The Dr Louise Newson Podcast

103 - Dr Radhika Vohra: When will women’s health become a priority?

In this episode, Dr Louise Newson talks to GP and Trustee of The Menopause Charity, Dr Radhika Vohra. Radhika is a GP with a special interest in women's health, particularly the menopause and perimenopause. She is also an educator for GP trainees and other healthcare professionals.

 

Together they discuss the current landscape of menopause care in the UK, the poor profile menopause has in healthcare, training and research and the improved appetite professionals now have for more menopause education. Radhika shares her insights from a women's health perspective and hopes the work of The Menopause Charity will be a voice for everyone.

 

Radhika's 3 hopes for menopause across the globe:

 

1. Greater recognition of the impact of perimenopause and menopause on women's lives
2. More education for women and healthcare professionals alike
3. Better support for women and professionals working with menopausal women.

102 - Melanie Martins: Treat me like a patient but there’s no ’one size fits all’

This episode features a very open and honest account from GP and Newson Health doctor, Melanie Martins. Mel was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 34 and, after a further diagnosis and chemotherapy, found herself 'flung' into the menopause with very little warning or discussion with the health professionals caring for her at the time. 

 

Dr Martins shares with Dr Louise Newson why she believes every woman's experience of breast cancer is unique to them and a 'one size fits all' approach must be avoided. She shares about her own quest for help with persistent and worsening genitourinary symptoms and the psychological process of navigating evidence and making a decision to take vaginal estrogen, when she had avoided contact with this hormone for years. 

 

Dr Martin's 3 pieces of advice for women experiencing menopause after breast cancer are: 

• Read this booklet and listen to the podcasts on menopause doctor website: https://d2931px9t312xa.cloudfront.net/menopausedoctor/files/information/601/Been%20through%20breast%20cancer%20(with%20links).pdf

 

• If you're troubled by vulval and vaginal symptoms, stop using soap or shower gel and use an emollient wash instead. You can buy this over the counter in any chemist. These symptoms tend to worsen over time, don't struggle on and get desperate, seek help for them. Vaginal estrogen is safe, it can be used in the long term, alongside HRT, or on it's own. 

 

• Find accurate information about menopause and treatments after breast cancer. And then make a decision that's right for you and you alone. You need to be at peace with that decision, and remember it's not set in stone forever. We can only make decisions based on the information we have and how we feel at the time, so don't look back with regret about what you did or didn't decide to do. 

101 - Dorothy Byrne: Speaking out about the menopause at work

Dorothy Byrne is the Editor at Large at Channel 4 and was Head of News and Current Affairs for 17 years at the channel. In this podcast episode, she speaks with Dr Louise Newson about her own experience of speaking up about the menopause at work. Dorothy gave a MacTaggart lecture at the TV industry's biggest event of the year, The Edinburgh Television Festival, and received an overwhelming response for talking about the menopause in such a setting.(The lecture is available to watch in full on Edinburgh Television Festival's YouTube channel).

 

Dorothy and Louise also discuss the debilitating effects of some of the long-term consequences of the menopause such as a lack of sleep and osteoporosis, and the challenges of getting testosterone prescribed on the NHS.

 

Dorothy's 3 top tips:

 

1. Go and see your doctor if you're suffering. Tell them you need to know more about your treatment options and get advice. Ask them to discuss HRT with you rather than it being quickly dismissed.

 

2. Not sleeping is a serious lifestyle and medical issue. Don't put up with it, the long-term effects on your health from a lack of sleep are considerable.

 

3. Going through the menopause and being an older woman can be great. You can be more confident, you receive less unwanted attention from men, you don't have to worry about getting pregnant, there are so many upsides. Don't accept the consequences of menopause when you can have another 20, 30, or even 40 years of a great life ahead of you.

100 - Reflecting on Dr Newson’s and Dr Lewis’ achievements for women

Newson Health celebrates its 100^th podcast episode with the Clinical Director of Newson Health, Dr Rebecca Lewis. When Dr Louise Newson began these podcasts with the aim of reaching more women, she didn’t envisage doing more than 10 episodes, let alone 100! 

 

In this emotional episode, Dr Lewis and Dr Newson reflect on their joint menopause mission to help women globally with the perimenopause and menopause, as they talk about how their worlds have dramatically changed from being GPs within the NHS, to owning and running the largest menopause clinic in the world. 

 

Their joint aims for the next decade:

 

1. See more women getting the right treatment for their menopause. Currently, only 14% of women in the UK take HRT despite it holding benefits for many more women. The Newson Health doctors would like to see 60 - 70% of women receive this safe and effective treatment.

 

2. Continue to raise the profile of perimenopause and menopause, not only medically but in society - especially in the workplace.

 

3. Raise the profile of menopause globally; many countries don't have a word for it let alone access to treatment.

 

099 - Kate Muir: I cannot let this happen to other people

Journalist and menopause activist, Kate Muir joins Dr Louise Newson in this podcast episode to discuss Kate's experience of her own menopause journey and what propelled her to make the Channel 4 documentary, Sex, Myths and Menopause.

 

Kate shares how she struggled to find the right information about her symptoms and HRT, and after an unsuccessful spell taking compounded bioidentical hormones, she was shocked to realise how little advice was out there and how limited healthcare professionals' knowledge is of up-to-date treatments. Kate thought if she, as an educated woman with an enquiring mind was fumbling in the dark, how much harder is it for other women from all walks of life to get the right menopause care and treatment?

 

Kate's 3 messages for listeners:

1. Body identical HRT saves your life, it saves your work, it saves your relationships, it makes your body work. It's fantastic.
   
   
2. The research on the long-term benefits of HRT is fascinating. If you're in a family with a history of osteoporosis, heart disease, or dementia, I would be paying very close attention to the evidence on the benefits of taking body identical HRT for your future health.
   
   
3. Tell your story. Every woman has a unique story to tell of their perimenopause or menopause. We need to talk about it more and more.

098 - Davina McCall: Making a menopause documentary left me in tears

Davina McCall makes a welcomed return appearance to the Newson Health podcast to discuss what she has learnt from making Channel 4's taboo-smashing documentary, 'Sex, Myths and Menopause'. Dr Newson and Davina discuss a broad range of topics such as the role of estrogen in our bodies, types of HRT, the huge need for more research, and the gaps in menopause care across the country. 

If you listen to this episode when first released, please note Davina's documentary airs on Channel 4 on Wednesday 12th May at 9pm. 

 

Davina's 3 reasons to watch her documentary: 

• Someone you love, someone you know, or someone you work with will be going through what this programme is about. You may end up with a much greater understanding of that person 
• If you're pro-women, in any way, there are ways you can get out there and make a noise for positive change. 
• You will be informed about something that half the nation will go through. Everybody should know about it 

097 - Trying to right 20 years of misinformation and hysteria about HRT - Professor Rob Langer and Dr Louise Newson

Dr Newson speaks with Professor Robert Langer in this episode. Robert Langer is Professor Emeritus in Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of California in San Diego. He was also an investigator of the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Study. Together, they discuss how the WHI Study from 2002 turned the world upside down for women and how they have both been trying to right it ever since.

 

Professor Langer describes in detail what was understood about the benefits of hormone replacement therapy before the WHI study, how the notorious study came about and why it was finished prematurely and so badly misreported in the media. His unique account of how the events unfolded helps listeners to understand the bigger picture of why healthcare professionals and women remain unaware of the benefits of HRT and are often overly cautious of the perceived risks to this day.

 

Professor Langer's 3 top tips are:

1. All of the evidence shows that for women who are within 10 years of their menopause, or under the age of 60, if she has reason to take HRT, there is absolutely no need to be concerned about HRT. For these women the benefits strongly outweigh the risks.

2. There's no reason to stop taking HRT at any age, if you've been taking it from the time of your perimenopause or within 10 years of your menopause.

3. With a knowledgeable practitioner, there's no reason that a woman who is past her menopause or over 60, can't start taking HRT, as long as the clinician is aware of how to start slowly and get hormone levels to the right point.

096 - I have taken HRT for nearly 50 years and won’t ever stop it - Kay Anderson and Dr Louise Newson

Dr Newson has a fascinating conversation with Kay Anderson, a woman in her 80s who began taking HRT after a hysterectomy in 1972, when she was only 36. Kay remembers the frightening and devastating depression that suddenly engulfed her, as a mum with 3 young children, and how her gynaecologist agreed to use her as a 'guinea pig' and let her have some HRT.

 

They discuss the different types of HRT that Kay has taken and prescribing trends over the last 50 years, and Dr Newson explains how safe modern types of estrogen is through the skin, and how it can protect the health of your heart, bones and mind as you age. Kay has been the only one of her friends to take HRT and is also the only one who doesn't have to take any other medications!

 

Kay's top 3 tips:

1. See another doctor if they won't give you HRT or try and make you stop taking it.
2. Don't feel pressured to stop taking it, because if you do you will probably be right back where you started.
3. Tell your friends and family what you want, so they can support you to get the right help for you.

095 - The Lorraine effect: menopause in the public eye. Lorraine Kelly and Dr Louise Newson

Lorraine Kelly joins Dr Louise Newson in this podcast episode and they discuss their shared experience of talking about the menopause on that infamous couch!

 

Lorraine talks openly about her own menopause and how treatment radically changed her work life, relationships, and emotional wellbeing. Every time menopause is discussed on Lorraine's show, they have an overwhelming response from women who are struggling with their symptoms and can't get the help they need.

 

Dr Newson outlines some of the ways she is trying to counteract the misinformation around HRT and general lack of awareness from the public and healthcare professionals. They discuss how attitudes are slowly changing around menopause and share their frustrations at the uphill battle they face in trying to get more help for more women.

 

Lorraine's top 3 tips for women who are thinking about getting help:

1. Get all the information you can and read up on everything you might need to know.
2. Don't be fobbed off when you go and try and get help. Remember you're doing it for you, to feel better, but you're also doing it for everyone that loves you.
3. If you're given HRT and you don't think it's working , don't give up, keep trying with it, or discuss changing the dose or type, it might take a while to find what suits you. Just go for it and be empowered.

Follow Lorraine on Instagram - @Lorrainekellysmith

094 - Breast cancer treatments induced my menopause: what help is there now? - Caroline and Dr Louise Newson

Just before her 40th birthday, Caroline was given the unexpected diagnosis of breast cancer. The grueling treatments brought on the menopause and she endured a miserable seven years as a 'functional wreck'. Nine years on, Caroline reflects on this experience. She describes her search for help for the awful menopausal symptoms that were making her feel so unlike her usual, outgoing self and shares how she came to the decision to take HRT, despite being surrounded by advice to the contrary. Dr Newson outlines the complex and little understood relationship between breast cancer and estrogen, and reminds listeners that once accurate information is shared, the choice about menopause treatments after breast cancer ultimately belongs to the individual.

 

Caroline's three tips:

 

1. Keep an honest record of how you are really feeling and look back on it. If you notice menopausal symptoms and you're just getting through the day, see your doctor. If they suggest antidepressants, don't agree straight away, find out more about how effective they are for menopausal women.
2. Talk to someone who specialises in the menopause, even better, someone who treats menopausal women who've had breast cancer. Then you know you're getting gold standard information.
3. Don't beat yourself up if all you're worried about is the cancer coming back. It's normal to feel like that. But also allow yourself the possibility of a better, brighter future. You need to know there is hope and help out there - you deserve it.