Perimenopause at 38? I felt robbed, says Emma Barnett

Publicist Emma Barnett said she felt “attacked, robbed” when she discovered she was going through perimenopause when she was 38.

“For the first time in my life, I didn’t really want to be a woman; it was the first time I thought, ‘I would really like to be a man,'” said Barnett, now 40.

He was speaking on the new BBC podcast, Ready to Talk to Emma BarnettThe first episode was released on Friday.

perimenopauseMenopause, which usually occurs around the age of 46, is when you have symptoms but your menstrual periods have not stopped yet. These symptoms may include anxiety, mood swings, brain fog, hot flashes, and irregular menstrual periods.

In this episode, Barnett says that pre-menopause makes her feel as if she has lost her identity and that she is still waiting to “go back” to her old self.

Speaking to friend and guest Kate Thornton, she continues: “I have a feeling there’s been a break-in. I also have a feeling there’s no emergency number to call.”

“‘I want to report a crime. Yes, someone stole me.’ “There is no one to report this either.”

Thornton, who is also a journalist and broadcaster, talks about her own experience of perimenopause, saying the “worst” thing she experienced was going from someone who was “able to multi-task… very capable” to someone who felt “completely inadequate.”

Barnett has previously spoken out about his health. In 2019, she wrote the book Period: About Bloody Time, which describes her experience with endometriosis.

In the podcast episode, she said that sharing certain parts of her life was “pretty nerve-wracking” but that she “wanted to create that space for other people to be ready to talk about things.”

Barnett, who hosted Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour until last year, said she wanted to make the podcast so she could not only tell other people’s stories but also give listeners her own perspective and experience.

“I’m usually the one doing the interview, I’m usually the host,” Barnett tells Thornton.

“It’s not easy to share, and I know that, and I think that’s why it’s important for someone doing an interview to do so when it’s appropriate – not all the time, because it’s not my job and it’s not about me – but it’s important for them to share themselves when it’s appropriate, and especially when you’re asking others to do the same.”

Concluding the episode, Barnett can be heard saying that he hopes that “as we both say, normalization should occur during perimenopause, and this disruption of hormones that occurs in women from their 30s onwards can be carried into common parlance.”

“And that doesn’t mean what’s happening is any less extraordinary or any less ugly, but how we encounter it may change,” he adds.

An increasing number of women are taking Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to relieve menopausal symptoms.

HRT supplements and balances estrogen levels, sometimes in combination with a synthetic or bioidentical version of progesterone.

However, it may not be suitable for people with a history of certain cancers, blood clots and high blood pressure.

Women can also improve how they feel by:

• A balanced diet low in fat and high in calcium to strengthen bones and protect the heart
• exercising regularly to reduce anxiety, stress and protect against heart disease
• Quitting smoking to prevent heart disease and hot flashes
• avoiding alcohol to reduce hot flashes

There is also research suggesting that eating plant estrogens found in soy and red clover may help with symptoms.

Talk therapy, known as CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) Can also be offered to women over 40 alongside HRT – or instead if the patient’s individual circumstances require this.

I’m Ready to Talk to Emma Barnett is out now BBC Voices It will be released in weekly episodes on November 7.