As we celebrate World Menopause Day, it’s important for us to reflect on how smashing the taboo is not just a battle that women must fight, but all people and businesses too. That’s why Accenture UK’s Managing Director Sarah Garton is on a mission to smash the taboo topic of menopause. She not only shares her personal story of struggling through the menopause, but also explains why it’s time for employers to provide more support for women going through the menopause at work.
Hot flushes, sleepless nights, mood swings, and brain fog; these are but a few of the challenges I faced as menopause took its physical toll on my body. Menopause is an experience that 50% of the population will encounter at some point during their adult lives; and yet it is seldom discussed openly in the world of work and beyond.
Hormonal health is a personal, and professional, issue; and can come at a pivotal time in our careers. A recent poll from the Newson Health Research and Education found many women took time off from work, or even left their jobs, due to lack of support for menopause. A huge 90% of respondents felt their perimenopausal or menopausal symptoms had a negative impact on their careers.
We must therefore question: why is the world of work so quiet on the inevitable effect of menopause? As we celebrate World Menopause Day, it’s important for us to reflect on how smashing the taboo is not just a battle that women must fight, but all people and businesses too.
A PERSONAL STORY
My story began five years ago when I was promoted to a Managing Director at Accenture; arguably one of the proudest and most challenging achievements of my life. Unbeknownst to me at the time, this coincided with my body beginning to display menopausal symptoms.
As I look back, it was clear that I ignored my early symptoms. It didn’t occur to me that I was going through menopause, even as the symptoms began to worsen. Within a year of my promotion – one I had worked so hard for – my self-esteem was at an all-time low. I grappled with anxiety, poor mental health and felt that I had lost all control of my emotions. Despite masking these struggles from my colleagues, my internal Imposter Syndrome was singing louder than ever. I was at the pinnacle of my career, and yet I had never been more miserable. Battling with the physical and mental manifestations of menopause, alongside a lack of sleep and confidence, I believed my struggles were down to being incapable of coping with the greater responsibilities of my job. How wrong I was.
On World Menopause Day three years ago, I signed up to an Accenture event called Breaking the Menopause Taboo; where not only were the physical challenges discussed, but the mental ones too. The penny finally dropped. I wasn’t depressed, incapable, or a fraud; I was a 47-year-old woman who had stopped producing oestrogen, a vital hormone that regulates serotonin – ‘the feel-good chemical’. It was the lightbulb moment I needed to seek support; including HRT. While it’s not something that works for everyone, I was soon back to ‘the old Sarah’. Free from the physical symptoms, and able to sleep at night, my confidence was reignited. Crucially, I stopped believing I was incapable of doing my job.
PROVIDING MENOPAUSE SUPPORT
Therefore, it is vital that businesses are aware and supportive of menopause. Had it not been for that event and my employer, I may well have thrown the towel in on my career. And I’m not alone, so many of us are unaware of hormonal changes and their impact on physical and mental health.
As businesses focus more on achieving gender equality and reducing the gender pay gap, they cannot ignore menopause and its effect on our professional lives. If senior leaders come as close to exiting the workforce as I did – before I had help – then businesses have a real problem. By supporting menopausal or perimenopausal employees and ensuring they feel seen and heard, businesses can make a real difference. Employers talk about their parental leave policies, or support for sick workers, why not break the silence on menopause? I’m evidence as to why that works.
OPEN DIALOGUE A MUST
It must start with an open dialogue. We need to be rid of any ‘shame’ we feel for experiencing something completely natural and normal. How can we recognise that it’s normal if the conversation isn’t taking place at all? This is the starting point to help build a more inclusive working environment, encouraging a safe space where people can talk freely about the challenges they face.
More open discussions mean employees are more likely to ask for help when they need it whilst, crucially, knowing the support is there in the first place. It’s not enough to talk the talk, organisations must walk the walk too. From offering greater flexibility to hosting internal education sessions. there is a wealth of options for businesses to explore. Employers can also make real progress to help refer their employees to menopause specialists, as part of any health benefits.
FEMTECH APPS
One area that businesses, such as ours, are addressing is the innovation and technology for women’s health. Women’s health research is extremely underfunded and only accounts for 4% of overall research and development funding for healthcare products and services, and 65% of this funding focuses on fertility. Hormonal health is drastically missing. Last year, Accenture Ventures announced a partnership with Springboard Enterprises, an organisation focused on women entrepreneurs and innovators, while offering connections to resources and strategic business partnerships to help supercharge innovation in women’s health.
It’s because of innovation that businesses are increasingly seeing the value in femtech apps, like Peppy, to support employee health and wellbeing. These harness the power of technology to offer personalised and flexible support for physical and mental health benefits. In the context of menopause, I find it useful to access virtual chat advice, consultations, and resources, all at my fingertips.
AWARENESS & ACTION
To summarise, in order to smash the menopause taboo, businesses must focus on two things: awareness and action. Open dialogue will help to spread awareness; it’s the first step to normalise menopause in the workplace. We must encourage menopausal or perimenopausal employees to seek help and speak freely, whilst making sure the right help is there in the first place.
Resources and information on menopause can help all employees, including men, to be armed with knowledge on how to support women with menopausal symptoms; at work and at home. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the workplace intervention when I did. More importantly, I’m proud of my personal journey. I’ve learnt that menopause isn’t a reason to hold myself back – in fact, I have never felt slimmer, fitter, or happier. I am free from the shackles of hormonal health and I want to do my part in smashing the menopause taboo once and for all.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Garton is a Managing Director in Accenture’s Operations business. She has worked, coached and mentored across the spectrum of outsourcing and operations. Her entire career has been about teams and people, customer service and dedicated operations professionals. Sarah believes it is her responsibility as a leader to create an environment where her colleagues feel seen, safe, connected and courageous and able to show up as their authentic selves every day.
Working women want employers to “up their game” and offer better support to women going through the menopause. Click here to read more.
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