There is a growing awareness that menopause and the period leading up to it (perimenopause) can be a very challenging time for professional women who try to hold down their positions while experiencing debilitating symptoms.
As a result of this awareness, businesses are waking up to the fact that they must do better to understand and support their female employees going through menopause. At Lenovo, that action is centered around the Menopause Employee Resource Group (ERG), which launched on World Menopause Day in 2022 with the help of Global Strategic Channel Partnerships Director, Jane Ashworth. Jane’s own experiences of menopause challenges, coupled with her understanding of the experiences of other women around her, were the inspiration behind the development of the group.
Why did you set up the Menopause ERG and what impact has it had?
We set up the Menopause ERG to support female employees at Lenovo who were struggling in silence. One brave employee who worked for me sent an anonymous email to many females at Lenovo saying, I’m struggling with Menopausal symptoms. Are you going through the same thing? Could we get together and do something?’. I didn’t know who else was on this email, but at the time I just remember how amazing this woman was for taking this step out of her comfort zone.
From this, we started group conversations, which were so refreshing. We were able to talk in a safe space and share our experiences and knowledge we’d built up through our own struggles to build a group that all employees could gain support from.
From those conversations, we officially launched the Lenovo Menopause Employee Resource Group in October 2022, through an all employee webinar on World Menopause Day. It was one of the most attended webinars we’ve ever done, and not only by females. We had a specialist talk about what menopause is, how it affects women, and how to help, as well as individuals sharing their personal stories. I’d been embarrassed to share my story for so long, but after speaking out, the reaction was incredible, with people telling me they’d been in tears listening to my story and how inspiring and brave I was to tell it. From that moment I’ve been empowered to go on to help others through the journey.
How has your work in this area been informed by your own experience?
I started to suffer from perimenopausal symptoms eight years ago, they crept up on me one by one very slowly. I couldn’t retain information as well as I used to; my patience was not what it used to be; my anxiety levels were increasing; and my mood was up and down. I had a demanding job managing 60 people in a fast-paced industry, so I did what we women tend to do, and I just got on with it. But as time went on, it really hit me psychologically and emotionally, and I began to feel down. I was in a male-dominated environment, and I didn’t even know what was wrong with me, let alone feel able to share what was happening with somebody else or reach out for support. Then the physical symptoms I was experiencing started to become pretty debilitating, and I could no longer ignore them. I was at a customer conference in Italy and trying to find a pharmacy or a doctor using the tiny bit of Italian I could speak; I felt embarrased about the whole situation and even having to talk about it. Later, I realised there are so many stories like mine—so many women putting up with unpleasant and debilitating symptoms while having to tough it out at work.
What challenges did you face at work due to menopause and how did you deal with them?
Many women in the workplace feel that they will be perceived a certain way, and as a result, we tend to overcompensate. For me, that meant I felt that I should always remain overly calm. When my symptoms hit, I couldn’t control that as well as I used to—I’d get upset more quickly and take things very personally. As a senior leader, I felt I couldn’t show my emotions, sadness, and lack of confidence—and that felt very lonely and isolating.
Then came a lightbulb moment. I head up the Women in Lenovo D&I group for the UK and Ireland, and we had a big annual award ceremony. I was talking with some women from Lenovo when they started discussing issues they were having around menopause. We compared stories, and they told me I needed to get to a doctor, even recommending a specialist in menopause symptoms. I wasn’t hugely hopeful because previous doctor visits had resulted in a prescription for antidepressants (a common experience for menopausal women), but after discussing my symptoms, she told me we were going to fix it— I was just so relieved. I started taking HRT, and a month later I felt I was back on track.
What has Lenovo done to amplify the conversation and provide support?
There are 10 of us on the Menopause ERG steering committee, and we have all been ‘menopause trained’. We’re not there to give health guidance, but we can signpost where to get help. We have also set up an online share point, which we regularly update with reference guides such as the menopause checklist, which women can complete to understand where they might be in the process— helpful for having a more informed conversation with a GP. We also post help and advice for family members.
We have also encouraged Lenovo to join Peppy, a brilliant app with consultants in chat rooms to help and give good advice about how you’re feeling and why.
Is menopause a ‘women’s’ issue or an ‘all of us’ conversation?
When we launched the Menopause ERG, we ensured that invitations to webinars and events were for everybody. Everyone is impacted by menopause because everyone has a wife, mother, friend, employee, sister, or boss who will experience it. So, everyone must educate themselves. After one of our early webinars, a man at Lenovo told me that his wife was going through a terrible time—feeling depressed and experiencing severe symptoms—and shared how he, too, is impacted by it. He has since been through an amazing journey—with the help of our resources.
How important is leadership in advancing menopause awareness?
As leaders, we must lead by example. Menopause is a very personal thing to talk about, but it’s also a great and necessary thing to do, particularly for middle-aged female leaders in the IT sector. Male dominance at the senior levels can often make it hard to talk about. I was nervous about speaking out, but other women gave me the strength to say things. That camaraderie and support network is so important.
What is the biggest barrier to creating a more inclusive culture around menopause now?
General education around menopause has historically been lacking, and, to some extent, it still is. Around 25 million women pass through menopause in the world each year, and it is affecting women earlier and earlier. Despite all that, menopause hasn’t been an acceptable topic of conversation. Why? We talk about going through our monthly cycle, so why don’t we talk about the menopause? It takes a lot of brave women to stand up and say, ‘Hey, this is what I’m going through. Are you going through the same thing? Can I help you? Where can I get help?’ It really is up to us to stop feeling embarrassed and start talking about it. We need to drive the momentum that says it’s okay to discuss this because that is how we will help everyone.
Moving the dial…creating a more positive framework
The everywoman webinar Positive Menopause: Your Next Powerful Phase was held on World Menopause Day on the 18th October and was a chance for everywomanNetwork members to come together to discuss how women—and workplaces —can better support this transition. Jane was joined by Accenture’s Sarah Garton and TOYL’s Karen Davis, who discussed their own experiences with menopause, the challenges they faced, and what they’ve learned about navigating this important time.
Key takeaways:
You’re not alone. At any one time, a large percentage of women are going through perimenopause and menopause, many of whom are struggling with their symptoms. ‘Going through menopause taught me to be brave and talk about it,’ says Jane. ‘ I realised that I wasn’t alone, and there’s a community of people out there that actually really want you to talk about it because they’re struggling too.’
Menopause can also be a time of great positivity, allowing you to redefine yourself and discover new power and drive. It represented a new beginning for Sarah: ‘The menopause is not the end. In fact, it can be the start of something completely new for you. I recently heard the phrase ‘queenager’, referring to a woman in her midlife who is comfortable with her age and lives as freely as she did as a teenager. I love that because it absolutely describes where I am now. I’m stronger, fitter, and healthier than I have ever been.’
Regular health checks are vital. It can be difficult to know where you are in the menopause journey and which impacts are related to it, and everyone’s journey is different. Says Jane: ‘The key thing is to make sure you’re having regular check-ups and conversations with your GP or health adviser to make sure that you have the symptoms that you’re personally going through at any point in time under control.’
Speaking up is vital. Getting rid of the stigma can only happen if we normalise the menopause conversation and create visibility around the challenges and support that’s needed. ‘There’s always got to be someone first in an organisation,’ says Karen. ‘If you feel able to go forward and be brave enough to have a conversation within your own organisation, you’d be doing a favour to so many women down the line and how they feel about the ways in which the menopause impacts them at work.’
Male allies are needed to augment positive change. Enlisting support and raising awareness of menopause is key to moving the dial and increasing support and understanding in the workplace. ‘We only break the taboo by having deeply uncomfortable conversations. And the first step is to normalise that conversation in the workplace because until we do that, men and women will struggle to even broach the conversation,’ says Sarah.
It’s an opportunity to grow your visibility. ‘I love my job. But for the last four years, what’s really kicked me out of bed every day is the side-of-desk stuff I do around championing menopause,’ says Sarah. ‘It’s opened up a whole new set of opportunities. I’ve met some incredible people; I blog, do interviews and panels, and enjoy it. It’s allowed me to find a voice. If you want to remain visible at work, try something new and exciting and go and reinvent yourself. I am living proof you can do that, and it feels incredible.’
