Thread by @monaeltahawy

In Japan, the first study to focus on #menopause and work found that ‘menopausal loss’ affected one-fifth of women experiencing menopause, who quit, turned down promotions, reduced their working hours or were demoted as a result of their symptoms. nature.com/articles/d4158…

"Menopause often comes at a time when people move into more senior, more demanding roles. In research, as in other careers,this coincidence is almost certainly causing some to reconsider their career ambitions, adding yet another drain to the ‘leaky pipeline’ of women in science"

“How can I compete with men when I can’t sleep?” Andrea, 50, a senior executive at a Canadian financial services company. “I looked around the table at all the men and thought, ‘I can’t sleep. I sweat all the time. How can I ever compete with these guys?’” thestar.com/life/health_we…

I don't know how I would've navigated insomnia and anxiety if I weren't self-employed. I can't remember the last time I slept through the night. "Work" was not built by or for those of us who experience menopause and menopausal people pay the price

https://twitter.com/monaeltahawy/status/1546468921628303361?s=20&t=A0doZ32yALO7DRaNkaY32A

That is why I'm editing the menopause anthology #BloodyHell for @unbound. Check it out and pledge your support if you can and share with those who have funds.

unbound.com/books/bloody-h…

And why I write about menopause as often as I can.

Instead of my period, and the once-monthly shedding of the lining of my uterus, I am shedding the lining of patriarchal fuckery that I was socialized into.

feministgiant.com/p/moisturize-y…

Silence fuels shame.

Patriarchy deploys shame like a drone: it shadows you, ready to take you out any minute, exhausting you by keeping you forever aware of its presence to the detriment of all other things that you could be investing your attention in.

Menopause is shit.

Menopause is amazing.

I am learning, much to my thrill and awe, that one of the greatest gifts of the transition known as menopause is shamelessness. So, fuck silence.

New essay soon. Sign up. it's free. feministgiant.com

“I’d be up there teaching, feeling like I’m about to pass out and looking out at this sea of white young men...You are in a predominantly male career. Who are you going to talk to? You kind of suffer in silence,” Carlotta Berry, 51 nature.com/articles/d4158…

"The majority of women in the U.S. feel underprepared for the physical changes, treatments & stigma around menopause,a new survey shows. Menopause experts say this underscores a crucial need for awareness & open communication around the realities of aging" fortune.com/well/2022/06/1…

The State of Menopause 2022 survey
hellobonafide.com/pages/state-of…

It is not just cis women who experience menopause.

Remember nonbinary people, trans men, and other gender non-conforming groups who also experience menopause and do so under even greater levels of silence & taboo.

#BloodyHell is an inclusive anthology unbound.com/books/bloody-h…

When my tweet about menopause say "women" it is because I am quoting from articles or surveys that focus on cis women.

In my own writing and work, I try to be as inclusive as possible. Zero tolerance for bigotry or transphobia. feministgiant.com