Menopause is a normal and often undiscussed life stage
In recent years, celebrities have been more outspoken about their experiences with menopause, with some negative, and some positive.
Actress Gwenyth Paltrow said she could feel the hormonal shifts happening in her body. She said, "You're all of a sudden furious for no reason."
While actress Traci Ellis Ross said, "I'm the sexiest I've ever been. And when I say that, I mean I feel the most myself."
Actress Naomi Watts experiences perimenopause in her later 30s. She said, "I'd wake up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat. My skin was dry and itchy. My hormones were all over the place. I remember feeling so confused and alone, like I didn't have control over my own body."
Watts said there was not a lot of support for her at the time. She said there's an "unwritten code of silence. Women should suck it up and cope, because that's how generations passed have done it."
Last month, the Food and Drug Administration removed "black box" warning labels from hormone drugs used to treat menopause symptoms, after years of urging from doctors and patients that the warnings were not supported by science and overstated risks from cancer to dementia.
On Tuesday's "Sound of Ideas," we'll talk to doctors and a patient about menopause and perimenopause. We'll discuss misconceptions, stigma, and new access to treatment for millions of women going through this life stage.
Guests:
- Rachel Pope, M.D., OB/GYN & Chief of Female Sexual Health, University Hospitals
- Juliann Sutton, Patient
- Erika Kelley, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist, University Hospitals & Associate Professor, Department of Reproductive Biology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
