MenopauseTalk

When Menopause Starves Your Hair:

The Science, the Stories and the Realities Women of Colour Live With

Every major shift in women’s health has a tipping point. A moment when what we thought we understood turns out to be incomplete. Hair loss in menopause is one of those tipping points.

Most women are told it is “just aging.” The NHS describes menopausal hair thinning as common, often offering reassurance, lifestyle tweaks or Minoxidil. It is well-intentioned, but the explanation is incomplete.

The evidence tells a more intricate story grounded in endocrinology, follicular biology and crucially, cultural experience.

How to Hack Your Brain Chemicals During Perimenopause and Menopause

Hormones and brain chemistry are inseparable. As women enter perimenopause and menopause, fluctuating oestrogen and progesterone levels don’t just change the body, they recalibrate the brain. Understanding Dopamine, Serotonin, Oxytocin and Endorphins for emotional balance becomes very important.

These hormonal shifts alter the balance of key neuro chemicals that regulate mood, motivation, focus and connection. That’s why you might feel less like yourself, not just physically, but emotionally and cognitively too.

Let us break down what happens to the brain’s “happy chemicals” during this stage and how women across cultures can rebuild emotional balance from the inside out.

1. Dopamine, The Drive and Reward Chemical

Hormones, Hair Follicles & Menopause:

What the Research Shows

We often talk about menopause as if it is an ending. But in truth, it is a turning point, a recalibration of the body’s chemistry, rhythm and sense of identity.

One of the most visible and misunderstood signs of this transition is hair loss. By age 50, over 40% of women experience noticeable thinning, yet most are told it is “just part of aging.” Science tells a different story.

What is really happening is a hormonal imbalance, not a slow decay. During menopause, estrogen and progesterone, the two hormones that nurture, protect and sustain hair follicles, begin to fall. Their decline leaves hair unprotected from a more dominant hormone called DHT (dihydrotestosterone), which miniaturises follicles and slows growth. In other words, it is not time that is taking your hair. It is chemistry.

Honouring Your Skin Through the Menopause Journey

Struggling with getting your menopause skin looking smooth and radiant?

You are not alone.

For so many women, this season of life feels like a mystery of shifting hormones and unexpected changes. Yet, our skin, this outer reflection of our inner vitality, often gets overlooked in the conversation.

The truth is, as estrogen levels shift, our skin naturally loses elasticity, hydration and that glow we once took for granted. But here is what I want you to remember. Your skin is not betraying you, it is inviting you to pay closer attention, to slow down and to honour it as part of your sacred vessel.

Building Policies That See Every Woman

Black feminist scholar Bell Hooks reminds us, “Honesty and openness is always the foundation of insightful dialogue.” Menopause policy must embody that truth.

Policymakers can no longer rely on one-size-fits-all workplace protections. Psychological research on stereotype threat, pioneered by Dr. Claude Steele, shows that when women of colour sense bias or dismissal, stress hormones rise and cognitive performance drops.

Add the midlife surge of hormonal fluctuation and the effect is compounded. Higher anxiety, disrupted sleep and impaired decision-making.

A truly responsive legislative agenda would integrate this science into practice. That means funding intersectional mental-health programs, requiring culturally competent clinical training and creating corporate guidelines that address the psychological as well as physical demands of menopause.