Every woman goes through menopause in middle life. With Singapore's workforce ageing, experts are calling for more research into the challenges faced by employees during this life stage, and what companies can do to support them.
Menopause symptoms such as hot flushes can affect women's comfort, well-being and ability to function at work. (Illustration: CNA/Clara Ho)
Menopause symptoms such as hot flushes can affect women's comfort, well-being and ability to function at work. (Illustration: CNA/Clara Ho)
Menopause hit Ms Joanna hard two years ago.
The 51-year-old civil servant, who asked to be identified only by her first name, was facing a perfect storm of pressures.
She was coping with menopause-related mood swings, difficulty readjusting to life in Singapore after living overseas for more than two years, the demands of caring for ageing family members and the deaths of several family members and friends.
Her symptoms, including hot flushes and disrupted sleep, had begun when she was around 47, she recalled.
But as the pressures mounted, her emotions became overwhelming and began to affect her performance at work. That's when she knew she needed professional help.
"I had never felt depressed before – never such a depression that I would actually burst out crying for no reason. So it kind of scared me when it happened to me."
She said that she had lost her motivation to work: "I just felt like I didn't want to work anymore. I was thinking, 'What's the meaning of life, and what do I want to do?'"
CNA Games
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less
When she sought professional help at the Institute of Mental Health, she was diagnosed with an adjustment disorder.
"There wasn't a definitive cause. It was just a combination of everything – fluctuating emotional changes from menopause, stress, coming back to Singapore, life."
She eventually decided to take a year of unpaid leave from work, with the support of her managers.
During her time off, she travelled, spent time with friends and family, and learnt more about menopause.
She attended the inaugural Menopause Festival in November 2024 and joined Dynamite Daisies, a menopause interest group under KK Women's and Children's Hospital.
A year ago, she finally felt ready to return to work, she said.
"Work is work, but I think you also need to take time out for yourself," she reflected. She counts herself lucky that her workplace was supportive of her year-long break.
For some women, however, flexible work arrangements or extended leave are not options.
Ms Dawn Lum, 54, who works in retail, said that her menopause-related mood swings and brain fog had largely subsided after she started hormone replacement therapy two years ago.
However, she still experiences discomfort, including fluid retention in her legs after standing and walking for eight to 10 hours each shift.
She continues to work full shifts, sitting down whenever she cam.
Despite the swelling, Ms Lum prefers longer shifts that give her full days off, rather than shorter shifts every day.
She enjoys her work, but she also relies on the income, and cutting back on her working hours would mean earning less.
Dr Clara Ong, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at Parkway MediCentre, said that many women simply push through menopause symptoms while working, which is why employers should take the issue more seriously.
After all, menopause symptoms can affect and even be detrimental to a woman's well-being and her ability to function, she added.
Menopause can affect everything from a woman's energy levels to emotions, health experts say. (Photo: iStock)
Menopause is reached after a woman has gone for 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period. Before that, women may go through a long period of perimenopause, also known as the menopausal transition.
Women experiencing perimenopause or menopause are typically around 45 to 50 years old, Dr Ong said, and the transition can last for years.
The Ministry of Manpower's Labour Force in Singapore Advance Release 2025 report showed that women made up 47.7 per cent of Singapore's resident labour force.
And as Singapore's labour force continues to age, the toll of menopause may become increasingly difficult to ignore, women's health advocates told CNA.
Ms Sangeetha Yogendran, manager of advocacy and research, at the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), said that many employers and managers are still unaware of the issue.
There are no publicly available statistics on the economic impact of menopause in Singapore.
However, in the United Kingdom, for example, one in 10 women aged between 40 and 55 had left a job because of menopause symptoms, as reported in a 2022 study by the women's rights charity Fawcett Society.
In Japan, symptoms associated with menstruation and menopause cost the country an estimated 2,296.3 billion yen (US$14.4 billion) in 2022, as stated in an article published in the medical journal Reproductive Health.
A 2024 report by the Swedish Institute for Health Economics also estimated the annual per-person productivity cost of vasomotor symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats across the Nordic countries.
The estimates ranged from about 4,600 euros (US$5,155) per person in Denmark to 8,700 euros per person in Norway.