Written by: Tafiq Akhir, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
According to a recent government report, menopause-aged women are the fastest-growing workforce demographic. Moreover, nearly 20% of women with menopause have quit or are considering leaving their jobs because of their symptoms. Here's how workplace resources can help employers retain valuable female employees and create a healthy, supportive, inclusive, and team-building environment for all employees.
The impact of menopause
One of the most underserved health and wellness issues that almost every woman will experience in her lifetime is menopause. It is a natural progression in a woman's life that typically happens between the ages of 40 and 65. However, some women can even experience early menopause in their mid-to-late 30s. The start of menopause will vary for each woman, as will the duration, the specific symptoms, and even whether she experiences weight gain or weight loss. Therefore, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Instead, solutions will differ based on each individual's level of metabolic health. Did you know more than 70% of women with menopause symptoms are unaware that they're experiencing menopause? Most women and men only think of menopause as it relates to hot flashes and weight gain. While these are two prevalent symptoms of menopause, there are more than 30 different symptoms that a woman can experience over the 4–10 years that menopause can last. Some symptoms are mild, while others can be highly debilitating. I've found that many women suffer from symptoms associated with one of four specific areas of metabolic distress resulting from the domino effect caused by menopause.
Many types of metabolic distress can affect hormones, health, and weight. However, the four I've encountered most commonly in my practice are metabolic adrenal, metabolic thyroid, metabolic liver, and metabolic reproductive distress. Knowing and understanding the impact of menopause symptoms is extremely important for employers and everyone on your team.
Symptoms can directly impact productivity, memory, and confidence, which could ultimately affect the company’s bottom line.
Menopause in the workplace
Stress, anxiety, and depression brought on by her menopause symptoms are often exacerbated at work by a lack of support and the worry that she may lose her job. Menopause symptoms can lead to several issues at work. You might notice a decline in productivity, an increase in sick days taken, missed deadlines, or a perceived decline in her ability to work well with others. Employers should recognize that most women are at the peak of their careers during this stage. Unfortunately, without adequate education, support, resources, and solutions, many women quit their jobs or are reluctantly let go. As a result, employers lose dedicated and valued employees. They must spend extra time, money, and resources finding and training someone new. Everyone involved needs to know that menopause symptoms can be minimized, reversed, and even prevented with proper education, coaching, support, and resources—not only for the woman going through menopause but also for her employer, peers, and co-workers. Menopause is a natural stage of life that happens to almost every woman. But unfortunately, by default, her family, friends, colleagues, and employers will experience the fallout of the symptoms she typically suffers through alone.
When your valued employees have menopause support, it can relieve anxiety, stress, or even embarrassment they may be feeling. Employers can improve teamwork, raise morale, increase productivity, and save on health insurance costs by incorporating menopause into their workplace programs by offering education, support, resources, and solutions for menopause symptoms.
Managing menopause symptoms
Menopause is a complex hormone, health, and weight management issue that cannot be self-diagnosed or resolved through a Google search for symptoms and solutions. No one will ever find all the components needed to navigate the three stages of menopause on their own. The hormonal connection between a woman’s metabolic response, her organs, her glands, fat loss, and personal health requires the support of a well-educated, certified, and trained menopause specialist. To retain, attract, and support valuable female employees and encourage an inclusive working environment, companies should consider including a women’s health initiative program within their wellness package. Optimally, this should include training in the workplace to eliminate the stigma and promote a better understanding of menopause. Additionally, providing targeted training solutions for your female employees can help minimize, reverse, and even prevent menopause symptoms and improve their work, productivity, and overall quality of life.
In conclusion
I grew up seeing my mother deal with various health conditions, including early menopause, which began in her mid-thirties and lasted almost ten years. I had never heard the term "menopause" back then; it was called the "change of life." I also vividly remember my mom having severe and chronic hot flashes, isolating herself in the bedroom, and suffering in silence. Knowing what I know now, it breaks my heart to know she suffered alone for so long.
Women experiencing menopause symptoms should not suffer in silence anymore. Employers, peers, and co-workers can help by learning, understanding, empathizing, and creating a supportive and secure working environment for everyone.
Offering workplace wellness support that includes training and resources for menopause can tremendously benefit your company and, most importantly, your staff. To learn about different options and to get recommendations on what might be best for your organization, schedule a discovery call with me here.
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Tafiq Akhir, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Tafiq Akhir is a licensed menopause specialist, speaker, and healthy aging advocate with over 20 years of experience in health and fitness. Growing up, he witnessed the adverse effects of poor nutrition, a lack of adequate exercise, and unhealthy lifestyle choices on his mother, who passed away at 52. During his studies of hormone health, food, and fitness, Tafiq found that every health and weight issue she battled might have been minimized, reversed, or even avoided had she learned how to eat, exercise, and live for her body's unique needs. Tafiq's mission is to provide comprehensive hormone, health, and weight management resources and education for midlife women struggling with many of the overlooked and underserved health issues that women continue to suffer from unnecessarily with very little if any, support.
