No need to sweat about the menopause: Cork convention features taboo-breaker Mariella Frostrup

Upcoming summit in Cork is a one-stop event for women with an impressive lineup of speakers  

Mariella Frostrup: appearing at the National Menopause Summit, Cork

THE National Menopause Summit at Cork City Hall on Friday, October 20, promises to “debunk myths and taboos”.

Following the sell-out summit held in the Mansion House in Dublin in March, broadcaster Gráinne Seoige will again compere the day-long event, featuring high-profile experts on a mission to inform and support women during what is often a challenging transition.

Guest speaker is journalist Mariella Frostrup whose 2018 taboo-breaking BBC1 documentary The Truth about Menopause did much to dispel the shame and secrecy surrounding the hormonal shift every woman experiences in midlife.

Frostrup, who was born in Norway and moved with her family to Ireland when she was six, is also the author of Cracking the Menopause: While Keeping Yourself Together and chair of the British-based Menopause Mandate.

The summit includes panel discussions on menopause in the workplace, focusing on equality, diversity and inclusivity.

Joanne Healy, head of group employee relations at Bank of Ireland and Katie Ridge, head of employer relations at Adare Human Resource Management, dip into their personal and professional experience to give unique perspectives on the needs of women at work.

“The National Menopause Summit Cork will advocate and empower the introduction of inclusive, compassionate and sympathetic work policies to ensure all feel supported and enabled to forge forward in their careers, thus stemming the flow of women choosing to exit the workforce or disregard opportunities for advancement, due to the lack of these crucial supports,” say the organisers.

Nutrition, mental health, women’s physical wellness, and menopause care also feature in the packed agenda.

Other speakers at the menopause masterclass include Dr Caoimhe Hartley, clinical lead of Rotunda Hospital Menopause Clinic and founder of Menopause Health; Dr Sumi Dunne, GP, lecturer and expert on RTÉ’s Operation Transformation; Loretta Dignam, founder of The Menopause Hub and Dr Brenda Moran, GP with a special interest in women’s health and sexual health.

Expect lots of audience interaction, laughter, and a few tears.

Shell Holden and Sinead McNamara - Best in Fest co-directors.

The National Menopause Summit is supported by M&S and presented by Best in Fest, an events company run by Shell Holden and Sinéad McNamara.

• Early bird tickets from €89. To book and for more details, see nationalmenopausesummit.com