Navigating menopause together: Providing Menopause Information and Support to Men

Action Menopause Warwickshire and Healthwatch Warwickshire are working together to enable men to support the women in their lives who are experiencing a difficult perimenopause or menopause.

As a first step, they asked women what support they would like from the men in their lives, their husbands, partners, friends, brothers, adult sons, employers or work colleagues.

The responses helped plan a focus group for men, held on 12th September 2024 by Fatherhood solutions, to gather views on the issues. They wanted to find out what men would like to know in order to support the women in their lives and what support men need for themselves. Action Menopause Warwickshire and Healthwatch Warwickshire want to know how men would prefer to receive information and support. 

Their key findings were:

• Men want workplace learning opportunities and talks on menopause to raise awareness and support. 
• There is a need for policies that give men time to support their partners during medical appointments and provide better emotional support during this period. 
• Men feel there is insufficient information in employee handbooks and HR systems regarding menopause. 
• Men would like support, access to groups, information, more awareness, national advertising campaigns, more readily available information to avoid a google search being the only source of easily accessible information. 
• Men would like to have a menopause pathway that would allow them to navigate this period together with appropriate support

Recommendations were made based on these findings:

• National Campaign on Menopause: There’s a strong case for a national awareness campaign about menopause that reaches both men and women. The campaign should include accessible resources, workshops, and open dialogue to ensure men feel informed and prepared to offer support. 
• Workplace Support Initiatives: Implement training in the workplace to support women and men. • Mental Health and Peer Support Groups: Providing access to mental health resources and peer support groups would help men feel less isolated and better equipped to handle the emotional strain. 
• Education for Families and Children: Education for all ages would help families stay connected, rather than distanced, during this challenging time. 
• Education in school during sexual health conversations: Education around perimenopause and menopause including signs & symptoms and what to expect.