Helen the Menopause Pharmacist

23/12/2025

I'm thrilled to be supporting this! Sign up for free and come and join me 💗

🌸 Join Us for NHS Grampian's Women’s Health Community Appointment Day! 🌸
📅 Date: 20th January 2026
📍 Venue: Aberdeen Vaccination & Wellbeing Hub, Bon Accord Centre
🕘 Time: 9:30 AM – 4:00 PM

This special day is dedicated to raising awareness and offering support for your menstrual health including Endometriosis, Menopause, Polycystic O***y Syndrome (PCOS), and Pelvic Floor Health.

✅ Attend expert talks on key women’s health topics
✅ Explore stalls from NHS Grampian, Endometriosis UK, Women’s Aid, Period Place, Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, and more!
✅ Opportunistic Vaccinations if eligible (Flu/COVID / HPV) & free Health Checks from CHSS
✅ Enjoy free refreshments in our Community Café
✅ Bring your child to the Teddy Bear Hospital for fun and play with Pipkin the Wellbeing Bunny!

📌 Book your place or request more info here:
👉 https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/zsjyY36pyB

Let’s work together to support women’s health and wellbeing NHS Grampian Sport Aberdeen Quarriers Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland Latnem Department for Work and Pensions - DWP Police Scotland North East Grampian Women's Aid NHS Grampian Public Health Aberdeen Tenants & Residents Partnership
ACVO and Volunteer Aberdeen

16/12/2025

This is a great FREE resource if you're a patient in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

🎄🎅🎁🛌 Keep festive sleeplessness in check. Learn how to improve your sleep this festive season. Try : www.sleepio.com/nhs

10/12/2025

When a woman walks into a consultation room seeking help with menopause, she isn’t starting her story there. She’s already traveled a long road before she ever sits down in front of us.

By the time she asks for support, she may have:
🔹 navigated months—or years—of symptoms she couldn’t name
🔹 been told “it’s just stress,” “just aging,” or “just hormonal”
🔹 tried to hold everything together at work, at home, and in her relationships
🔹 second-guessed her own experiences or felt dismissed
🔹 done her own research, sought advice, and tried to manage alone

And sometimes, that journey is far harder than we realise.

Recently, a woman shared her experience with me. She’d called her GP surgery 108 times before someone finally picked up. When she did get through, she was prescribed medication—without clear guidance on how to use it. The medication didn’t agree with her, and the side effects left her feeling worse than before.
So now she faced an impossible choice:
🔸 try calling another 108 times to seek further advice?
🔸 persevere with medication that was tough to tolerate?
🔸 or give up entirely, returning to square one with no help and no options?

No woman should ever be put in that position.

Her courage to keep going, to even consider asking for help again, is not a small step—it’s the result of countless unseen ones.

As healthcare professionals we need to acknowledge and respect, that by the time she reaches us, she’s already done more work, more emotional labour, and more self-advocacy than we will ever know.

Menopause care isn’t just about symptoms. It’s about seeing the woman behind them. It’s about honouring her journey—and making sure she never has to walk it alone.

I promise to keep your experience at the centre of your care. 💛

05/12/2025

Some weeks are A LOT

Between a busy job, a busy family, and pouring my energy into the many menopause projects I care so deeply about… showing up on social media just isn’t always possible.

But even when I’m quiet here, I’m still here. Still researching. Still learning. Still building things that I genuinely believe are going to help women.

When I do post, you can always expect science-backed, evidence-based information you can trust—no trends, no fluff, just real support for your menopause journey.

Thanks for being here, for your patience, and for valuing truth over noise 💛

30/11/2025

Strong bones = strong you. 💪
During peri/menopause, your estrogen levels drop— and that can speed up bone loss. That’s why this stage of life is the perfect time to show your bones some extra love. 🦴💛

Nourish them with calcium- and vitamin D–rich foods, stay active with weight-bearing, strengthening and balancing exercises. And of course, replenishing oestrogen through HRT can also help prevent and treat osteoporosis. Your future self will thank you!

Healthy bones mean more energy, more confidence, and more years doing the things you love. 🌿💃

17/11/2025

This is a MAJOR step forward for women - after more than two decades of fear and misinformation surrounding hormone replacement therapy (HRT), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is initiating the removal of broad “black box” warnings from HRT products for menopause. So, in a nutshell, this is what it's all about....

⁉️What’s the “black box” warning?

It’s the FDA’s strongest drug warning, added to many HRT (hormone replacement therapy) products.

It flagged serious risks like heart attack, stroke, dementia, and cancer—based largely on old data.

✅ Why removing it matters:

Regulators now say the risks have been overstated for many women, especially when HRT is started within 10 years of menopause or before age 60.

This change could help more women access HRT for symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and sleep problems—without being stopped by fear.

It also restores trust: decisions can be made on facts, not alarmist labels.

🌍 What this means for women in the UK:

Even though this is a U.S. FDA change, it could influence UK practice and attitudes: less stigma = more open conversations about HRT.

There’s already concern in the UK about unequal access to HRT (“postcode lottery”) and lack of education among GPs.
Financial Times

Ultimately, more women might feel empowered to ask about HRT—especially during that “window” when the benefits seem strongest.

16/11/2025

🌿 Nature & Menopause: A Powerful Duo 🌿

I can't tell you how much I love trees, they're awe inspiring and they just make me breath slower and deeper and I can feel my shoulders starting to relax.

PLUS if you're struggling with symptoms like hot flushes, mood swings or low energy - Getting outside can actually help!

Here’s how nature supports menopause:

✨ Lowers stress + cortisol
✨ Boosts mood + eases anxiety
✨ Helps regulate sleep
✨ Supports weight + energy through gentle movement
✨ Natural light = better vitamin D
✨ Calms the nervous system + reduces inflammation

Just **10–20 minutes a day**—a walk, some gardening, sitting under a tree—can make a real difference.

🌸 Your body is changing, but nature can help you feel grounded through it. 🌸

29/10/2025

Thrilled to be invited to speak at this community event. Book your FREE space now!

Next Wednesday and 19th November we have the brilliant Helen the Menopause Pharmacist for our lunchtime talks! So if you, a loved one or someone you know is going through perimenopause or menopause then come along and find out more! We will be talking about signs and symptoms and then treatments and management. Send me a message or a email, if you wish to book and free lunch after!

18/10/2025

HAPPY MENOPAUSE DAY 2025! This year's theme on World Menopause Day is Lifestyle Medicine, which I absolutely love because in order to live your best menopause you don't want to use just one tool, you want to utilise the whole tool kit!

This article just released by the International Menopause Society emphasises that Lifestyle Medicine is FOUNDATIONAL to menopause care. The authors define lifestyle medicine as an evidence‑based approach centred on six “pillars”:

Healthy eating
Physical activity
Mental well‑being (stress and psychological health)
Avoidance of risky substances (e.g., smoking, excessive alcohol)
Restorative sleep
Healthy relationships/social connection

I'll post the link to the article in the comments below

Menopause isn't just a medical event it's a stage of life so let's make it the best stage yet 💗

05/10/2025

A great visual reminder that menopause comes in a variety of flavours 💗

09/09/2025

When the symptoms start — that’s your sign. ⁠
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Hot flushes, mood swings, brain fog, night sweats, sleep issues? You might be in perimenopause, and HRT could help.⁠
⁠
You don’t have to “wait it out.” If symptoms are affecting your quality of life, it’s okay to ask for support. ⁠
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Your hormones are shifting — and you deserve care that keeps up. 💬💖
⁠

04/09/2025

✨ New Resource Alert! ✨
The British Menopause Society has launched a new Tool for Clinicians on Managing Sleep Disturbance in the Menopause Transition 💤

🔹 Up to HALF of women struggle with poor sleep during menopause.
🔹 Why? Falling oestrogen & progesterone levels affect the brain’s sleep centres, body temperature control, and mood regulation.
🔹 Hot flushes, night sweats & anxiety can all disrupt sleep cycles — making rest lighter, shorter, and less refreshing.
🔹 Sleep loss then worsens mood, memory, migraines, sexual dysfunction & even heart health.

💡 What can help improve sleep?
Sleep hygiene (consistent bedtime, cool/dark room, no late screens)
Relaxation (mindfulness, breathing, yoga)
Lifestyle tweaks (exercise, balanced diet, limit caffeine/alcohol)
Managing hot flushes & sweats with HRT or non-hormonal options
Medical support when needed

Better sleep = better quality of life 🌙💙