A Conversation With My Close Friends

Over the past week I saw a couple of close friends and in our time together the topic of menopause arose. We recollected what it has been like to live with anxiety, hot flushes, night sweats, memory loss, muscle stiffness, and difficulty sleeping; to name a few of the most prevalent early, and often ongoing, symptoms that we have experienced since the beginning of menopause. We found that each of us had found different ways of supporting ourselves through this time. I came away feeling sad that I hadn’t been there more to talk and share what it had been like for both of them in the very early stages of change. I wanted to ask more about what they noticed during that time and how they felt as they transitioned into this new stage of their lives.

“I have dropped more deeply into what it means and feels like to be a friend, and how blessed I am to have close friends whom I value enormously.”

Rachel Podger

On another level, I realised the value of the shared experience and what it meant to be willing to be vulnerable, honest, and open about what it has been like to go into another stage of life. I have dropped more deeply into what it means and feels like to be a friend, and how blessed I am to have close friends whom I value enormously. I came away feeling full of compassion for what many of us go through at this stage of our lives and how important it is to make time to connect and share how we are feeling - especially with those we love.