Have any of you lost a job or left a job or been sidelined from a job or otherwise had your income adversely affected due to menopause?

[Sostu]

Because I have. Got let go a couple of weeks ago after being put on performance monitoring when I developed menopause symptoms. I have worked since I was 16 years old and the six month period where my performance was monitored was the most stressful and humiliating period of my working life. I feel like an absolute failure but I know this can't be right. I bumped into a friend who I haven't seen for years in the supermarket today and the exact same thing has happened to her. She is on sleeping pills! This is same as me a lady who has always worked and is definitely not a shirker and nor am I.

I am trying to get myself together and apply for other jobs but I just feel so deflated and useless and I don't know how to get past this.

How on earth do I explain my reasons for losing this job to a new employer and how do I get past this?

I just feel so lost.

This is so depressing. I had a coil fitted so had no idea when my periods stopped. I didn't realise I was peri, but my anxiety was awful. I was frightened of going to work.
I worked in Compliance in banking and had to leave. I just couldn't do it any more. I was lucky to get redundancy and now work part time.
It's affected my driving too. I hate driving with anyone else in the car.

It is not a 'protected characteristic ' unless it qualifies due to age and/or disability.
I cannot believe that 1/3 of women give up work because of the menopause.
Who carried out this study and how many women responded? .
Those who suffer badly can get medical help and it is not a life-long disability.!

I have to say @Sostu it sounds like you are doing far, far too much caring for elderly people and apologies, but you sound quite passive in it all, including your health stuff - it’s all just happening to you.

You need to use this time to get a proper plan in place for your parents (there is a board for Caring for elderly parents where they can help) and also find a shit hot doctor who can help you manage the symptoms.

Sorry for the tough talk, but you have your whole rest of your life to live, you can’t be prioritising parents and parents in law over your own life to the extent that you drown - do NOT be a martyr.

I had to pay for a hysterectomy privately because the NHS waiting list was so long that I'd have had to give up my job by the time they got around to me. I was in crisis (suicidal thoughts, etc.) with poor mental health that had accrued from trying to do a demanding leadership role with anaemia, insomnia and flooding (the bleeding was so heavy that I was admitted to hospital on occasions). Now that I no longer have a uterus and am on HRT, I feel a lot better, but I've lost a lot of confidence in my professional abilities because of what I went through and it's going to take a long time to get myself back on track career-wise.

Yes. Firstly sidelined due to getting a reputation for being 'difficult'. Then sacked because I raised my voice very briefly and apologised immediately afterwards verbally and in an email to the person.

I explained my symptoms ( uncontrollable rage and panic attacks) to the person, who was actually making things worse for me by leaving things to the last minute which was increasing my anxiety. She also had made a couple of mistakes which I had to deal with the consequences of which caused panic attacks. She was my PA and had always been tricky, I had been able to cope with it before.

She immediately reported me to the MD, telling him I was unfit to work because of 'mental health problems'. He instantly sacked me after 25 years saying " there is nothing wrong with your work but you have upset ( my PA) and I won't have that".

I was self employed ( creative field) so there was absolutely nothing I could do.

I almost was on the verge of leaving my career .I went on HRT, and testosterone as that was too low and I am now on top of my game again.

This was me too (not testosterone but other HRT). menopause absolutely robbed me of my faculties.

Erm. Kindly. Wanna check yourself there. Denying the lived experience of all these posters and all those on other forums. State your sex and age and if you are a 40+ woman then may be it’s worth us engaging in a bit of a discussion to set you straight. If you are a younger woman then I hope you don’t go through this. If you are a man then you duck orf.

@Thisismyprobatequestionsname The questions about the study are fair - I can’t quite believe it either so would be interested to have a read!

Menopause is a bit of a buzzword in my organisation and there is a new policy, but it boils down to naff all really. I think the real issue is medical care - both the research required, and doctors taking their female patients concerns seriously.

@PinkFrogss in my experience company menopause policies are all talk and no action. Completely useless.

This is what I did. I was working a 50-hour week and usually extra on one weekend day (not in the U.K.) and I just couldn’t cope. It’s only now, 6 months later, that I feel ready to work again, although I probably won’t as I’m considered “too old” now.

I couldn’t take HRT so not everyone can be medically managed.

I wonder how old you are? So many awful stories on here, but you pop up like Pollyanna claiming it’s all unbelievable.

It's really unpleasant, that feeling of being unable to cope, or constantly worrying that you're doing a bad job etc.

Just read this on another thread. And this is how I feel.

So far, I haven't left a job / been sidelined etc on account of menopause.

But recently I've had a period of bad health for a few months, which is possibly to do with menopause (GP can't give me a diagnosis) and I'm wondering if work would allow me to reduce my hours by a day a week. This is in the hope that more time off would allow me to improve my health /energy.

If work won't allow this (and I can see several reasons why they wouldn't), then I am wondering if I would need to leave the role / take early retirement. It is a mid-senior specialist role and at present I feel I'm struggling to focus and exhausted every day.