Perspectives: Menopause

In our latest Perspectives Podcast, we bring together three remarkable women whose work explores menopause from very different but deeply complementary angles: psychology, physiology, and the workplace.

Together they help us understand menopause not simply as a hormonal event, but as a profound life transition affecting identity, brain function, energy, relationships, wellbeing, and even professional life.

Different perspectives, one complex transition

Dr Rachel Moseley, Principal Academic in Psychology at Bournemouth University and co-author of Autistic Menopause, brings a powerful and often overlooked perspective: how menopause can uniquely affect autistic and neurodivergent women.

Many autistic women report that sensory sensitivities intensify, emotional regulation becomes more challenging, and coping strategies that worked earlier in life may suddenly feel insufficient. Yet research and awareness in this area are still emerging.

Rachel explains why menopause can feel like an entirely new terrain for neurodivergent women, and why understanding these experiences is essential if we are to create truly supportive healthcare conversations.

Michelle Saba Corpuz, Chief of Staff at the Menopause Education Center, explores menopause through another critical lens: the workplace.

Drawing on her experience leading wellness and benefits strategy in the Bay Area tech sector, Michelle highlights the often-overlooked economic and organisational impact of menopause. Research suggests menopause contributes to an estimated $26.6 billion productivity gap in the United States, driven by factors such as presenteeism, missed work, healthcare visits, and women leaving senior roles they worked years to achieve.

Her work focuses on helping organisations integrate menopause education into workplace wellness strategies, transforming what has long been a private and often stigmatised experience into a conversation about leadership, retention, and organisational culture.

And Fitness and wellness coach Mila Apostolovic brings a complementary lens: how movement, nutrition, and daily habits can support women through the physical and psychological changes of menopause.

With over thirty years of international experience and drawing on her own perimenopause journey, Mila explains how hormonal shifts affect muscle mass, metabolism, mood, sleep, and long-term health — and why strength training, nutrition, and small consistent habits can make an enormous difference.

A transition that affects everyone

What emerges from this conversation is that menopause is not simply a women’s issue. It is a societal one.

Partners, families, workplaces and healthcare systems all play a role in shaping how supported women feel during this transition.

And perhaps the most important takeaway is this: empathy, understanding and informed conversations can transform the experience.

Menopause may be challenging, but with knowledge, support and community, women do come out the other side and maybe all the stronger!

🎧 Listen to the full conversation on the Perspectives Podcast.