As we celebrate International Women’s Day 2024, as well as being a time to celebrate women and their achievements, it is also a time to reflect on progress and what comes next.
Here at the University of Aberdeen, our staff menopause network is going from strength to strength. I became chair in June 2023 and our membership has reached 100! We have had a busy year of events including talks on nutrition, weigh training as well as getting to know our group. It has become really obvious to me the power of social support. Just knowing that as a perimenopausal or menopausal woman that you are not losing your mind and other women are having the same experiences, is a real source of comfort. I am looking forward to the year ahead with much needed events which include yoga, managing brain fog and time management.
Going forward, I want to keep raising awareness of menopause to remove the taboo which still lingers. I will be chairing a drop-in session for men on Thursday 29th April 12-1pm via Teams. Details will be shared shortly. The hope is that this session will be informative and myth-busting, and will really help to ensure that women are supported in the workplace.
I recently discovered there was some menopause training available for staff which was compiled by Skill Boosters: Menopause: Menopause at Work (abdn.ac.uk). The online training lasts 30 minutes and is a great resource for all staff members. By completing this training staff are showing their support for awareness raising within the university and beyond, which is so important when women make up 50% of the workforce.
Thank you to everyone who has supported our network and if any women would like to join please email me: Linda.Engles@abdn.ac.uk. Keep the conversation going!
Check out our menopause resources: https://www.abdn.ac.uk/staffnet/working-here/menopause-15811.php
