Menopause leaves many women suffering in silence at work, but the push for change is on. With two successful businesses to run and a team of staff to lead, Kate Sinfield could not afford to have anything get in her way.

But three years ago, during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, she started showing symptoms of menopause. "When I first became what I now know as menopausal, I actually thought I'd completely lost my mind, because I couldn't remember anything," she said. The 57-year-old runs Sin Gin Distillery in Western Australia and before this year, had also owned the Murray Hotel in Perth's CBD. But like thousands of other women around the country, menopause significantly impacted her ability to work.

"As a woman, I was feeling really empowered with my career and where I was in my life, and then suddenly, my brain just didn't work."

"I thought I had early onset dementia or something, I was really worried about myself, and then I started not sleeping at night and getting the hot flashes."

Not really understanding what was happening to her, she suffered in silence, worried that if she spoke out, it would undermine her position.

"I think we still live in a very male [dominated] society still, and so many things aren't discussed openly — miscarriages, infertility, most things to do with women," she said.

"There wasn't enough conversation in my workplace and even when I reached out to other women, we were very badly informed about menopause."

A taboo topic in the workplace

After Ms Sinfield received the appropriate treatment, her symptoms subsided, and she felt like herself again.

But her experience with menopause is not uncommon, with many women feeling embarrassed or ashamed to discuss its effect on them.

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