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Navigating Menopause in the Event Industry: Breaking the Silence
47 Plays1 year ago
In our latest episode of Eventful Encounters,, we tackle a topic that's often overlooked yet profoundly impactful: menopause in the events industry. Our guests, Jo Fuller from The Merry Menopause and Jill Hawkins from Aniseed PR, share their personal and professional experiences, offering invaluable insights into navigating this natural phase of life.
The books mentioned in the session are:
Here you go… Code Red: Know your Flow – Lisa Lister
A Better second half: Dial Back your Age to Live longer, Healthier, Happier Life - Liz Earle
Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s currents and Flourishing as we age – Mary Pipher
The Definitive Guide to Perimenopause & Menopause – Dr Louise Newson
Menopause – Dr Louise Newson
Wise Power: Discover the Liberating Power of Menopause to awaken authority, purpose and belonging – Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer
Wild Power: Discover the Magic of your menstrual cycle and awaken the feminine path to power – Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Menopause in the Events Industry
00:00:00
Speaker
Hello and welcome to episode five of eventful encounters. I'm Tanita, the marketing manager here at the Eastside Rooms and the Alof Birmingham Eastside. Hello and I'm Leanne, the director of sales and marketing for the Eastside Rooms and the Alof Birmingham Eastside too. And today we have a very interesting topic. So we're going to be discussing menopause in the events industry and we've got two fantastic guests. So we've got Jay Fuller from the Merry Menopause and Jill Hawkins from Anisey PR. So what I will let you do is, be first of all, just introduce yourselves, please.
Understanding Menopause: Personal Insights and Knowledge Gaps
00:00:34
Speaker
I'll let you go first, Jo. Oh, thank you, Jill. Hi, good afternoon. Lovely to be here. So I'm Jo Fuller. I'm founder of the Merry Menopause. I'm an accredited coach and I'm a menopause administration expert, and I provide coaching and support for individuals and for the workplace. Oh, I'm Jill. I am a managing director of Vaniseed PR. I've been working in the events industry for
00:00:58
Speaker
too long, far too long, about 30 years now. And um I'm here because I'm 55. I went through menopause probably about the right age, actually. I was sort of late 40s, early 50s. And I've been very yeah talkative and very ah proactive about actually educating more people in the events industry about it because we are a female-dominated industry. That's amazing. Well, we are. But menopause just doesn't seem to get the attention that it deserves. I mean, it's a natural part of life, but yet we don't really know anything about it. it's It can significantly impact women, and I myself don't know much about it. I know a little bit from what my mum's told me, and and we have someone on our team that tells us a little bit, but that's pretty much all I know. and So I'm really interested to see what we've got to discuss today. Excellent.
00:01:50
Speaker
Definitely, so and I'm the same as Tanita to be honest as well and I know a little bit about ah the menopause mainly from self-education so kind of um following people on different platforms and social media and um I'm really into gut health at the moment which I know is a big part of the menopause and can help significantly. and but Tanita and I both kind of had a discussion before this podcast to say actually we're both females at some point we're both going to go through the menopause and actually wouldn't be wouldn't it be amazing if we're better geared up for it um can speak to people that are experts in the field and kind of help share their expertise but also you know we want to try and get rid of the stigma that surrounds menopause as well so that
00:02:39
Speaker
it's not just a topic that's kind of talked about amongst people that are going through menopause but actually it should be a topic that we all discuss.
Symptoms and Stages of Menopause
00:02:46
Speaker
And and I was saying to Tanita earlier like my husband is amazing he listens to loads of podcasts and he was like oh listen to this podcast on the menopause and this podcast and even even yeah he was saying to you that only 10% of people that are going through the menopause actually seek out any kind of treatment and a lot of them people don't receive treatment so I just thought oh you know actually men are interested as well because obviously they're going to be impacted in it too. So we thought perhaps for the first part we could try and get a little better bit of a better understanding from you both about what the menopause is
00:03:23
Speaker
you know the symptoms and then the different stages as well but also the impact that it has on daily life and how we can counteract that. So I mean it's just Leanne just to go back to what you were saying about you know one of my big things is be prepared and not scared and we should be talking to women in their 40s. We should be given the opportunity to plan. I'm not the right age then, it's a good start. With Chill and I you know we're the same age with Gen X you know and it was just really It was never a conversation that we had at school. It was never a conversation that we had in my teens. And, you know, perimenopause was a word that I discovered, you know, in my late forties, which then explained why the previous seven years of my life had been so hard. Had I known ten years ahead of that in my thirties that, you know, all I really knew about menopause was I thought it might happen to me and it might do enough wishes. Oh, absolutely. I was exactly the same.
00:04:19
Speaker
But actually the psychological symptoms, the most common symptoms for so many of us start in our late 30s, early 40s, low mood, anxiety, depression, disturbed sleep, changes the periods. You know, we can't diagnose perimenopause, we look at age and symptoms, and then we can understand that you're going through the start in your transition. But just knowing that it's not just hot flushes. It is so emotional. Yeah, I was going to say, you've just ah kind of summed up a load of symptoms there that are way more than just hot flushes. But traditionally, that's all I've known
Psychological Impact and Self-Advocacy for Menopause Treatment
00:04:50
Speaker
menopause as. Women get a bit moody and they have hot flushes and it happens kind of late 40s, early 50s and that's about it. that' That's this exactly the same as me. That's exactly how I would have perceived it before then.
00:05:05
Speaker
it hit me and um I've got a lot of friends the same age as me. i've've I'm 55 and um one thought that she was suffering from early stage dementia. um One just thought she was absolutely just going mad because of the brain fog, forgetful, just the mood swings. the you know It was more so, as Jo said, more so the psychological and mental issues that we we go through rather than physical actually. And I think a lot of workplaces, you know, these are issues that, you know, a desk fan are not going to solve. You know, this is, you know, a lot of workplaces are are trying, a you know, a lot of um industries that are trying to support it, but it's actually it's not just these physical symptoms that people have to go so much deeper. And so many ah people just don't understand that that's what's happening to them because it's happening so much earlier while their periods are still very regular. Absolutely. Change.
00:06:03
Speaker
And that feeling of anxiety as well. I know I've never been an anxious person in my entire life, from businesses, being very socially confident and things like that. And suddenly I was finding myself just lacking in confidence and feeling anxious about things I'd never felt anxious about. And it was a really weird situation to be in. You know, where was the confidence, you know, go get a warrior sort of person that I was in my forties even. How did you both identify that oh actually this isn't just me going mad or me feeling a little bit anxious. It's actually, you know, it's deeper than that. of the symptoms as know well i did my teeth I did my research because that's just who I am. And I've always looked after myself and like, you know, just the anxiety for me was, was sort of the tipping point. It's like, what on earth is going on here? And then I, you know, my body was aching. So for me, my symptoms have been brain fog, anxiety and body pain.
00:06:59
Speaker
um And I was fit and healthy and it was like, what, what am I doing wrong? What's going on? um And I did my research and I discovered this word perimenopause. I was like, what? Really? This is, I can kind of pinpoint it to being around the age of 42. I didn't learn the word perimenopause until I was 48. So I had kind of six to seven years of like, just thinking, what's going on? My friendships were, you know, lots of, lots of things were happening, you know, work-wise, relationship-wise, friendship-wise. And it was like, why is everything seem to be crumbling? And a very similar situation that for me, it was
00:07:42
Speaker
piecing together all of these different things and talking to friends, going through the same thing, just, you know, friends that were perhaps slightly older than me um and then going, actually, I need to buy a book. And I was recommended a Louise Newson book, um The Haynes Guide to the Menopause, which was a very simple, basic guide. And I just went through it and thought, oh, that's me. That's me. Suddenly all these little sort of alarm bells are going off. These little flashes of everything coming together and realising, oh, yeah, that's where I am. And because I was still having periods, I didn't think I was menopausal. We tend to think that that's it, don't we? That that's the practical sign.
Workplace Support and Menopause Awareness
00:08:24
Speaker
And for many women, you know, they get gaslit and told that there's something wrong with them. They will immediately go to the doctor and go help and they'll go, here's some antidepressants.
00:08:35
Speaker
You know, things are changing, things are changing. You know, up to this date, menopause, not every woman will have a baby, but every woman will, everyone who menstruates will experience menopause. Yep. Compulsory GP training. It's compulsory for obdynae. They do three months in obdynae, but menopause is an optional, what's it called? It's crazy. People that walk into your surgery, So women's health, I mean, medical misogyny, women's health, completely under-researched, under-discovered. Any drug that we take is all tested on a 70 kilo white male. So take one aspirin, you don't take an aspirin one to two times a day. That's great for a white 70 kilo male. if you you know If you differ from that in so many areas of life, it's not applicable. So researching to women's health, especially to menstrual health, which is, the you if we can understand our periods, that is a real precursor for understanding our menopause.
00:09:30
Speaker
All of this slowly, slowly, slowly, more money has been put into research around the women's health. And I have to say, unfortunately, because suddenly the marketeers are waking up to the fact there's an awful lot of money in midlife women. So lot of an awful lot of research in they can produce products, but still, you know, ah you know, by side of that is that we are getting more research done into women's health. The thing is, I think, you know, from our perspective at the moment, the most important thing we can do is try to educate ourselves because You know, like you said, it might often be that the GPs have sort of, you know, and they had limited training in menopause, but also it's quite antiquated as well, isn't it? You know, and it's not, it doesn't matter of modern day life and all the stresses that we have with modern day life that then also go alongside going through the perimenopause or the menopause. And then Tanita gave me a very interesting interesting statistic earlier.
00:10:24
Speaker
which was that 30 million women were going through menopause or perimenopause at this moment in time. It was a huge number of women. So when it's done. And as Jo said, unfortunately, um well, when I rang the, I read the book, I read the Louise Newsom book and then rang my doctor up and said, I think I need HRT. And ah because of this, I need this and da, da, da. And I told her exactly what I wanted. And she, you could almost hear her. this was during COVID, you could take a sharp intake of breath and go, okay, you seem to know what you're talking about. yeah I knew more than she did. um Interesting, because and she's going to kill me. I apologise, mother.
00:11:06
Speaker
ah But my mum had to do the same thing. She did her own research. She went to the doctor and she had to ask for what she wanted. and And the doctor actually told her that that's what she needed to do. She originally asked for patches, found that they weren't working for her and went back and said, oh, I think I can do a gel. And the doctor turned around to her and said, well, you need to go away and do more more research and come back to me and tell me exactly what it is that you want. There was no doubt given to her about what but she should do, what she could try or anything like that. I think a really important point to make here that is menopause is not an illness and HRT is not a cure. It is not a panacea. It doesn't take away the stressful relationship, the stressful job, teenage killed children, other underlying health issues. HRT can be a huge and enormous support for many, many women and nobody should have a problem um getting it from their GP. It's a very low risk medication.
00:12:00
Speaker
But it is not a cure. all And that is why menopause is so complex because there is not someone that's going to take it away. Your body has to go through this transition. It has to change. And so many of the symptoms mainly are asking us to slow down. Yeah. Because our body needs to cope with this change. And if we're still going at full pelt, we're going to meet a lot of resistance from our body. So it's when we work with our menopause, that's where the gold is. That's where the life changing transformation is.
Challenges and Stigma in the Events Industry
00:12:27
Speaker
when we listen to what our body's telling us and we work with our menopause transition and we make decisions based on that, not based on who we were in our thirties and forties. That's when we get the most out of our menopause. That's great. Nice, Jo.
00:12:42
Speaker
That really is. I know, yeah. We all need to take heed in that, definitely. um And just in our industry, obviously, we've kind of, you know, we're working in the events industry. Like you both mentioned earlier, you know, it is a heavy female dominated industry as well. but we would just kind of like to know, you know, challenges that we face in the industry and also we have huge demanding schedules in the events industry, especially if you're an event planner or if you're an event organizer, you know, and you can quite often be on site before an event, during the whole of the event and if they can
00:13:19
Speaker
quite lucky quite often be long days and evenings as well. But just kind of your advice really on how we can better support people within the events industry and perhaps things that workplaces can put in place to try and make life a little bit easier too. Well I think we need to see older people, men and women in the events industry as being still useful. but um when i i um i was I wrote the white paper for the um the annual events industry salary survey for the last two years and it's a survey that covers over 1,300 people um and it's not just salary information people give, it's ah um attitudes to work,
00:14:01
Speaker
um and um workplace initiatives, ah wellness, all sorts of things are covered by it. It's a really complex sort of 2030 questions that are asked. And something that comes up in that, the the last two years we've done it, is that when you reach 50-55, you leave the industry. us crazy isn't it? Down to menopause do we think? We're not sure it was something that Jo and I were talking about earlier that I think menopause were considering we're 70% women in the industry. Yes menopause must
00:14:34
Speaker
It can't be a coincidence, surely, that that's the age that most women go through menopause. Or do we just get fed up in, you know, not doing this anymore? You know what, I can't cope. And I think it's that, you know, the events industry is primarily an industry where there's a lot of juggling going on. There's a lot of um multitasking, plate spinning. And if brain fog has taken over, and we do need to slow down a little bit, as Jo said, again, to actually incorporate the change is happening to us and not just fighting against it. Well, do we then feel a lack of confidence? you know do we you know Do women then end up coming away from that? But actually, perhaps there's other jobs that they could step into that aren't all the plates spinning all the time. but And perhaps there are companies out there that can actually say, well, OK, you don't have to be frontline anymore, but actually you can step into a side place, a side sort of career without having to leave
00:15:34
Speaker
Totally. industry Yeah. I mean, and that very much goes back to sort of Jill and I were having a pre-podcast chat um and we were talking about, you know, the the status of older women in society and how in the West we really are dismissed you know when we get to to this ah to this stage of life. But in so many different cultures, you know, the elder woman, the crow and the hag, which we see as derogatory terms, are actually terms of the revered. do the old And the older woman has a real position. within the hierarchy. So within an organization, if you look at it as a tribal hierarchy, there is so much value that an older woman has to give. Whether that's mentoring and nurturing, you know, younger employees, they're wise, they've got so much wisdom. Yes, they don't be have to be out there in the front, you know, or singing or dancing anymore. But behind the scenes, they've got a really integral role on the C-suite. And we're not going to see parity in the Suisse in FTSE 100 until 2076. Imagine what a difference having
00:16:30
Speaker
half your C-suite or more ah made up of women of like late 50s, early 60s. And I think the events industry, we are very, very guilty of, but we're very responsible for bringing the next generation in. you know We have initiatives, ah mentoring schemes that are all designed to bring women people, you know men and women into the events industry. We have 30 under 30 next generation talent programs and all those sorts of things. what Where are the celebrations for the over 50 year olds? why why Why don't we have a 50 over 50? Why are we ignored? And um you know, I bring it back down to menopause again, you know, I think that's, I think that the industry doesn't cherish
00:17:16
Speaker
older women because, you know, as I say, they're leaving in in droves. And the advertising industry went through a very similar thing about five to 10 years ago, where creatives were just leaving, you know, the the the whole of the creative industry has issues with older people that we're not seen as relevant anymore, that we can't actually design events or design advertising for younger people because, oh, we're over 50. But actually, the 50-year-olds are the people with the buying power, as Jo said, you know, we're the ones that have got the money. It's reasonable income, yeah, absolutely. Exactly. It's such an ageism, isn't it? It's like, you know, we judge people on their bodies, not on their capabilities.
00:18:00
Speaker
And it's like it's seen almost as a, you know, menopause as a malfunction. There's something gone wrong. You're not worth it anymore. But actually, the evolution, the personal evolution that comes when we come out of menopause into life post-menopause, I'm two years there, two years without a period. And I'm a completely different person. Yeah. Or way of thinking and being. to how I was 10 years ago. Absolutely. And as exactly as you said, Jo, that that um the events industry is an industry where we have to work late. We have to work at weekends. It's all hands to the pump. And you can do that when you don't have children. When they don't have children at home, you come out of the other side.
00:18:40
Speaker
And actually, we can if we can get that talent back into the industry or keep hold of it and not let it disappear off, we've we've got a huge pool of you know of expertise and experience there. What can we as employers do to change that, they to change the stigma and to allow the events industry to be a more accessible place for over 50s? Is there something that we can do to accommodate that? I mean, is there real breaks or? Podcast like this, talking about it, open conversation. It's not, you know, a women's issue. called Women's issues because women tend to talk about them. So then they get the label of women's issues, but it's like, it's not, it's, as we've said, it impacts 51% of the world's population.
Creating Menopause-Friendly Work Environments
00:19:23
Speaker
yeah It's menopause. 49% will experience it by proxy. where that know That's your partner, your boss, you know, so it impacts everybody. So.
00:19:31
Speaker
normalizing it, open conversations, um you know education in the workplace, a senior leader leading a campaign of any gender, but if it's a senior leader that's experienced men of all themselves, talk about it openly. yeah no Don't let it get get rid of this you know gendered ageism. And I've said it twice now, but I'm really so passionate about it that happens in the workplace. It's not just about putting a fan on somebody's desk. so hu off No. Letting them know the same gri head i about that Yeah. Yeah. Not just the tokenism, exactly. The fan. There you go, love. It's the understanding that it's like, I'm still capable of doing my job. I just need your support. Yeah. to be able just do that Yeah. And it might be, symptom I might not be sitting here sweating all day. if That's what you're looking for. um But actually what's going on internally with anxiety or sleepless nights.
00:20:27
Speaker
um brain fog, you know, all of that needs supporting at a deeper level. And whether that is introducing coaching to support somebody through, you know, as an individual, in a group, in a group setting, group coaching, bringing people together, building a community within the workplace. And so sometimes it's the little things as well in that um part of my job is interviewing my clients. And in the past, I would interview them either over Zoom or ah telephone, scribble a few notes down and be able to understand my notes and turn that into a thought leadership piece that they have. um
00:21:00
Speaker
imparted their knowledge but I have crafted that into an article for them. Now I record everything. I have a recording app on my phone or I do zoom and I record it because the the amount of stuff I've forgotten by the time I come to write it up. So simple tools like that. I use Evernote now rather than a notebook so that I can actually search for, I can tag um conversations and but those sorts of things. It's using the technology out there and almost Sadly acknowledging that, and I will say to, if I, before I interview somebody, I will say, yeah, do you mind if I record it? Menopause fog. And they normally laugh, but it's acknowledging where I am with things and that I can't do it like I used to. And there are tools out there to help. But it's quite amazing that you do that when I, when I speak and I present, I have complete concise, because I call it out.
00:21:55
Speaker
And I say, you know, I can't ad lib, I can't memorise for beta out here. And I call this out because there is nothing wrong with having notes, because if I've got my notes, I'm going to deliver a really good presentation. yeah You know, you've given out your time to come and hear me speak, so I've got my notes. So that's why they're here. And it's like, you know, that needs to be another thing, this whole culture that you have to, you know, remember everything and do it. No, why? No, exactly. I think the main thing... No, paper. Paper. I'm going to talk to Hal. But I think the main, you know my main thoughts on it as well is that you have to remove the stigma because I think you know historically there's been a huge stigma around menopause and people just haven't discussed it. And I can't believe how many women have had to kind of suffer in silence and go through all of these symptoms and and you know not really be able to openly talk about it. And I think that there are lots of allowances made in the workplace and even in the industry.
00:22:53
Speaker
and for women at different stages in their lives. you know I remember when I was pregnant with both my daughters and there was allowances made and I had meetings with people to make sure I had everything that I needed to be comfortable while I was pregnant. I think, why hasn't that done for people in the menopause? No, it's true. It is true. and i I think it's... Basically, it's not a manifestation that everybody can see. Absolutely. And it is very different for different people. I mean, some people just sail through it, don't even know it's happening, really. Other people become very susceptible to their hormones and that they especially, I think, through perimenopause when things are really fluctuating, where, you know, that you might be fine one minute and then you've got a huge rush of hormones and then the real ups and downs of it. Your experience of menopause,
00:23:45
Speaker
Your experience of the symptoms is going to be based on genetics. So there is a genetic link. It is also depending on any pre-existing health conditions and how you look after yourself. And also your periods, how your periods were. you know swine i Whenever I speak, I always incorporate education around menstruation because it's
Education and Policy for Menopause Support
00:24:05
Speaker
equally as important. Because again, we're not taught to work with our cycle. And when you're talking about you know how do you manage you know big long days in the events industry, if you're working with your cycle, and planning, and tracking your cycle, you can plan your diary work and home diary around your cycle. And obviously, you can't just say to notice something because you're going to have your period, but the awareness of knowing that your period is going to come. be crack down to you know
00:24:30
Speaker
Genetics, predispose dispositions, how you're looking after yourself in your period. awareness of all of those can help you to have a better menopause experience. There's a fantastic book called Code Red. I think it's called that actually takes you through those four weeks. And this is a really good week for creativity. This is more restful and just that learning, because yeah, like I love the way Tanita you're going, Oh, that's interesting. yeah but The fact that, you know, almost know your body, know yourself, and actually when you look back and think, yeah, that week was far more productive, aha, that's because of where you are in your cycle. You know, that we do get these fluctuations in hormones and they can lead to good things and also not so good things, in the and it but it's harnessing, it's knowing. Knowledge is power, isn't it? Definitely. I'm in preparation first, so if you look at a psyche and come along to my next, your periodical superpower workshop, but
00:25:27
Speaker
oh what We have four weeks in our cycle and a lot of people talk about the Red School, um talk about it as the seasons of nature. So when we ovulate, it's our summer season, everything's great, you know, life is easy. And then we come down into our premenstrual time, which is our autumn time as we're preparing to bleed and we start to feel emotional, we start to feel tired, that's fine because our hormone levels are dropping. Our perimenopause is an extended autumnal phase of our cycle. you can get tune, get in contact with that autumnal phase of your cycle over the years and understand your wants and needs and what you need during that week. That's going to set you up for perimenopause. And then our winter phase of our cycle when we're bleeding, when our hormones are at our lowest, takes a lot of energy to bleed, which is why we're so tired when we have our period. That's our menopause. That's kind of the year between ending our periods and going to post-menopause. So understanding how you are in that winter phase,
00:26:23
Speaker
huge insights, when we're really forced to slow down, that sets you up into post-menopause. And then we rise again into our spring, you know, obviously we get a second spring, it's called, in a lot of cultures in Chinese medicine, they call it our second spring. But when you're cycling, that's when your usage arises, a pre-opulatory period, but that's what happens when you come out of post-menopause into life, we get that second spring. ima I do. ah Is that interesting? While you're cycling, we stay with our cycle. We don't you know might not be bleeding, but we're still going to experience it. But then I think there's an awful lot of information out there about perimenopause and menopause, but not so much about post. What happens then? We're going to do that because we're getting there. Exactly. That's that's what I'm interested in. is sort of
00:27:17
Speaker
coming out the other side. And there isn't. There's a brilliant book called Women Row in North, which I can't remember her name. um And just like that. So that's Women Row in North. I can certainly send you to think that. But Lizelle has just bought out a book. Yes, I feel a lot on that, actually. So there are certainly books coming out about life post-women. Susan Saunders is another one. She's written The Age Well Plan. um But yeah, there's definitely, because it's never been talked about, it's never been researched, it's never been ignored. So the information, we're in a bit of a void now, it's like,
00:27:53
Speaker
Yeah, with that first generation really that's talking about it. I love it. I absolutely love it. And as I was saying earlier, I will talk to everybody and anybody about it. And I'm very open because why should I be ashamed? It's not a bit to be ashamed of. It's part of everyday life, isn't it? And I think actually we need to get rid of that stigma and be more open so that, you know, Tanita and I, when we come through the menopause, we're educated about it, we understand it, we know what to look for, we we know what the seasons were in, but then also, you know, as a workplace so that we understand people that are going through the menopause better and as an industry on how we can support them.
00:28:39
Speaker
because it's so important and like we said so many women are going through it and experiencing it. I think I have heard some companies have a, so of sorry Jo, a menopause policy which I'm not quite sure what it would include but even just having one. while yeah yeah yeah We a menopause. I ah you know was just going to, I forgot what I was going to say then, But talking about menopause policies, they're not obligatory, but there is a menopause champion now in central government. The rise of menopause-related tribunals, you know, the numbers are rising. You know, so it's really important that businesses put, you know, how, you know, creating a menopause-friendly environment is that, you know, I've got five simple steps. I'm more than happy to speak to anybody listening about that if they want to contact me. Five very simple steps that you can implement to create a menopause-friendly violin and protect yourself.
00:29:32
Speaker
You know, you need to protect yourself as an employer. that's not ah There are certain things that, and for you know, supporting people going through medicals is the right thing to do, ultimately. it's really And I think, you know, women should still be able to be in senior positions going through that stage in their life. And we shouldn't have to think, oh, do I need to take a back step or i'm not quite functioning the same? You know, we just need to understand our bodies and make sure that our workplaces understand what we're going through so that we can go through it and transition into that phase of our lives seamlessly so that us and future generations can all do the same. I don't think you'll be saying this, Leanne, but I think it definitely needs to be a more positive experience because I think at the moment women are being set up to fail, you know, and hold if doesn't work, then, you know, that's it. You know, they're not being supported holistically. You know, we are the sandwich generation. We've got teenage children. We've got big careers. We've got relationships. We've got our own health problems. There's so much going on, aging parents.
00:30:31
Speaker
You know, there's so much going on and it's like we need to extend support to women experiencing menopause so they can stay in work, so they can reach, um if they choose, reach more senior positions or they can just stay working. Exactly. And it can be a pleasant experience, not a day-to-day drudgery that they've got to get through. Something that the um the events industry salary server that I mentioned earlier um came up with was that a massive percentage of people want a four-day week.
00:31:02
Speaker
you know, and whether that's possible and whether actually you can retain talent by not insisting that people work full time, you know, perhaps doing three days a week or four days. Let me select that more flexibility airring are two huge things that you can do to support. Say that again, sorry. Job sharing and flexible working are are two really, you know, fundamental ways that you can support. Obviously, you need to look at that holistically. How does that fit in with your you know, overall values as a company, how do you support people that work, you know, remotely or part-time, you know, so it's easier said than done, but it can be one of the best ways that you can support anything. And then it falls down is a on your absence form, you know, long-term extended absence or short leave of absence can, you know, trigger disciplinary action. But if you can actually make it clear on your sickness form why somebody's off, so they're not having to like lie about it, they're not going to judge.
Conclusion and Future Episodes
00:31:59
Speaker
I had a really heavy period. I didn't sleep last night having dreadful anxiety. You know, this is all coming under, you know, make it make it like you easier for your employees to be honest with you about what they need as well. Absolutely. Having your line managers trained up and able to support and how to have sensitive conversations with their team. Thank you both for joining us on today's episode about another but navigating menopause in the events industry. It's been so interesting that we've actually gone over time because the content's been great. So thank you very much. We have and I for one am definitely go away and research more and I know Leanne is because she's a researcher. I've written all those books down and we'll make sure that we pop those in the notes as well so that people can reference them but
00:32:46
Speaker
you know, thank you so much Jo and Jill. I think your insight has been incredible. Tanita and I have 100% learnt, we've got loads of notes here. I've written notes down as well. And you know, that's exactly what we want to do to kind of educate people, make sure that everybody's geared up more, but thank you so much for your time. We really appreciate it. oh Thanks for having us. Yeah, thank you. We'll definitely have you back again because it's been really really interesting. Thank you both and as always you can stay up to date with all things and mental encounters on Amazon, Spotify and Apple. And our next episode is going to be all about wellness in the events industry so stay tuned for the next episode for the next episode all about wellness in the events industry.
00:33:36
Speaker
And don't forget to follow the Inside Rooms on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Thank you! Thank you! Bye!