Dr Louise Newson – Hormones and Menopause: The Great Debate -Festival Theatre

It started in my mid-forties. A woman, maybe a decade older than me, would look around to check for eavesdroppers, then say something like, ‘I can’t drink coffee anymore. Not since the menopause.’

Nobody had prepared them for the change of life. Nobody spoke about it. For generations, everyone was blindsided by the menopause, just like that other taboo experience, menstruation. Now approaching the big five-oh, I’m a member of the first generation in recent history to have access to information on the menopause, thanks to the courage and kindness of those who walked this path before me.

Dr Louise Newson is one of those women. She’s a GP, but her medical education barely covered the menopause. The symptoms of perimenopause started in her late thirties: depression, cystitis, loss of concentration. Vertigo is another common symptom. Later on, osteoporosis is widespread, and hip fractures are particularly dangerous.

It took Dr Newson a while to understand that her hormones were the cause of her seemingly disconnected symptoms. Her doctors were completely unsupportive.  Through the brain fog, she researched the topic and set up a clinic through which she could help others.

Dr Newson prescribes a lot of HRT, which has come on in leaps and bounds in the past few years. She talks us through the hormonal changes that take place through our lifespan. Some audience members found this to be ‘a lot of information’ but considered it worth the effort. We need to know about this stuff. We should all protect our muscle mass through strength training, and Dr Newson talks about exercise while a video of her doing yoga plays in the background.

Suicide statistics in women aged 40 to 60 are shockingly high. One woman provides video testimony about the death of her sister, who took her own life within a year of undergoing a hysterectomy. If she had access to HRT, would she still be here? The woman in question was also married to an abusive man when she died. There is a lot to unpack here.

The intersection between societal inequality and healthcare is complex, but Dr Newson provides a brief history of medical gaslighting in women’s health, from Hippocrates to the present day. Hysteria was a catch-all term used, at best, to dismiss women seeking medical attention, and remained an official diagnosis until 1980. In the middle of the last millennium, the witch hunting craze led to mass killings of female healthcare workers throughout Europe. Women’s health became a haven for predatory male doctors. The 19^th century English gynaecologist, Isaac Baker Brown, was a prolific practitioner of FGM, which he advocated as a cure for epilepsy as well as ‘hysteria’. Meanwhile, Carl Clauberg, a researcher specialising in women’s reproductive hormones, was a Nazi who conducted medical experiments and forced sterilizations in Auschwitz. No wonder people didn’t talk about women’s reproductive health. They were understandably terrified.

A lot of Dr Newson’s evidence is anecdotal, because there are still huge gaps in menopause research. Her livelihood depends on medicating the menopause, so she is not entirely impartial. And as a doctor, she most frequently works with women who are struggling with menopause symptoms. She has less contact with those who have fewer problems. However, she is dedicated to supporting women through menopause, and perfectly equipped to engage her audience. She is one of us, and judging by the applause, many of the audience are already admirers of her work.

Comedian Anne Gildea appears from time to time to make us laugh. Hot flashes leave us hot enough to fry an egg – if we had any eggs. It’s nice to see a light-hearted approach to the topic, interspersed with the medical information. Above all, we’re finally talking about menopause, a condition which is experienced by 51% of the population as we age, and which affects those around us as well. Dr Newson is an excellent science communicator and a pioneering advocate for women. The evening was hugely informative and engaging. If you are even a little bit curious about menopause, I wholeheartedly recommend her work.

Reviewer: Wendy McEwan

Reviewed: 7^th October 2024

North West End UK Rating: