Last March, Halle did an event in Los Angeles with Dr. Jill Biden about women’s health. Halle shared a story about how one morning after sex, it felt like she had “razor blades” in her vajayjay. Her doctor told her it was herpes, but it ended up being a perimenopausal symptom. A few months later, while speaking before Congress to push for legislation that would provide more funding for research and education on menopause, Halle shared that she had a male doctor who told her that she “didn’t look like” she was in menopause. Now, Halle has started a new company called Respin Health that aims to destigmatize women’s health and build a support community. It will also educate and empower women to make informed decisions about their body. In a recent appearance on Today, Halle revealed that people tried to talk her out of talking about menopause for the sake of her career.
On Feb. 18, the Oscar winner appeared on the Today Show to discuss her new company, Respin Health, which focuses on building a community for women navigating menopause. “When women have access to a robust community of like-minded women, they automatically start to do better,” the 58-year-old says.
Saturday TODAY co-anchor Laura Jarrett noted that although it sounds “ridiculous,” it feels like menopause is finally having a moment, with more people willing to have conversations about it.
Berry said at first she was discouraged from pursuing the passion project: “Sadly, people said to me, ‘Are you sure you want to talk about that? Do you want to align yourself with menopause? Do you worry how that will affect your career?’ And I said, ‘No.’”
“And that’s exactly why I should be talking about it because there’s nothing wrong with me being in my mid-life,” the actress continued. “There’s nothing wrong with being 58, and you have to stop telling me there’s something wrong with me. And I’m going to prove to you that it’s not. And so women, we have to work together to destigmatize this time of life and change culture.”
The Catwoman star encouraged other women going through menopause to lean into their health more and understand what’s happening to their bodies.
“Women find when they start educating themselves that they can make decisions from a place of power, and then they feel empowered and they don’t feel so hopeless during this half,” she explained. “It’s not time to sit down. It’s time to reinvent. It’s time to have a beautiful, glorious second act. We can still be our fabulous selves, but we have to learn how.”
During menopause, Berry added, “everything about our body changes, right? But that’s not to be feared. We just need education to navigate that time.”
Of course people would try to discourage Halle from speaking out about menopause and blame it on her career. She’s Halle Berry. She’s had worse gossip days than talking about vaginal lacerations and hot flashes, and her career is doing just fine. I’m glad she didn’t listen to the naysayers and is moving full-speed ahead with her mission. I love the idea. It sort of reminds me of what BabyCenter and The Bump do to guide people through pregnancy. I cannot tell you how much I learned about what I was experiencing and what to expect through their articles and message boards. I was 30 when my first son was born, but still the first in my friends group to be pregnant, so I had no peers to talk to. I’d be down to creep on a menopause version. I already get so much education just by reading the comments here.
Photos via Instagram/Halle Berry and credit Getty
All I do is talk about perimenopause/menopause I just finished recording my second album about the pause. I do feel like maybe I am wearing people out and a lot of my peers that are in the same stage when I approach them to get collaborative and bring more awareness and acceptance in our respective art spaces they just laugh uncomfortably, I hate that but will not stop shinging a spotlight on all the magic and power we crones have.
@Scotchy…PREACH👏❤️👏
I’m TIRED of girls/women’s health & bodily functions being ignored AND abused! My Mama had a hysterectomy in her 30s…when I was a very small child…and my older sister had BC 😡😱 & chemo in her 40s…so the Women I was closest to regarding menopause didn’t go through the norm…so they couldn’t help OR understand the TEN PLUS YEARS OF ALL OF THAT TURMOIL I HAD!😱…Lawd…at 57…I feel like my body has FINALLY settled!
Riiiigghhttt because a certain type of man only wants women who are fertile, whose fertility only men can control, and who are powerless and silent. To hell with all of them.
THAT PART!👍
THIS!!! The more we talk about menopause, the better it is!!
Edited to add: this was meant as a reply to MTL.EX.PAT.
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… and all this is continued, maybe subconsciously, by (mostly male) gynecologists who have no idea beyond theoretical diagnoses. But this sadly still goes for some female gynos too.
It’s a good thing there are easily accessible and reliable sources out there that can help with making informed decisions about one’s own body/health.
Go Halle!
Absolutely one reason she was told to be quiet was the whole ageism/ fertility thing.
However, no joke, it’s a grim reality that most of our medical knowledge is based on men. It’s a lot cheaper to do clinical trials based on men, because their hormones are more even and people born male do not get pregnant. The medical community researching and with access to the millions of dollars clinical trials cost also skews male. Due to the cost, people want specific outcomes–otherwise a clinical trial is seen as a waste of time and money–and using men is generally a safer bet. Plus people generally feel warmer and fuzzier with what they vibe with.
We accept that teenagers go through hormonal changes and this can be wonky–women going through the reverse get far less grace: it’s seen as something being wrong/ correct it with hormonal therapy.
When I went through early menopause, stabilizing my blood sugar bbseriously cut down on hot flashes and night sweats. Eat stuff with protein/ fiber/ healthy fats, and if you want a sweet treat/ dessert, couple it to a meal so it doesn’t cause a major spike. And eliminate caffeine after the early afternoon, because sleeping issues are another menopausal treat.
The worst peri/menopause symptom was insomnia for me.
Also: menopause doesn’t equal OLD.
it can happen even before your 50’s .
It’s part of life.
I had my ovaries left after my hysterectomy, I am 44 and I have no clue about which signs I should have.
So I’m all for spreading information.
Eleonor, Excellent point. I personally went through menopause early as well–in my late thirties due to undiagnosed celiac disease.
Even if it means OLD… What’s wrong with it? Halle looks much younger, but she’s been in the business long enough to math she must be well into her 50s. It makes sense she’s going through menopase. It’s the denial of ageing as the only option what makes sillier the advice she was given.
I think its as simple as this: for most of her career, Halle was a sex symbol. Most ppl equate menopause with being past your prime. My 15 year old son even described menopause, from what he learned in school as “the point at which women dry up.” Whoever told Halle to NOT talk about menopause (she should talk about it as it supports other women) was probably an agent or peer in Hollywood who fears doing the same or losing their percentage of her take (agent).
I was one of the people alarmed when she spoke out because yes, it will affect her career, and I’m rooting for her. But honestly, who knows what’s gonna happen to any Hollywood career, so you might as well be free and be you. I’m impressed with her and also with Pamela Anderson for blazing new trails and making it look so good.
My ex said something once about some older woman that: “her hormones are all dried up.”
But let me tell you something that doesn’t dry up for men with older women and that’s money. If we’re so useless, put your hand back in your pocket and stop asking us for our money. Grown-ass sons keep coming to their mother for money these days. Half of these incels and manosphere freaks I guarantee you are getting money from their mother. Women work their asses off and hand over the money to everybody. We keep this economy going. We do the shopping, we make sure things that are needed are bought. Every essential cog at every company I’ve ever worked at has been a woman.
Femininity is not fertility. It runs much deeper than that and is way more powerful. They want you to obsess about fertility so that you don’t recognize how much power you have long after you’re fertile.
I LOVE this comment! You nailed it, Nuks!
Hail Halle! I’m also 58. I’ve been in perimenopause for years, and I think after off-and-on, off-and-on, I’m probably entering into menopause. But that is measured from when you haven’t had a period for a year, so let’s see what happens. It is really important, I don’t know how to say this, not to let men off the hook? Better stated: men should not be ignorant about what women go through. I talk about it all the time, and have for many years. Someone would say, “you were out yesterday, you were sick?” and I’d say “I had paralyzing cramps up my left leg. I had to take so much ibuprofen that I didn’t feel up to driving in.” It’s a little harder saying, “I’m having a blood hemhorrage (sp?) because I’m female.” But I’ve said it a little more tactfully. My friends from work have spoken a number of times about how they messed their clothes (while on the train to work) and had to go back home and change. It’s not easy!
If women ever get to run the world, the way that men have… it would be so f—ing awesome.