A Lincoln resilience practitioner has created a menopause well-being workshops after she felt there was insufficient support for women.
Dawn Hollingsworth has started hosting her sessions in various locations throughout Lincolnshire with the aim to guide and help those struggling with anxiety and depression caused by the menopause.
She began the workshops after she felt insufficiently supported by NHS services during her own menopause journey. She was, she says, offered anti-depressants as the main solution when she reported feeling anxious.
The 48-year-old said: “It is potentially a cheaper and quicker option. I’m not saying it doesn’t help as it does, but sometimes it’s important to have someone to talk to and having pro-active techniques that you can use alongside things such as HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) or SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor) and anti-depressants.”
In 2024, a study complete by Frontiers in Public Health found 52 per cent of 396 menopausal women questioned reported symptoms of anxiety.
They said they found it hard to continue normal tasks such as going to work, with many either leaving their jobs or think about doing so.
Dawn said: “I have a lot of females around me that talk about difficulties in getting the right support and I found, from my own journey with anxiety, that there are tools out there to help change the mindset.”
She utilises cognitive theory within her well-being workshops with the aim of educating women on grounding techniques which will help them to continue their everyday lives.
She said: “It feels good that it’s hitting home and making an impact.”
