When Jo Moran began experiencing perimenopause in her early 40s, she did not know what was happening.
She was working in a senior role in financial services and experiencing headaches, migraines, fatigue and a feeling that she simply was not herself. Jo says it was four or five years before a new GP suggested her symptoms might be connected with perimenopause.
Her own experience eventually contributed to a major career change. After spending her professional career in financial services, including senior roles, Jo moved into menopause coaching and now works with women individually and delivers menopause education within workplaces.
Alexander Clementine founder Alex Perry spoke with Jo about menopause, confidence, high-achieving women, ADHD, workplace support and why asking the right questions can matter.
Key takeaways
Jo Moran’s menopause advice: menopause should not be viewed as the end of a woman’s usefulness; loss of confidence and cognitive or emotional changes can have a significant impact on high-achieving women at work; working longer hours to compensate can become a vicious cycle; asking for support and adjusting how you work can help; menopause and ADHD is an area where Jo says more research is needed; HRT is not a “silver bullet”; and managers should listen, stay curious and avoid assuming every woman’s experience is the same.
What is the biggest misconception about menopause?
For Jo, one of the biggest misconceptions is that menopause represents an ending.
She describes the idea that menopause means:
“The end of a woman’s usefulness.”
She also challenges the assumption that:
“It’s the end of everything, and everything after menopause is just downhill from there on.”
Jo acknowledges that the transition itself can be extremely difficult.
But her own experience, and what she sees among friends, peers and clients, has given her a different perspective on what can follow it.
She talks about women having experience they can share, continuing to have productive lives and having opportunities to support others.
“You do come through the other side, and it’s very liberating when you do come through the other side of it.”
For Jo personally:
“I feel like I’ve got the old me back.”
What unusual menopause symptoms has Jo encountered?
Jo discusses several symptoms that women may not immediately connect with menopause.
Her first example is:
“Itchy ears.”
She says this often generates recognition when women discuss it together.
The other symptom she highlights is:
“Heart palpitations.”
Jo says women can become extremely worried by palpitations when they do not know why they are happening.
She also speaks from personal experience about anxiety around driving.
At one stage, Jo became so anxious while driving that she did not like driving with her husband in the car.
These experiences are part of why she places so much emphasis on women having information and understanding what they are experiencing.
What does Jo want men to understand about menopause?
Jo’s first message is:
“Not to be afraid of having the conversation.”
She recommends men educate themselves and use the growing amount of information available.
She also believes support begins with asking rather than assuming.
“What can I do? What would you like me to do? What help do you need?”
The same applies within a workplace.
Jo recommends managers think about what support might be available, but:
“Don’t go into the conversation making the suggestions.”
Instead:
“Go into the conversation with curiosity and asking what help the woman that you’re talking to needs.”
Her broader advice is to ask questions, be curious and be empathetic.
Why can menopause be particularly difficult for high-achieving women?
Jo says some of the symptoms that affect women professionally are not the symptoms people most commonly associate with menopause.
She specifically discusses anxiety, loss of confidence, lack of sleep and exhaustion.
For someone who has previously been highly capable, finding familiar tasks more difficult can have a significant psychological effect.
Jo says high achievers often respond by trying to compensate.
“The only way to keep up is to work harder, and to work more hours.”
That can become:
“A vicious cycle.”
The impact can go beyond workload.
Jo describes women beginning to question themselves, speaking less in meetings and no longer advocating for themselves.
“You stop talking in meetings and advocating for yourself.”
She also describes women being promoted into senior roles and subsequently questioning whether they deserved the promotion because they suddenly felt less able to cope.
For Jo, the timing can be significant: women may reach senior professional positions after decades of experience at the same stage of life that they begin experiencing hormonal changes.
Do women overcompensate at work during menopause?
Jo says she sees this happen.
Women who previously found complex tasks straightforward may find those same tasks take longer.
The instinct can then be to work additional hours to make up for the difference.
“I’ll work extra hours in order to keep up.”
Jo also sees women trying not to let symptoms show and avoiding drawing attention to the fact that they are struggling.
Another consequence can be withdrawing from opportunities.
She describes women stepping back from projects because they no longer feel confident that they can cope with the additional demands.
That can add further pressure and contribute to:
“Feelings of being inadequate.”
What should women do if menopause is affecting their confidence at work?
Jo’s first advice is:
“Seek out somebody that you can talk to.”
She acknowledges this can feel particularly difficult for senior women, who may have relatively few female peers and may not want more junior colleagues to know they are struggling.
However, she also sees an opportunity for senior women to become role models and help normalise the conversation.
If workplace support does not feel appropriate, Jo suggests looking for support within friendship groups and speaking with GPs or other professionals.
She encourages women to treat menopause as another health-related situation.
“We need to get some support, we might need to take a little bit of time off, we might need to adjust how we work.”
And:
“Not apologise for it.”
How can women manage workload differently during menopause?
Jo does not recommend simply adding more hours.
Her advice is:
“Ask for help, and be honest about what’s going on, and think about what might work for you.”
She questions whether a traditional working pattern will suit everybody equally well.
For one woman, a longer break in the middle of the day might allow her to work more effectively later.
Jo suggests identifying:
“When you feel at your best in order to be able to do your best work.”
She also talks about using available tools and technology to remove some routine tasks and leave more time for areas where an individual’s expertise is most valuable.
What does Jo say about menopause and ADHD?
Jo is careful to describe this as an area where more research is needed.
“This is somewhere where there’s a gap in research.”
She discusses the relationship between hormonal changes, dopamine and ADHD and says more midlife women are now being diagnosed.
But Jo also stresses the overlap between symptoms.
Some experiences associated with ADHD can also occur during menopause and can overlap with other medical conditions.
Her advice is therefore:
“It’s important to seek proper medical advice and support because of the overlap.”
She suggests thinking about whether difficulties have always been present but were previously easier to manage, and whether experiences seem to fluctuate.
Her overall recommendation is to get concerns properly assessed by medical professionals.
What did Jo learn from her own experience with HRT?
Jo is clear that she does not try to push women towards HRT.
“It’s a really personal choice.”
Her own experience has taught her that HRT can be one part of the picture rather than the complete answer.
“HRT can help support a lot of symptoms, but it by no means is a silver bullet.”
Jo says it may help some issues without automatically restoring lost confidence or addressing every source of fatigue or anxiety.
That is why she believes:
“Other wraparound support is always really necessary.”
She talks about women becoming overwhelmed by the combined demands of work, children, older parents and their own health.
For Jo, support can therefore include coaching, groups, nutrition, movement, hydration and social interaction depending on what an individual woman needs.
“It’s not a one-size-fits-all.”
What do managers most often get wrong when talking about menopause?
Jo says managers can make comments that are intended to demonstrate empathy but have the opposite effect.
Examples she hears include:
“Oh, my wife’s gone through that.”
Or:
“All women go through it.”
Because every woman’s experience is individual, Jo says:
“Well-meaning comments aren’t necessarily helpful.”
She recommends asking questions, being curious and listening.
Sometimes somebody does not need a manager to immediately produce a solution.
“Women don’t want solutions, but maybe just an ear.”
Simply:
“Feeling listened and heard and understood is enough.”
Managers do not need expert-level medical knowledge.
Jo puts it simply:
“All you need is some time and a pair of ears.”
Why does Jo think workplace culture matters?
Jo says women can be genuinely frightened that admitting they are struggling could affect their careers.
They may worry about being passed over for promotion, losing projects or being stereotyped as no longer capable.
That is one reason some women continue to struggle silently.
Jo believes men and colleagues can help change the culture by challenging inappropriate comments when they hear them.
She says this can help create:
“A safe place for women to go to a male manager and say, ‘I’m really struggling.’”
For Jo, menopause support is therefore connected to wider leadership skills: curiosity, understanding, listening and finding out what the individual actually needs.
What advice does Jo give women approaching menopause?
Jo would like women to learn about their hormonal health much earlier.
Her first recommendation is:
“Get educated.”
She says she herself did not understand the four phases of the menstrual cycle until she was 56.
Her advice is to:
“Normalise the conversation.”
She encourages younger women to speak with older women and understand what may lie ahead.
Jo also talks about looking after the body, eating well, moving and talking openly with friends.
And if something is happening that feels concerning or embarrassing:
“Go and talk to your doctor as well.”
For Jo, the central theme running through the conversation is knowledge, conversation and support — rather than struggling silently or assuming that a sudden change in confidence or capability means something is fundamentally wrong with you.
About Jo Moran
Jo Moran spent her professional career in financial services, working predominantly across risk and compliance alongside experience in marketing and operations.
She was in a senior position when she began experiencing perimenopause herself.
After leaving her corporate career, Jo trained in coaching and specialised in menopause support. Her work now includes one-to-one menopause coaching alongside workplace education and workshops for women, managers and male allies. Jo is the founder of EmpowHer Path - helping women thrive in menopause.
This interview forms part of Alexander Clementine’s Expert Conversations, sharing first-hand perspectives from people working across menopause and women’s health.
