BBC5 Live Menopause show

Last week I was invited to go to the BBC5 Live studio in Manchester to join a discussion about menopause.
Yesterday I jumped on a train excited to be given another opportunity to share my message about menopause and the positive and negative impact it can have on a women.
Meg Matthews (Meg’s Menopause) was the guest editor and the show was brilliantly hosted by the lovely  Nihal Arthanayake (who is now very educated about the menopause ;-))
The First hour was a discussion with Dr Louise Newson and Diane Danzebrink (http://menopausesupport.co.uk) with Professor Helen Stokes – Lampard, (pictured left) Chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners.
The second hour was with Dr Newman, Meg, myself, Bridget (WI), Jayne Harrison (Menopause cafe) and Ola Fagbohun (menopause cafe). This was a more relaxed, on the sofa, setting where we discussed the menopause and how it affects women. We heard some sad (yet typical) stories about how women are suffering. One women told us how she had been suffering for 20 years, this was heart breaking and unnecessary). A few men contacted the show to say thank you for discussing it on the radio as they didn’t know how to help their wives.
I had so much more I wanted to say on the show!  Dr Newman and Meg are very pro HRT but they were fairly dismissive of supplements and alternative therapies. I am also pro HRT as it saved my life but not all women can or want to use it. I felt it a little biased but then maybe i was just a bit sensitive to womans needs.
There wasn’t much discussion about nutrition and lifestyle changes to support women going through the transition.
I’m so pleased that the BBC are airing this topic so openly as the more we talk the more women will feel they can get help.
 
You can listen again on catch up here (expires 22nd May 2018) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0b01drn