As World Menopause Day approaches, we welcome this year’s theme of cognition and mood.

World Menopause Day is on 18 October, and the whole month of October is Menopause Awareness Month. A fantastic time for organisations to show their support, keep on raising awareness and look at what else they could be putting in place.

The Menopause Friendly Employer Awards

We were delighted and honoured to host our inaugural Menopause Friendly Employers Awards on 22 September 2022, with host Louise Minchin helping us to celebrate all the fantastic work you’re doing.

We saw organisations of all sizes coming together to recognise the incredible achievements of our accredited members. These are vitally important step changes as we move towards normalising the subject of menopause in the workplace.

A spotlight on cognition and mood

The physical symptoms of menopause are often very well documented. Think menopause, think hot flushes. And while these do indeed affect many people, what is less known is the often-severe impact of psychological symptoms. Things like brain fog, struggling with memory recall, low mood, anxiety, loss of confidence.

All things which can have a detrimental impact in the workplace.

What can organisations do?

You’ve committed to becoming menopause friendly. So here’s the chance to widen your efforts. Understanding the often debilitating impacts of these symptoms at work is a good place to start, so you can put support mechanisms in place.

As with most interventions, these can be simple and straightforward. Someone struggling with memory issues, for example, may prefer a sit-down meeting where they can keep notes to a chat in the corridor. A colleague with brain fog might appreciate the chance to get out and have a walk in the fresh air. It’s all down to the individual, and you as an organisation to decide how you can move forward together.

This World Menopause Day and Menopause Awareness Month, let’s all come together and consider how we can really focus on the cognition and mood aspects of menopause. Helping all our colleagues be the very best they can be at work and supporting their mental health through menopause.