Is menopause so terrible that it leads some women to take their own lives? It’s an alarming claim, often stated as fact (or, at least, it has been in recent years).
More recently, it was put together by leading menopause guru Dr Louise Newson, a GP and founder of the Newson Health chain of private clinics, which sees approximately 4,000 patients a month, all of whom seek treatment for symptoms. of menopause.
A Mail on Sunday investigation published earlier this month revealed concerns about his clinic, which prescribes doses of HRT above authorized limits to one in five of its patients.
Experts warned that these high doses should only be used in “exceptional” circumstances and accused them of putting patients at risk, as large amounts of some hormonal drugs can increase the risk of uterine cancer.
Dr. Newson, on the other hand, insisted that her approach helps vulnerable women struggling with suicidal thoughts.
Renowned menopause guru Dr. Louise Newson has claimed that menopause is so horrible that it leads some women to take their own lives. Pictured left to right: Dr Louise Newson, Mariella Frostrup, Carolyn Harris MP, Penny Lancaster and Davina McCall with protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in London demonstrating against the current HRT prescription charges in October 2021 .
A Mail on Sunday investigation revealed concerns about Dr Louise Newson’s clinic, which prescribes doses of HRT above authorized limits to one in five of its patients (file photo of woman taking HRT pills)
And he added: “The authorized doses are simply the doses with which the pharmaceutical companies conducted their trials.”
After our report, Dr Newson, who has celebrity endorsements such as TV presenter Mariella Frostrup, spoke to another newspaper about her stance.
The article told the story of a woman who suffered a catalog of mental health problems in her mid-40s that worsened. Antidepressants “made no difference,” but high-dose HRT helped. Dr. Newson said that “many women” who attend her clinic “have very negative intrusive thoughts that make them feel like they would be better off if they weren’t here.”
He added that “there is no evidence that antidepressants help improve the psychological symptoms of menopause” and that “HRT saves lives.”
So is he right? It’s important to look at the bigger picture first: mental health problems are widespread. One in six adults suffers from depression, and ten percent severely. It is approximately twice as common in women as in men. And some will be of menopausal age.
But does that mean menopause is the cause or the trigger? That’s quite difficult to answer; not that you’d know that from reading other recent headlines. “Women became suicidal amid HRT supply shortages because menopause ruins their lives,” said one, in April last year, reporting on the much-discussed HRT shortage. Another simply said: “Life or death crisis on HRT.”
Most of these articles quoted activist and Labor MP Carolyn Harris, who said women in her Swansea East constituency were “literally suicidal” because they could not receive HRT.
Meanwhile, Katie Taylor of the Latte Lounge, a popular menopause support group, said: “It is no coincidence that the highest rate of suicide among women is in the 45 to 55 age group (when most goes through menopause). But is it? The ONS, which compiles figures on causes of death, reported 5,583 suicides in 2021, the most recent year on record. Three-quarters (4,129) were men, and the largest proportion of these deaths occur in middle age (45 to 49 years for women and 50 to 54 years for men).
And obviously, men are not going through menopause.
In women, the largest increase in suicides has been among those 24 years old and younger, while suicide rates among women 45 years old and older have decreased significantly since 1981. I saw some articles that suggested there had been an increase in suicides among middle-aged women. – a “fact” that appeared to have been spread by an anti-menopause campaign group. But this is not correct.
According to the ONS, a key factor leading people to take their own lives is socioeconomic status: suicide rates are twice as high in the most deprived areas as in the least deprived areas. And this gap becomes more pronounced in middle age.
Financial problems and debt, unemployment, relationship breakdowns and “the demands of midlife” (caring for children and aging parents) all play a role.
As Samaritans notes: “Most of the time there is no single event or factor that leads someone to take their life.” So could menopause symptoms be one of those pressures that push some women over the edge? It’s completely possible. But in such nuanced cases, a single drug treatment, or lack thereof, is unlikely to make a difference.
In its media guidelines for responsibly reporting on suicide, Samaritans advises against speculating about a trigger or cause, as “suicide is extremely complex.” With this in mind, the rhetoric that “women must take HRT or they will commit suicide” seems like a gross oversimplification.
Evidence suggests that there is an average ten percent increase in reports of depressive symptoms or low mood during perimenopause, the transitional phase before menopause, when hormones begin to fluctuate.
“It’s not easy to determine the extent to which hormones play a role,” says Myra Hunter, a professor at Kings College London and a psychologist with more than three decades of research on women’s health. “But symptoms such as low mood, sleep problems, stress and hot flashes can often interact in a vicious cycle and have a serious impact on quality of life.”
This, explains Professor Hunter, is why NICE guidelines say that HRT, which is very effective in reducing all of these symptoms, should be considered for bad mood in menopause, along with cognitive behavioral therapy.
Doctors are also discouraged from routinely offering antidepressants to women with menopausal symptoms unless they have a diagnosis of depression. ‘For depression, the kind that might cause suicidal thoughts, antidepressants and cognitive behavioral therapy are proven treatments. And HRT can be used in combination with these if menopausal symptoms are a contributing factor.’
Labor MP Carolyn Harris (right with Lisa Snowden, left and Penny Lancaster in Parliament), said women in her Swansea East constituency were “literally suicidal” because they could not receive HRT.
In the 1980s, gynecologist and HRT pioneer John Studd used to treat women suffering from mental health problems during menopause with very high doses of HRT. His research also revealed a phenomenon called tachyphylaxis, in which some overtreated patients needed increasingly higher doses to control their symptoms.
And, as a result, some developed serious mental health problems. So clearly, more HRT is not always better for mental health. But more to the point, Professor Hunter, like many others I have spoken to in recent years, is concerned that a generation of women are absorbing the terrifying messages that menopause is going to be hell.
Research suggests that these worries can make symptoms worse. In reality, most women do not have serious problems. But if they do, there are a variety of evidence-based interventions that can help, not always HRT.
As Professor Hunter says: “There are many factors that affect midlife mental health. Let’s hope we’ve stopped blaming our hormones for all women’s problems.”