Menopause Is More Than Just a Punchline
Menopause is still treated more like a throwaway joke than an experience that deserves to be explored with any kind of artistic or emotional depth.
BELINDA
Women are born with pain built in. It’s our physical destiny. Period pains, sore boobs, childbirth. We have pain on a cycle for years and years and years. And then, just when you feel you’re making peace with it all, what happens? The menopause comes. The fucking menopause comes!
The Watcher
The Breakfast Club
Broad City
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN
Oh my goodness, no. I’m flattered you asked, even though many women my age do experience spotting.
ABBI
Oh, I totally forgot about menopause!
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN
Menopause isn’t represented in mainstream media . . .
three
Peanuts
Sunset BoulevardWhatever Happened to Baby Jane?
The Real Housewives of Beverly HillsReal Housewives and the Menopause
Navigating the Messy Middle: A Fiercely Honest and Wildly Encouraging Guide for Midlife Women
Sue Carter is Deputy Editor at Inuit Art Quarterly, the only publication dedicated to the advancement and appreciation of Inuit and circumpolar Indigenous arts. She is a regular contributor to the Toronto Star’s culture section, focusing on visual arts and books. Her award-winning writing has appeared in The Walrus, Chatelaine, and Reader’s Digest, among many other publications.
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