Making menopause a stage of life that everybody knows
about: that’s the mission for the two Gen X
campaigners behind a new series
of outdoor ads running nationwide via Locky Docks and oOh!media
NZ for World Menopause Day (18 October
2023).
“Every woman, some
non-binary and trans men will go through
menopause/ruahinetanga. It impacts everyone, directly or
indirectly, so we all need to learn about it,” says
menopause advocate Sarah Connor.
About 70% of women
experience moderate or severe symptoms during
perimenopause/menopause when fluctuating hormones can impact
their physical and mental health for an average of five to
seven years.
When Connor asked a friend in the health
sector how long they thought it might take for a
publicly-funded awareness campaign about menopause to be
rolled out across Aotearoa, they estimated two to four
years.
Connor recalls her disappointment, “We
don’t have two to four years. Anyone of any age or gender
has the right to understand their mind and body, and to get
the support they need at any stage of life – including
menopause.”
The results of the NZ Menopause Survey
(2023) carried out by GP/menopause doctor Linda Dear are
sobering. Of the 4,000+ respondents, 64% had experienced
anxiety, 69% reported a low mood, and sadly but not
surprisingly, 18% said they had thought about ending their
lives. Sixty four percent didn’t know their symptoms were
because of menopause.
“You don’t know what you
don’t know,” Connor adds. “There are many layers to
menopause.” Each outdoor ad features one of six facts she
wishes she’d known sooner.
It’s the third time
Connor has teamed up with brand strategist and creative
Helen Milner for the cause. Following the launch of two awareness-raising
tea towels in 2021, they created NZ’s
first outdoor ads featuring the word menopause for World
Menopause Day 2022.
Milner explains that their latest
collaboration is a striking and effective way to reach the
public.
“Like the tea towels, we wanted the six ads
to be unapologetically bold, single minded and informative
— to change people’s perceptions about menopause; to
have everyone know it’s a normal and sometimes challenging
transition and something to understand, respect and
celebrate,” says Milner. “The tag line reflects our
plain and simple goal: for everyone to learn about it — in
the same way we all learn about puberty, sex and
pregnancy.”
Connor knows first-hand
the impact of not knowing about the hormonal changes to
expect in midlife. In 2019 at age 46, she landed in
perimenopause (the years leading up to menopause).
Fluctuating hormones impacted her health and wellbeing in a
significant way for several months until she found the right
information, support, and solutions. Soon after, she founded
the grassroots movement Menopause Over
Martinis* and has since facilitated
conversations about menopause with hundreds of people of
all ages and genders in workplaces all over New Zealand, in
her community and on social media.
The lack of
education combined with the stigma around menopause means
too many women are struggling to understand the changes
they’re experiencing. Connor says that it should be easy
for women and people to get the information they need and
support from health professionals, friends, a partner,
family and workplaces.
This year the creative pair
have partnered with Big Street Bikers again to run the
digital outdoor ads via its Locky Docks network – places
for people to lock, dock and recharge their bike, e-bike or
scooter in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, Kirikiriroa/Hamilton,
Tauranga, Whakatāne, Kāpiti, Te Awa Kairangi ki Tai/Lower
Hutt, Te Papaioea/Palmerston North, Pōneke/Wellington,
Ōtautahi/Christchurch, and Ōtepoti/Dunedin.
Says
Cleve Cameron, Managing Director of Big Street Bikers:
“We’re thrilled to be running the menopause
awareness campaign for a second year. Repetition and great
headlines really help normalise in the public’s mind a
very normal thing.”
This year, oOh!media NZ have
also supported the campaign with the digital ads featuring
on 40 screens in 26 shopping centres across nine cities and
towns nationwide.
Says Nick Vile, GM for oOh!media NZ:
“We’re proud to be providing a platform around World
Menopause Day this year – to help spark conversation, fight
stigma and empower our communities with
information.”
From where Connor and Milner are
standing, the future looks bright. “One day everyone will
know about menopause, and women and people going through it
will be supported at home, work and in the community if
needed. One tea towel, one conversation, one outdoor ad at a
time…change is possible. It’s as plain and simple as
that.”
World Menopause Day is 18 October and
World Menopause Month runs through October. Everyone can do
something
to raise awareness of menopause. To join the revolution,
visit www.menopauseovermartinis.org
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