Finally, the NHS will talk about menopause, but will women really be heard?

Why this change matters

I’ve lost count of the number of NHS health checks I’ve dutifully booked, turned up for, and ticked my way through. Blood pressure? Fine. Cholesterol? OK. BMI? Let’s not go there. But despite my 50-year-old body showing all the usual signs of wear and tear, no one has ever asked about the chapter that leaves your hormones running riot and your confidence having a meltdown.

That’s finally set to change. From 2026, women aged 40 to 74 in England will, for the first time, be asked about menopause symptoms during their NHS health checks. The Government’s goal is to spot those struggling earlier and offer practical help, whether that’s hormone replacement therapy (HRT), medication for hot flushes, or even counselling.

It sounds like a breakthrough, doesn’t it? A sign that women’s health is being taken seriously, that our midlife bodies are not just ticking boxes for cholesterol and cardiovascular risk. But – and there’s always a but – the news comes with a quiet question mark. How many women will this really reach?

The reality behind NHS health checks

NHS health checks are only offered every five years, and many of us never go. Uptake in some areas is shockingly low, particularly among women juggling care work, jobs, and parenthood who don’t have the time or energy to sit in a surgery answering questions. If the system doesn’t reach those women, this new initiative risks being a well-meaning gesture rather than a genuine game-changer.

Still, it’s a step in the right direction. Health Secretary Wes Streeting summed it up bluntly: women have been “suffering in silence” for far too long. He’s not wrong. Too many of us have been left to muddle through night sweats, brain fog, mood swings, or that slow, creeping anxiety that no one warned us about. We’ve been told it’s “just part of life” or that we should simply “get on with it.”

That quiet endurance has become almost a badge of honour among midlife women, hasn’t it? The ones who keep smiling through the fatigue, turn up at the school gate when they’ve had three hours of sleep, and nod politely while someone half their age tells them to “try breathing exercises.”

Understanding the menopause experience

Menopause is different for every woman, but for most of us, it arrives somewhere between 45 and 55. Sometimes earlier. Sometimes much earlier. And perimenopause can creep in while you’re still buying tampons and wondering why you suddenly feel weepy.

Three-quarters of women will experience symptoms, and many of those symptoms go way beyond the clichés. There’s the unpredictable bleeding or lack of it, the aching joints, and the creeping weight gain. Then there’s the mental side: the brain fog that makes you forget your PIN at the supermarket check-out, the anxiety that comes out of nowhere, the loss of libido that no one really wants to admit to.

These changes can last for years, on average, seven. Seven years of feeling not quite yourself, of wondering if you’re losing your edge or just your oestrogen. And yet, research shows fewer than one in ten women feel they have enough information to deal with it. That statistic floors me. In an age where we can track our steps, cycles, sleep, and stress levels on apps, so many of us are still fumbling in the dark when it comes to menopause.

Why this change could be transformative

That’s why this change to NHS checks matters. It’s an official acknowledgement that menopause is a medical issue, not a private embarrassment to be whispered about in chemist queues. For years, women’s health has been an afterthought, with menopause somewhere near the bottom of the priority list, wedged between ‘back pain’ and ‘see if it settles on its own’.

In a recent BBC article, Women’s Health Ambassador Dame Lesley Regan described the move as “a big step forward.” She pointed out that around 400,000 women in the UK will become menopausal this year alone, yet most will have little understanding of what’s happening to their bodies. She’s right, and it’s not just about information. It’s about being seen.

“A big step forward,” said Women’s Health Ambassador Dame Lesley Regan, “because 400,000 women will become menopausal this year, and most will have little understanding of what’s happening to their bodies.”

A personal reflection

When I hit my mid-40s, I remember going to my GP complaining of anxiety and exhaustion. I half-expected a blood test, maybe a chat about hormones. Instead, I was told it was probably stress and sent off with breathing tips. That was it. I left the surgery feeling slightly ridiculous, like I’d made a fuss over nothing. A few months later, I found myself Googling symptoms at 2am, the sign of a woman trying to self-diagnose what no one has explained to her.

This is the reality for so many of us. We’ve grown up in a culture that avoids the topic of menopause all together. We can talk about periods and pregnancy (sort of), but menopause? It’s still awkward. Even among friends, it’s easier to joke about hot flushes than admit to the darker stuff such as the tears, the rage, the bone-deep fatigue.

Looking ahead

Bringing menopause into NHS health checks could start to change that. It tells women that what they’re going through is valid, biological, and treatable. It also tells the next generation, our daughters, nieces, and colleagues that menopause isn’t the end of vitality or relevance, but another phase worth understanding and supporting.

However, I can’t help but worry about what happens next. Will there be enough GPs trained to have those conversations? Enough access to HRT? Enough follow-up support for women who say, “Yes, I think I’m struggling”? It’s one thing to add a question to a form; it’s another to back it up with real care.

And let’s not forget the women who fall through the cracks, those without easy access to healthcare, those in communities where stigma still runs deep, or those who dismiss their symptoms because they’ve been conditioned to “just get on with it.”

The Government’s announcement is encouraging, yes. But if we want this to be more than a headline, we need to make sure it’s implemented properly, that every woman who ticks that box gets real, informed help on the other side of it.

The bigger picture

So maybe, for once, those quick five-yearly check-ups could become something more. A chance to look women in the eye and say: *You’re not imagining it. You’re not alone. Let’s talk about what’s next.*

Because that’s what progress should feel like, not a ticked box, but a conversation that changes everything.