Partners of women going through the menopause are being invited to experience one of the symptoms at a forthcoming support event. At the Menopaus'ull Support Network event in Hull next month, health group Over The Bloody Moon will be taking one of its MenoVests, allowing people to experience a hot flush – one of the symptoms of the menopause. Sarah Weichardt, who co-manages the project, said: "We're particularly interested in getting men along to come and experience the MenoVest, just so that they can understand what women go through." The event will be at Princes Quay shopping centre on 17 October, from 10:30 until .
"It's not just a hot flush, it's what the hot flush brings with it," said Weichardt. "So it could be panic, it could be anxiety. It's experiencing it all at the same time." She said she hoped the vest would give people a "better understanding of what women are going through".
"The more people we can get to experience it, the better," she added. The menopause describes the end of a woman's reproductive years, and often happens around the age of about 50. The period leading up to this is called the perimenopause, which is when many women notice their periods becoming unpredictable.
Other symptoms can include mood shifts, difficulty sleeping, and discomfort during sex. Weichardt said her organisation had a banner with nearly 40 symptoms on it. Many women "don't necessarily know that they're going into the menopause or they're perimenopausal" until they see the banner – and then they sometimes have a "lightbulb moment", she said.
Once women have "accepted it and are happy" they are menopausal or peri-menopausal, they can seek the support they need, she added. There is also a Menopaus'ull Support Network event in Beverley on 10 October between 10:30 and at the Toll Gavel Church. Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, and watch the latest episode of Look North.
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