If you listen closely, you’ll hear it.
That sound is the conversation around menopause beginning.
Those whispers will become a roar during #FlushFest2021 on 31st April and 1st May this year as we ramp up our conversations about menopause in the workplace and use the arts to explore menopause.
For too long we have been silent about our experiences of menopause and how it affects our bodies, our relationships and our lives.
The silence has been so damaging. Many women face one of the biggest periods of change in their lives completely unprepared because they have not had the opportunity to be part of a conversation that will tell them what to expect.
Too often we have confined our exploration of menopause to whispered conversations with the doctor when we just can’t take anymore, wondering what is happening to us and hoping desperately that there is a solution.
There is a solution, although it is not the one we are hoping the doctor will provide.
The solution can be found when we share our experiences. The solution is the conversation, exploring menopause through storytelling and the arts.
There’s more to menopause than its medical implications.
While there are undoubtedly health and medical changes for many women experiencing menopause, the impact on our lifestyle and personal identity is often much more significant. We don’t notice because we are so rarely sharing our experiences beyond the confines of the doctor’s office.
While a conversation with your doctor is vital if you feel you need professional medical support as your physical and mental health changes, we hope it will just be the beginning of your exploration.
The arts give us a powerful means of expression that can be shared with others in a way that can be profound and inspiring or offer light-hearted relief. Exploring menopause through the arts gives us a shared language with which we can begin to understand, accept and perhaps even celebrate our continued evolution.
Menopause might be the end of some things, but it is the beginning of others. It can be a time filled with joy and laughter if we make an effort to forge connections with those around us whose lives have also been affected. This includes our colleagues, friends and families, as well as other women experiencing menopause.
#FlushFest2021 is the world’s first virtual menopause festival and will bring together women (and hopefully some men too!) from around the world to use the arts as a means of exploring menopause. Attendees will learn from experts and from each other, whilst having lots of fun along the way.
‘I loved sharing experiences.’
‘Enjoyed everything, especially meeting others who understand.’
‘Such a positive event, and a great feeling of community.’
This is just some of the feedback from previous festival goers after attending #FlushFest 2019.
This year’s action-packed programme includes everything from menopause in the workplace seminars, to poetry and belly dancing workshops, to stand-up comedy and cabaret nights, and much more besides, all from the comfort of your own home as you join us virtually.
Come join us to discover just how much more there is to menopause.
The Menopause Café is a volunteer run charitable organisation whose mission is to get people of all ages and genders talking openly about menopause.