Thread by @leahida

It’s #WorldMenopauseDay and I’m a very pissed off menopausal person with some thoughts.

First off, how is it that in 2022 it feels like we are barely approaching the awareness phase, even though basically half of humans go through this experience? A rant 🧵1/

CN: Suicide
Sorry to be a bummer, but did you know that the highest suicide rates for AFAB people are in the 45-54 age range? HELLO, THOSE ARE THE MENOPAUSAL YEARS. We are literally dying. Why aren't more people talking about this? 2/

healtheuropa.com/menopausal-wom…

Also, it irritates me that it's apparently OK to vaguely talk about irritability and mood swings, but not that extreme states/psychosis may also be initiated or exacerbated by menopause? Could it be that we're scared to raise the specter of "hysteria?" 3/

thecut.com/2018/12/is-est…

I’m furious about how menopause intersects with ableism, ageism, misogyny, sexism, and white supremacy. It's enraging but unsurprising that BIPOC experiences of menopause have received far less attention and study than white ones. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P… 4/

Rarely do we talk about or study neurodivergent people and menopause, although menopause hits us HARD. There is maybe one study in existence that centers #ActuallyAutistic voices on menopause. Please correct me if I'm wrong on that, hope that I am. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P… 5/

HCPs are barely aware of peri/menopause. THAT INCLUDES OB-GYNS. Where is the training? When we go to care providers for help, we are dismissed, or have antidepressants pushed on us when our challenges are hormonal (exacerbated by societal fuckery). 6/ aarp.org/health/conditi…

There's almost no awareness/education that if you’ve experienced lifetime trauma, including the trauma of poverty, that your experience of peri/menopause could be more intense. And there's even less support, although lifetime trauma is hugely common. 7/

neurosciencenews.com/trauma-hormone…

In the UK, you can get Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) over the counter. That's because folks fought and campaigned for it. I get that access is still not easy or equitable and that there are HRT shortages. But across the pond, we’ve got bupkes OTC. 8/
theguardian.com/society/2022/j…

We are having to quit our jobs and are forced out of work, causing economic instability. There’s talk in the UK about menopause workplace protections, which I'm sure will exclude working class folks. But there is barely a whisper about this in the US. 9/
morganlewis.com/pubs/2022/10/u…

Then there are all the celebrity menopause influencers, who often don’t seem nearly as interested in using their platforms to support organizing and fighting for justice, as they are in selling us overpriced creams and vag spritzes and building up their personal brands. 10/

There's all the menopause startups/telehealth apps, capitalizing on the fact that people can’t get help from their health care providers. But boutique services like @EvernowHealth are expensive AF and not covered by health insurance (if you even have access to insurance). 11/

Let's talk about how cishet-dominated menopause conversations are. Those of us with queer, genderqueer, trans, or nonbinary identities are totally lost in and alienated by all the “Hey ladies!” and women-only messaging. MENOPAUSE DOES NOT ONLY HAPPEN TO STRAIGHT WOMEN. 12/

Huge appreciation and gratitude for the inclusive and accessible work of @Osunsweetnsour @nina_packebush
@monaeltahawy @tania_glyde @heathercorinna
I'd love to know who else is educating & providing resources about menopause outside the binary and cis/comphet frameworks? end/