205 - Author Joanne Harris: ending the invisibility of menopausal women

05/23/23 • 28 min

Bestselling author of Chocolat Joanne Harris joins Dr Louise Newson to talk about her latest book, Broken Light.

Broken Light’s protagonist is Bernie, a 49-year-old who has given her life to her family and friends, and feels invisible. But Bernie finds her supernatural powers as she reaches the menopause, which becomes a metaphor for the anger of women in later life who are too often silenced in art and reality.

In this episode, Joanne talks about her own menopause experience, and her and Dr Louise discuss their work in ensuring the voices of women are heard as they get older – and the progress that still needs to be made.

Joanne’s four reasons to read her new novel:

Menopause is a universal experience that needs to be understood. The way women feel shapes our world and shouldn’t be ignored
Because if you are a woman you will experience the menopause
If you are man, menopause will also be part of your experience at some point, and you need to be informed
Because it is a fun read!

Click here to find out more about Joanne Harris, and follow her on Twitter at @Joannechocolat

Bestselling author of Chocolat Joanne Harris joins Dr Louise Newson to talk about her latest book, Broken Light.

Joanne’s four reasons to read her new novel:

Menopause is a universal experience that needs to be understood. The way women feel shapes our world and shouldn’t be ignored
Because if you are a woman you will experience the menopause
If you are man, menopause will also be part of your experience at some point, and you need to be informed
Because it is a fun read!

Click here to find out more about Joanne Harris, and follow her on Twitter at @Joannechocolat

Previous Episode

204 - Hormonal changes and mental health: maternal mental health awareness

Advisory: this podcast contains themes of mental health and suicide.

Earlier this month Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week was marked across the UK. In this week’s episode Emma Hammond, an employment lawyer specialising in advising women who have experienced discrimination due to the menopause, generously shares her own story.

After a traumatic birth with her first child, Emma developed serious symptoms, including psychosis and not sleeping or eating, that ultimately led to medication and hospitalisation. While she wanted a second child, her periods stopped and she was told she was perimenopausal – but an unexpected development took place soon after she was admitted to a mental health hospital.

Here she and Dr Louise talk about the powerful role of hormones in women during pregnancy, birth and perimenopause, and how hormones can be overlooked by healthcare professionals caring for women struggling with their mental health.

This podcast follows an earlier episode with Emma where she talked about her career, and offered advice on menopause in the workplace.

Emma’s three tips:

See your GP promptly if you are struggling with your mental health and don’t think you can fix everything yourself
Be honest and open with your family and friends about what you are going through so that they can support you
Think about life changes and holistic approaches as well as hormonal treatments or medication.

Next Episode

206 - Utrogestan supply issues: what it means and alternatives available

The supply of HRT medication Utrogestan is being restricted by the UK government because of shortages amid increase demand.

Pharmacies will only dispense two months’ worth of Utrogestan 100mg capsules per prescription to help ensure continued access for women.

In this special episode, Newson Health pharmacist prescriber and menopause specialist Faiza Kennedy joins Dr Louise to talk about the restrictions, and where and how to seek advice and help.

They talk about the importance of taking a progesterone as part of your HRT regime if you still have a womb, as well as alternatives to Utrogestan, including progesterone in pessary form, the Mirena coil and combined forms of HRT containing both estrogen and progesterone.

Faiza’s top three tips:

Only order the amount of Utrogestan you need to help everyone get through the shortfall
Be organised about ordering your HRT prescriptions. Do it about two weeks before you run out so you have time in case you have any difficulties getting your supply or need to seek an alternative
Reach out for help if you are struggling with your supply

Click here for a balance article for more information about the current Utrogestan supply restrictions, plus alternatives.

You can read more about Faiza here.