My Menopause: The Double-Edged Sword That Liberated Me To Rediscover And Re-Connected Me To Be Roisin Again.
My menopause and my midlife health, like many other women, played havoc with my life. It was when my body went through so much disruption, chaos and turmoil, health-wise. Physically, mentally and emotionally. Taking me completely of my comfort zone I had no control of my emotions. I would cry for no reason at all. This was not me or who I was.
It was also a time of great personal healing and personal empowerment. My Menopause gave me a determination and inner strength I thought I’d lost.
I started to research menopause after interviewing experts and speaking to women on the topic of menopause on my local radio show Woman to Woman on Community Radio Kilkenny City 88.7fm in 2018.
I also used my platform with the support of my station manager to break the taboo within the local media and discuss the issues of midlife menopausal health for women.
Through doing all this I realised what was happening to me, I wasn’t going mad, or losing my mind. Oh, the brain fog and exhaustion. I would be in the middle of presenting a programme live on air, and in a split second forget the name of the guest and what we were talking about. I then started to put post its in front of me for a while.
Oh, the dreadful hot flushes, hormonal weight gain, and the impact this all has on our midlife body. The consequences it has on our overall health.
Along with the fact I have not slept since the beginning of my peri menopause 12 years ago at the age of 42. Through speaking to experts, I discovered I had 95% of all the symptoms of the menopause.
After going to two menopause talks, I felt free and liberated with the knowledge I was not alone. As the menopause can be so isolating and lonely. Yes, I had low moods, but not depression. I had brain fog, not the onsets of dementia as my grown-up daughter feared.
The relief within me in the new knowledge that I was not losing my marbles, that it was in-fact my body in the transitional phases of the miracle mother nature way of ending fertility and puberty in reverse.
But oh, my golly gee, the impact of the symptoms cycle had on me, due to the various signals and bodily change of the peri menopause and then the menopause had really affected me physically, emotionally and mentally in all areas of my life. It was exhausting, turbulent challenging and unpleasant.
However, through all this chaos happening to my body, subconsciously, I was re connecting with me, who I was as a woman, and an individual.
I returned to mainstream education during my perimenopause, to study Media and Public Relations in IT Carlow at the age of 47, as a very mature student as you can imagine the granny in the class. It was challenging to say the least.
On a positive, I discovered my creativity was one of my personal strengths. I loved art, although technology is not a strength.
My dissertation was on A Comparative Analysis of Male and Female Politicians’ Media Experiences in Ireland.
Through my dissertation, by pure default, I discovered my voice through my creativity and developed the Woman to Woman Show. For someone who had no interest in the media aspect of my course and gave my radio studio slots to the younger students, saying sure I am too old to want to be on the radio.
Through all this chaos I also found my voice, even if it was like a frightened squeaky mouse at the beginning of presenting my radio show. My imposture syndrome began to leave me, then to further produce and present the Start Me Up Business Programme on CRKC.
Through the turmoil of menopause came clarity and validation and freedom for me as a woman and individual who was in my midlife. I found myself again.
I started to put myself and midlife and menopause health first. This was a challenge to begin with for me. As a woman who had been parenting alone for 23 years after my separation and divorce, with the sole responsibility of single handily raising my children. I had to relearn this habit and behaviour of putting me first. Afterall my children were now adults.
I created a chapter and phase in my life where I could re empower myself with renewed self-confidence, re charge, my self -esteem self- value, to show self-care an self-love after years of nurturing everyone else.
Menopause can be a very challenging time, but it can also be a period of personal empowerment and healing for many women.
For me, personally, my body’s transition into the peri menopause and menopause phase have and still is challenging at times. However, this phase in my midlife has been the most empowering and liberating time of my life.
A time of personal healing and growth the menopause phase has re-empowered me, in all areas of my life, I am now myself again. Roisin,
My menopause was also a time of creativity great personal healing and liberation even though all the chaos and turmoil of the peri menopause and menopause symptoms’ cycle. I re-learned to put myself & my midlife health first. It gave me the chuppah I needed in my life. As a professional coach I coached myself and practiced what I preached and developed my own self – management mindset to get me through this fogginess and turbulence of this phase in my life. Along with me taking control of my menopause and preventing my menopause from controlling me and my life.
Now in the post menopause phase of my life, (4 years since my last monthly period) sleep insomnia is still here, two months ago to try to adjust my sleep, I went on a 3-month trial of HRT, to add estrogen, the hormone which is needed for sleep. Unfortunately, it does not appear to agree with me, although early days, so I don’t know if I will be continuing on with the prescription after the 3-month trial.
I developed a quite polite attitude, that anyone’s opinion of me is none of my business. For the first time in my life, I like who I am. Furthermore, what is important, is that women’s midlife and menopause health matters to me.
For me through the chaos it was also a time, space and place in my life for personal empowerment for me to be me rediscover my creativity and a time of reconnecting, rediscovering me again after a lifetime of putting everyone else before myself.
The Menopause phase has re motivated me, in all areas of my life. I found my voice again , I re-learned to put myself & my health first and learnt to say “No”.
It a time for me to embrace my past life experiences, the good and the bad. Seeing, feeling and hearing it all as wisdom and knowledge.
My menopause was also a time of creativity great personal healing and liberation even though all the chaos and turmoil of the peri menopause and menopause symptoms’ cycle. I re-learned to put myself & my midlife health first. It gave me the chuppah I needed in my life. As a professional coach I coached myself and practiced what I preached and developed my own self – management mindset to get me through this fogginess and turbulence of this phase in my life. Along with me taking control of my menopause and preventing my menopause from controlling me and my life.
Rediscovering my creativity with colour, energy, and vitality even during the days I need to pause, to take time out for my body to rest when I need to. Listening to my body, for my menopause to flow with mother nature’s role.
I now understand that my midlife menopause symptom’s cycle, is my body transmitting its own unique signals as a communication channel telling me what is happening to me and why.
There is a lot of negativity within our communities, society, in our workplaces and within the media about a women’s midlife health and the menopause phase of her life.
However, there are many positives too when we understand what is happening during the turbulence of the transition of the physical, mental and emotional changes going through a woman’s body and our lives.
However, it is also a wonderful time and phase in a woman’s life, a time of re connecting to her self -confidence, courage and creativity in her life.
Then there is a sense of liberation and personal empowerment. We just need to communicate this and break that taboo.
Only we women can do this, therefore empowering our younger generation, with the knowledge, wisdom, and life experiences to clear the path of a smoother transition of their midlife and menopause health and phase of their lives.
We, women, need to take time out to celebrate mother nature’s way of ending fertility and childbearing years, pausing and taking time to rest when we need to. Soothing the transitional stages and phases of being a woman.
Confident Women Ireland provides individual supports for women experiencing perimenopause and menopause. We offer one-to-one coaching, group sessions, and holistic half-day sessions, which includes treatments and two coaching sessions. And we provide mindset coaching to help you to navigate this challenging and enriching phase of your life.
To take the first steps, all you have to do is call Roisin directly on 087 418 7507 or email: info@confidentwomenireland.ie