A women's health advocate has spoken about the toll of menopausal brain fog ahead of a Dublin based event for women experiencing the transition.
Sinead McNamara is the co-director of the National Menopause Summit, which is being held in Dublin's Mansion House on March 23. The informative event will feature a range of health professionals and advocates, who will advise women on navigating menopause in their personal and professional lives.
Sinead, now aged 54, first experienced menopausal symptoms at the beginning of lockdown. She had not been aware of how challenging brain fog could be prior to undergoing menopause.
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She told Dublin Live: "I started to lose abilities in terms of work in comparison to before menopause kicked in. I started to lose a lot of self confidence and self esteem and my time management was impacted, which was a really negative experience.
"Things were so bad that at one point I thought I was developing early onset dementia."
The inaugural summit will provide women with factual advice on treating their symptoms. Famous speakers include Davina McCall and Grainne Seoige, who have helped to destigmatise menopause in the public eye.
Loretta Dignam, founder and CEO of the Menopause Hub, came across a lot of misinformation online while experiencing menopausal symptoms. This prompted her to get involved with the upcoming event.
Loretta said: "I set up a clinic so people could avoid my journey of not being informed of the facts. I wanted to break down the stigma and show empathy – some women are dismissed by medical professionals and told from the onset that their mothers just got on with it."
Both Sinead and Loretta underwent hormone replacement therapy to alleviate their symptoms. HRT treatment was heavily criticised in a 2002 women's health review, which made doctors reluctant to prescribe it for almost two decades.
However, updated and accurate research on HRT has helped dispel fears over its potential link to breast cancer. Loretta described the treatment as a "game-changer" for her hot flashes, while Sinead explains that it can be suitable for women who don't have pre-existing conditions.
Sinead added: "I didn’t have a complex menopause, no pre existing conditions, so I could go on to HRT. Doctors were terrified to prescribe HRT for many years but now word is getting out that it can be a great solution."
The years leading up to menopause can also have an impact on women's wellbeing. Women can lose up to 20 per cent of their bone mass in the few years before their final period, according to leading dietitian Aveen Bannon.
Tickets for the highly publicised event are available via the summit's website. Speakers will present from 9 to 5.30pm in the Round Room, Mansion House on March 23.
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