Researchers at 蜜桃AV are exploring the impact of the menopause on autistic people and their experiences during this life transition.
There is currently a lack of research around autistic experiences of menopause and whether the wide-ranging symptoms of menopause can affect autistic people differently.
and are helping to fill this gap by talking to autistic people about their experiences of menopause and the support that might be needed.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 know for sure why life transitions such as menopause affect autistic people differently, but there could be multiple reasons,鈥� said Dr Rachel Moseley, Principal Academic in Psychology at 蜜桃AV.
鈥淚t seems that neurodivergent people generally are quite sensitive to hormonal fluctuations and some of aspects of their autism might be amplified or made more difficult by some of the symptoms of menopause 鈥� for example, sensory sensitivities and difficulties regulating your emotions.
鈥淚n addition, autistic people are a marginalised and stigmatised group and have much higher rates of lifetime stress and trauma. This can change the nervous system and make you more sensitive to future stressful experiences, like menopause.鈥�
Their research has found that autistic experience of menopause can be variable 鈥� while some autistic people have very few struggles during the transition, others said that their mental health and wellbeing were severely affected.
Feedback from autistic people about their experience of menopause included mental and physical symptoms (鈥�I thought that I was going mad鈥︹��, 鈥渁 head full of cotton wool and a body which just isn鈥檛 going to behave鈥�, 鈥淚 was psychotic 鈥� my emotions have been turned up a notch鈥�) and an inability to articulate their need for support (鈥淲hen you can鈥檛 describe what鈥檚 going on, you can鈥檛 ask for help鈥�).
鈥淪ome of our participants reported a significant decline in their mental health, their wellbeing and their ability to take care of themselves,鈥� said Dr Moseley.
鈥淪ome lost jobs, some people became dependent on ageing parents, or fell into financial arrears, some even experiencing self-injury and suicidality - so people can really struggle.鈥�
Their research also found that autistic people are often unprepared and unaware of the potential impact of menopause 鈥� and that a lack of awareness and information tailored to autistic people can make it more difficult to get the help they need.
鈥淲e鈥檝e found that autistic people are often very unprepared for the experience of menopause and don鈥檛 necessarily recognise the symptoms that they are experiencing as menopause,鈥� said Professor Julie Gamble-Turner, Professor of Psychology at 蜜桃AV.
鈥淢any have had particularly difficult experiences in the past accessing healthcare and so are then in a situation where they found it difficult to get support for these symptoms that they were unprepared for and which they don鈥檛 really recognise.
鈥淲e鈥檇 like to provide more information so that people know what to expect even before they go through menopause, so they can be more prepared and so their loved ones, healthcare providers, and people supporting them can also be aware and able to look out for the symptoms that may present themselves in slightly different ways in autistic people.鈥�
Dr Moseley added: 鈥淚t鈥檚 really important that professionals working with autistic people are aware that this can be a time of difficulty, potentially severe mental health difficulties.
鈥淲e need to get information out there that is geared to autistic people and their needs before they hit menopause so that they are forewarned and can set up support if needed.鈥�
