Our lives are characterized by change, it’s pretty much the only constant in life. Some changes are almost unnoticeable, some take adjustment. Menopause is one of those changes. Menopause is experienced by anyone that has periods but it usually affects women between the ages of 45-55 but can also occur due to medical events such as hysterectomies. As hormone levels change, periods stop but it can also come with secondary symptoms including mood changes, anxiety, low self-esteem or depression, headaches difficulty sleeping and hot flushes.
Menstrual health is under researched and under educated about; even tampons were not tested with blood until 2023 (DeLoughery et al., 2023). Women deserve to be well-informed about their own bodies, the changes they will be going through and most importantly, they deserve to treated with empathy when going through these changes. It is an issue of gender equality. Due to the impact menopause has on the workplace, some workplaces have started education programs for staff to teach about the impacts of menopause and trying to combat the negative attitudes towards it. The University of Aberdeen offers an optional e-learning program to staff, which aims to educate about the symptoms and impacts of menopause as well as ways to support co-workers that are going through it.
When I first heard about this project, I was immediately interested. Reproductive health is something I am so passionate about and this project gave me an opportunity to learn more about menopause and have a tangible impact on how it is educated about in the university.
This brings me to my part in the project; as an Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) intern, I am evaluating the e-learning module for the school of psychology to determine if it is fit for its purpose and make suggestions on improvement. Over the six-week project, I first looked into the existing literature on menopause education, and wrote my introduction. Next, I collected my own data on the University’s e-learning program by creating a questionnaire and circulating it throughout staff. The questionnaire asked about a range of topics including the content, knowledge, confidence gained and engagement. After the questionnaire was live for two weeks, I collated and analysed the results, finally I wrote a report which was then circulated to staff and will be used to improve the training module in the future.
Overall, I have loved this internship. Over the past six weeks, I’ve learned more about a topic that is so important to creating a culture of gender equality and anti-ageism, gained new skills and grown more confident in my own abilities. Having just finished first year, I was nervous that I would not measure up to a second or third year student, however, my supervisor, Linda Engles’ passion about the menopause and improving the training module was incredibly inspiring and really helped me to push on with my work even when I doubted myself. She gave me opportunities to work on events and work with the union and helped me gain huge confidence and experience across a range of settings. I feel that my work will make a real impact on the gender equality at Aberdeen University, which has been my goal throughout. So, to any other students that doesn’t yet have the confidence in their skills and abilities, just go for it! You never know how brilliantly it may turn out.
References
DeLoughery, E., Colwill, A. C., Edelman, A., & Bannow, B. S. (2023). Red blood cell capacity of modern menstrual products: Considerations for assessing heavy menstrual bleeding. BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health, 50(1), 21–26. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjsrh-2023-201895
Katie is studying for an MA in Psychology and Sociology and is currently in their second year of studies.
