for companies, healthy online cooking classes, webinars, and I'm launching a variety of programs right now geared towards women's wellness in the workplace, specifically looking at menopause, because there is an unmet and growing need for this and we need to talk about it Now.

Speaker 1:

You don't believe me. Women have been silently struggling with menopause for as long as there have been women in menopause on the planet, and that's kind of forever. But let's talk about some numbers and see if this resonates with you. Here's a few statistics 1.3 million women enter menopause each year in the United States, one in four women consider leaving their jobs because of menopause symptoms, and 67% of women say they feel unsupported at work during menopause. And yet most workplaces don't even acknowledge menopause. And yet most workplaces don't even acknowledge menopause.

Speaker 1:

Now, menopause is not just a personal health issue. It is also a workplace issue. It affects productivity, retention and mental well-being. Now, the symptoms that you might know of if you are in the middle of going through menopause brain fog, fatigue, disrupted sleep, hot flashes, anxiety, just to start naming a few all have a direct impact on how we show up at work. Now, I have my own business and I show up for myself most of the time, and I know how it feels just for me. So going into a larger corporate setting can feel daunting when you've got a lot of these symptoms coming, affecting your life. And here's the kicker Menopause happens right at the peak of our careers.

Speaker 1:

We're experienced, we're leaders, we're running teams, we're running companies, and yet many of us feel unsupported, dismissed or even pushed out. We might even call it ageism getting kicked out but there is a menopause component going on here. Women make up half of the workforce, yet menopause is treated like a totally taboo subject, and here's the reality. It's costing companies millions in lost productivity, talent retention and healthcare costs. So today we're going to dive into why menopause needs to be part of the workplace conversation, how it's affecting women's careers and what companies and we, as women, can do about it. So let's dive in. All right, let's talk about the biggest workplace challenges. What does menopause feel like and actually look like in the workplace?

Speaker 1:

As a woman going through menopause, you may feel everything from brain fog and productivity struggles such as you're in a meeting and forget a simple word. Your thoughts feel scrambled, you start to question your abilities. I get this. I feel this often. You might be feeling hot flashes and just physical discomfort. For example, you're in a suit, it's freezing cold in the office and suddenly you're drenched in sweat. I mean, that can be totally embarrassing. Fatigue and sleep disruption Many, many women do not sleep well during this time, so you're waking up multiple times a night. By mid-afternoon you can barely keep your eyes open. Or what about stress and anxiety? You're juggling work, family life, your parents, and now your body feels like it's betraying you, and that can feel really overwhelming. Now imagine going through all of this but feeling like you can't talk about it. I mean, menopause itself is enough of a secret, just in our personal lives. It's just not talked about that often. Right Then, put yourself into your workplace.

Speaker 1:

This is where the stigma of menopause in the workplace becomes a problem. Many women suffer in silence because they don't want to be seen as weak or less capable, and companies need to start making some changes. So what needs to change in corporate settings for women? So what needs to change in corporate settings for women? As far as I see it, companies need to start stepping up, because here's the truth Menopause-friendly workplaces are the future. We have rights for pregnant women, we have rights for other health care issues in the workplace, and menopause needs to be put into this category too. So, like I said, some companies are starting to actively implement mental health support, parental leave, pregnancy rates, breastfeeding rooms, but menopause is still largely and mostly ignored. So here's, I think, what companies can do to support midlife women who are going through the menopause transition.

Speaker 1:

First of all, the obvious one is acknowledge that menopause is a workplace issue and not just a personal issue and a secret. Just like maternity leave or mental health, menopause deserves policy considerations. Two offer menopause-specific wellness programs. Nutrition, stress management. Hormonal health should be part of corporate wellness, not just an afterthought. Three, create a supportive workplace culture. Open conversations, human resource policies, flexible work options can all help women stay engaged and productive.

Speaker 1:

And another thing to consider is how women themselves, how we can advocate for ourselves. Let's talk about what we women can do, because waiting around for change isn't always an option right, and we do need to take responsibility for our own health and well-being. So here's how you can advocate for yourself at work. The first and most important thing is to get educated on menopause. The more you understand your body, the more confidently you can start communicating your needs. You could also start a conversation with human resources, your manager, your co-workers Change starts with awareness. And, most importantly, prioritize your nutrition and lifestyle support. We can't just be a passive player in our midlife and menopause experience. We also need to take responsibility for our own health and well-being. So managing menopause isn't just about surviving. It's about thriving. What you eat, how you move, how you manage stress, your sleep this all plays a role in how you feel.

Speaker 1:

So I'm going to end this episode right now because I want to keep this conversation going on the outside of this podcast. Let's stop pretending that menopause is not happening. It's real, it's normal and it deserves to be part of the workplace conversation. Now I wrote a lengthy article on LinkedIn which I will put in the show notes, and I would love to hear from you in those comments, because I know that many of you are on LinkedIn. So here's a few questions I wanted to ask have you ever felt unsupported at work during menopause and what changes would you like to see in workplaces? So again, send me a message, comment on my LinkedIn post and share your experience with me, and I'm going to put that link in the show notes. And if your workplace is already starting to support midlife women with real solutions, I offer workplace wellness programs, like I said earlier, designed specifically for menopause, and I would love to talk to you about that as well.

Speaker 1:

So let's change the conversation together. All right? Thank you so much for tuning in today. If you found this episode helpful, please share it with a friend, a coworker or even your human resource department. The more we talk about menopause, the more change we can create. So until next time, take care and nourish yourself well. Bye for now.