'Police mentioning menopause in Nicola Bulley's case is wrong - this is what menopause really is like'

Lancashire Police's disclosure of personal information about missing Nicola Bulley led to a backlash.

Members of the public, politicians and charities claimed cops were guilty of 'victim blaming' after they revealed her struggles with the menopause and alcohol.

Now menopause coach and gender equity consultant Kate Usher has shared her story.

Writing for the Manchester Evening News, she explains the reality of the menopause and how its impact can be devastating for some women. For Kate, the seismic change led her to a dark place...

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Before my menopause started to reveal itself, I had heard of four symptoms - hot flushes, mood swings, weight gain and insomnia. I had also heard it could affect my sex life, but had no idea how.

To be honest, I thought it would be similar to a bad period and would last no longer than a year. Eight years and 30 symptoms later, I know how naive and ill-informed I was.

As a society, there is a perception that menopause is an older women's condition. There are two reasons for this.

Firstly, until the turn of the 20th Century, only a lucky few lived until the age of menopause. Many of those who did died shortly after.

It was essentially an end of life experience. This is absolutely no longer the case, but we are still referencing those centuries-old expectations today.

The other part of this is how women over the age of 40 were shown or not shown in films, TV and magazines. None of it was positive.

Thankfully, this is changing.

The average age of menopause is 51 in this country. The average age women will be when they experience symptoms is between