Women get angrier with age but become better at controlling temper
A new study has found that the frequency with which females feel rage and the intensity of the emotion increases over time but also shows that they learn to calm themselves down and become less likely to openly express their fury.
Experts at the University of Washington analysed data on more than 500 women aged between 35 and 55, all of whom provided details on their menstrual cycles and answered questions designed to assess their anger.
The study authors wrote in Menopause, the journal of The Menopause Society: "Ageing was significantly related to anger, with anger expression indicators decreasing with age, suggesting emotion regulation may occur during midlife."
Studies of anger in midlife women and the emotion's health implications have tended to focus on heart disease, blood pressure and depression but experts are now calling for females to be educated on mood changes and symptoms that can have a "profound effect" on their quality of life.
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Daily Telegraph
6 days ago
- Daily Telegraph
Shelly Horton on the dark truth about perimenopause
Don't miss out on the headlines from Celebrity Life. Followed categories will be added to My News. When Shelly Horton found herself in hospital with heavy bleeding in 2020, it never crossed her mind that her symptoms might have been due to perimenopause. The TV journalist hadn't even heard the word before, so she didn't connect it with the raft of physical and mental changes she had been experiencing at the time, including heart palpitations, heightened body temperature, brain fog and debilitating depression. Instead, the now 51-year-old had been told by doctors that she might have cancer, and was sent for an ultrasound – which revealed nothing. 'They said, 'Great news, you haven't got cancer. You must be stressed, and maybe you should take up a hobby,'' Horton recalls. 'I drove home in tears, blaming myself. I didn't go and see another doctor for nine months.' Media personality Shelly Horton has opened up about her health journey through perimenopause. Picture: Daniel Nadel for Stellar It was only when she spoke to her friend, menopause expert Dr Ginni Mansberg – who she first met while appearing on the Seven Network's breakfast show Sunrise in 2008 – that Horton was able to make sense of her suffering. Before that defining conversation, she hadn't considered herself in the target market. 'I thought menopause was for women in their late 50s, [when] their period stopped and they got hot flushes,' she recalls. 'I had that stereotype in my brain of grey-haired old ladies clutching their pearls and fanning themselves. 'I was like, 'I'm a fox. I'm way too young and fabulous.' 'I didn't understand that perimenopause can last for 10 years so, in fact, I was right in the average age group.' 'I didn't understand why anyone cared about my uterus and what I did with it.' Picture: Daniel Nadel for Stellar Once she got the right help and started to feel better, Horton got mad. Specifically about the menopause cone of silence, which perpetuates the poor treatment options and dearth of knowledge for women. 'We've been taught by our mothers and past generations that it's just women's problems so you keep it to yourself,' she tells Stellar. 'A heads-up would have been nice. I felt like the sisterhood had let me down. Secret women's business holds women back. This whole 'soldier on' of the Boomer generation, I'm like, 'No, I'm Gen X. We're going to get loud about this.'' In 2023, Horton shared her experience at the first parliamentary roundtable on menopause, alongside respected experts, in what was the first time 'menopause' had been mentioned inside the Parliament of Australia. It sparked a Senate inquiry, and Horton inadvertently became a spokesperson on the subject. Listen to a new episode of the Stellar podcast Something To Talk About below, featuring US author and podcaster Glennon Doyle: The Today Extra panellist reveals how she got through 'dark times' and rebuilt herself. Picture: Supplied It wasn't the first time that Horton had found herself leading the charge on destigmatising taboo topics for women. In 2013, when she wrote about her decision to stay child free, she copped a pile-on from dissenters and was trolled on social media. But she takes heart in knowing her words started a national conversation. 'I had comments like, 'A woman who doesn't want kids is not a real woman. She's a waste of a uterus.' It was awful,' she recalls. 'I didn't understand why anyone cared about my uterus and what I did with it.' As the TV presenter sees it, one of the many upsides of being child-free is having the freedom and funds to travel as she wishes. She and her husband Darren Robinson – who she met 'the old-fashioned way' in a bar in 2012 – renew their vows in every country they visit. In 10 years of marriage, that's 25 vow renewals. 'Sometimes it's been incredibly romantic, like in the Maldives with the sunset. Then we nearly forgot in Iceland and did it on the plane as we were taking off,' she says, laughing. The couple also run a production company together, Robinson behind the camera ('the workhorse') and Horton in front ('the show pony'). They share their home with rescue dogs Mr Barkley and Maui, whom Horton describes as a salve during her three years of depression. 'My wonderful husband would put me to bed and hand me a puppy.' Adhering to her own motto of 'adapt or die', Horton's career trajectory has been, as she puts it, eclectic. She was a producer for Entertainment Tonight in the US, a crime then health reporter for the ABC, a Sydney gossip columnist, a panellist on Today Extra, and host of Married At First Sight's spin-off TV show Talking Married. It's all a long way from home for the girl from Kingaroy in regional Queensland. Or, as she puts it, 'From the red soil to the red carpet.' Now she can add author to the list since she has documented her harrowing menopause experience – along with evidence-based advice from experts – in a book to support other women going through it. Despite enduring all the turmoils of menopause, Horton says the experience has also helped her. 'I wish I could just say, 'Slap on some HRT [hormone replacement therapy], you'll be fine,' but it's not as simple as that,' she explains. 'I had to do the work. I'd treated my body as a rental. I had to have the appointments with the psychiatrist. I had to change my lifestyle, improve my sleep, increase my exercise. I'm living proof that you can go through dark times and come out. Perimenopause broke me, but then I rebuilt me.' I'm Your Peri Godmother by Shelly Horton (Murdoch Books, $34.99) is out Tuesday. For more from Stellar and the podcast, Something To Talk About, click here.
News.com.au
25-07-2025
- News.com.au
‘I had treated my body as a rental': Media personality Shelly Horton reveals life-changing health message to Australian women
When Shelly Horton found herself in the ICU after an ablation in 2020 (a simple procedure to stop persistent bleeding), it didn't cross her mind that it might be a symptom of perimenopause. Nor did she join the dots between a raft of sudden physical and mental changes – heart palpitations, increased body temperature, 'brain fog', and debilitating depression – and perimenopause. The now 51-year-old says she'd never heard the word before, and instead was told by doctors that it might be cancer and was sent for an ultrasound. 'They said, 'Great news, you haven't got cancer. You must be stressed and maybe you should take up a hobby',' Horton tells Stellar. 'I drove home in tears, blaming myself, and didn't go and see another doctor for nine months.' It wasn't until the TV presenter consulted with her friend, Dr. Ginny Mansberg, whom she met as a fellow panellist on Seven's Sunrise in 2008, that she was able to make sense of her suffering. Before that defining moment, she hadn't considered herself in the target market. 'I thought menopause was for women in their late 50s, their period stopped and they got hot flushes,' she explains. 'I had that stereotype in my brain of grey-haired old ladies clutching their pearls and fanning themselves. 'I was like, 'I'm a fox. I'm way too young and fabulous.' 'I didn't understand that perimenopause can last 10 years so, in fact, I was right in the average age group.' Once she started to feel better, Horton got mad. Specifically about the menopause cone of silence which perpetuates the dearth of knowledge and poor treatment options for women. 'We've been taught by our mothers and past generations that it's just women's problems so you keep it to yourself,' she says. 'A heads-up would have been nice. I felt like the sisterhood let me down. 'Secret women's business holds women back. This whole 'soldier on' of the boomer generation, I'm like, 'No, I'm Gen X. We're going to get loud about this.'' In 2023, Horton shared her experience at the first parliamentary roundtable on menopause alongside respected experts – the first time 'menopause' had been mentioned in the Australian Parliament. It sparked a Senate inquiry, with Horton inadvertently becoming a spokesperson on perimenopause. It's not the first time Horton has led the charge on de-stigmatising taboo topics for women. When she 'bravely' wrote about her decision to stay 'child free' in 2013, she copped a pile-on from dissenters and was trolled on social media. But she takes heart in knowing it started a national conversation. 'I had comments like, 'A woman who doesn't want kids is not a real woman. She's a waste of a uterus.' It was awful. I didn't understand why anyone cared about my uterus and what I did with it.' As the TV presenter sees it, one of the many upsides of being child-free is having the freedom and funds to travel. She and her husband, Darren Robinson, whom she met 'the old-fashioned way' in a bar in 2013, renew their wedding vows in every country they visit. In 10 years of marriage, that's 25 vow renewals. 'Sometimes it's been incredibly romantic in the Maldives with the sunset. Then we nearly forgot in Iceland and we did it on the plane as we were taking off,' she laughs. They also run their production company together, Robinson behind the camera ('the workhorse') Horton in front ('the show pony'). She says their two rescue dogs were a salve during her three years of depression. 'My wonderful husband would put me to bed and hand me a puppy.' Adhering to her motto of 'adapt or die', Horton's career trajectory has been 'eclectic'. She was a producer for the first American Survivor in Borneo, a crime then health reporter for the ABC, Sydney gossip columnist, panellist on Today Extra, and host of Married at First Sight's spin-off TV show. It's a long way from home for the girl from Kingaroy in regional Queensland. 'From the red soil to the red carpet,' she says. Now she can add author to the list, documenting her harrowing menopause experience – along with evidence-based advice from experts – on paper to support other women going through it. Despite the turmoil of menopause, Horton reveals it has also helped her too. 'I wish I could just say, 'Slap on some HRT [hormone replacement therapy], you'll be fine', but it's not as simple as that,' she tells Stellar. 'I had to do the work. I had treated my body as a rental. 'I had to have the appointments with the psychiatrist. I had to change my lifestyle, improve my sleep, increase my exercise. 'I'm living proof that you can go through dark times and come out. Perimenopause broke me, but then I rebuilt me.'
ABC News
08-07-2025
- ABC News
Up to 200 women a month to access new Sydney virtual menopause hub
Lucy Bloom experienced flushes of "raging heat" and bursts of anger or sadness when she dealt with perimenopause for about a decade. "My internal furnace would switch on for about 90 seconds, and I felt like my head was going to explode, but I knew it would pass, so I would just sit through it," she said. Ms Bloom, 51, was prescribed hormone replacement therapy (HRT) — a common treatment for menopause that made an "enormous difference" to her quality of life. In March, three medications for menopausal hormone therapy, including HRT, were added to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. However, women experiencing perimenopause and menopause symptoms can still face lengthy wait times for a clinical appointment. Ms Bloom waited six months for an appointment at the Royal Hospital for Women in Randwick but said she was fortunate to have a GP who prescribed her the right treatment. "The menopause clinic at the women's hospital is brilliant, but you can wait up to a year for an appointment there," she said. "There's that much demand to see a doctor. "If I'd had access to an online menopause hub, it would have closed that gap quickly." The NSW government announced a virtual menopause hub for south-west Sydney on Tuesday. With its home base at Campbelltown Hospital, the online space will serve patients going through complex perimenopause and menopause across Western Sydney, Nepean Blue Mountains, and the Murrumbidgee local health districts. To access support, patients will need to undergo an initial assessment with their GP for a referral in a process covered by Medicare. The South Western Sydney Local Health District expects up to 200 women will access it every month — a number projected to increase gradually over time. Health Minister Ryan Park said the hub was designed to act as a "pathway" to offer further support to women who have tried multiple types of treatment. "This pathway is designed to be for women to be referred into if they are suffering from those complex symptoms, if they have not had any relief, and if they've undertaken care already but haven't been able to get that issue managed," he said. Mr Park described the new hub as the "final piece in the puzzle". "The real focus is not just the hubs and the treatment … it's about the professional development and training, particularly of our GPs and our primary care providers." The virtual service is the fourth menopause hub in the state, with existing locations at St Leonards, Randwick, and Wallsend to the west of Newcastle. It is estimated about 1,000 women will access health services across the four menopause hubs. Gynaecologist Yasmin Tan said the menopause hubs across the state were "a really excellent start". She said there could be a three-to-nine-month wait for some health clinics. "There's a huge demand for these services," she said. "This area of women's health has really been neglected for many years." Dr Tan said having more doctors trained to provide these services would help improve wait times. Menopause symptoms often include mood-related disorders, which Dr Tan said needed to be met with a holistic approach. "You're not just a uterus, you're not just a breast, you're not just your psychiatric health," she said. "You're a whole person and it all interacts with each other. So, we need a team approach for these more complex cases." Dr Tan believes menopause healthcare has "come a long way" in the past two years. "Menopause management is more than treating hot flushes. It's about preserving long term health and wellbeing — physically and mentally," she said.
