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Jo Rennie Coaching, Inverurie (2026)

05/06/2026

Life doesn’t stop for menopause.

The deadlines don’t stop.
The meetings don’t stop.
The caring responsibilities don’t stop.
The expectations don’t stop.

You’re still expected to show up. To perform, deliver, manage, and support everyone around like you’ve always done.  
Even when you’re anxious, overwhelmed and exhausted.
Even when you haven’t slept, sometimes in days.
Even when your emotions feel too close to the surface and 5 minutes ago you were locked in the bathroom crying your eyes out.

Many women aren’t struggling because they’re weak. There is nothing weak about the menopause transition, at any age!

They’re struggling because they’re carrying the same workload, the same family commitments and responsibilities, and the same emotional burden they always have, just with significantly less energy and support.

Yet somehow we’ve normalised this. Some don’t even give it a thought. Including other women, possibly because it’s not affecting them yet. But it will.

Menopause will happen to every woman on this planet. That’s a certainty. What is uncertain is when (or how) it will start, how long it will last, and how severe the symptoms will be.

So we all need to start talking about it and educating ourselves around it.

Maybe it’s time we stopped asking women to simply ‘cope’ and started asking how we can support them better instead.

If you’re experiencing any symptoms of peri/menopause, what would help you most today? I’ll go first in the comments…

Jo 🩷

02/06/2026

I’ve really struggled over the last year with my work/hormone balance because of early menopause.

When experiencing my most hormonal times (some of them lasting weeks on end before and just after starting hrt), all I wanted to do was hide away. On some days that’s all I could do.

I could’ve posted fake stuff promoting self development, making out that my life is always great because of it. But that’s not the point of the message I’m trying to convey.

I want to be absolutely honest about this because there will be many other women out there who are experiencing and feeling the same.

I was diagnosed as having a hormonal form of depression, anxiety and insomnia. I didn’t get hot flushes, or any physical symptoms other than a little joint pain in my left elbow.

For the first 2 months of this year I battled everyday with thoughts of not wanting to be here anymore. Every single day. That wasn’t just excruciating for me, but for my husband, family and close friends I confided in.

But deep down, underneath the pain of it all, I always knew this wasn’t truly who I was.

Before this transition began, I had already done years of inner personal work. I had built a grounded sense of who I was, understood my values, and created a strong support system around me; people I could speak honestly to, who could remind me of who I was on the days I could no longer see it clearly for myself.

This is the vital work that got me through because when hormones shift, anything built on survival begins to crumble. But anything built on self-awareness and self-trust becomes a life saving anchor.

Life will always have its challenges - the menopause transition can certainly be one of them! - and you will feel struggle, hardship and pain.

But how you allow yourself to move through these experiences and seasons of your life is down to how you feel about, and in, yourself.

I genuinely believe that doing personal growth work enables us to weather the storms differently, with more strength, compassion and conviction. And this is why having these conversations matter. No woman should have to reach breaking point before discovering she was never broken in the first place.

I got through those darker days, and although I still get the occasional dip, I know I’ll be ok. I share this because it’s an experience of early menopause, one of many. And we need to talk about it more.

Menopause isn’t a problem to be fixed, but a transition to be supported. And together we can make a huge difference 🩷

Jo xx

01/06/2026

Things we don’t talk about during the menopause transition - part 2…

The workplace.
Your career.
The ever increasing amount of toxic pressure we put on ourselves to have and be able to do it all.

Hormonal changes and symptoms can vary extensively throughout the transition, which can last over a decade. And not every woman will experience it in the same way, at the same age, or with the same level of intensity.

So I get it. How are workplaces and organisations supposed to know how to help support us when we don’t know how to help and support ourselves?!

Menopause Action Plans are going to become mandatory by 2027 under the Employment Rights Act 2025, for employers with more than 250 employees.

This is an exciting and crucial step in the right direction! But we need to be mindful when creating these plans, that menopause will look, feel and begin differently for each woman.

Going off average statistics, the average age is still around 51, leaving women going through early or premature menopause still very much unsupported.

But, we’re moving in the right direction for sure. Here’s to better support, and the retention of brilliant women in the workplace!

🩷

31/05/2026

Supporting women to feel more confident, more emotionally resilient, and more certain and content with who they are during the menopause transition, is my passion (and something I’ve done for myself) 🩷

Over the last 5 years I have worked with over 100 incredible clients, and seeing what they’ve been able to achieve through doing this work has been mind blowing!

You don’t ever have to stay stuck in a place that makes you feel small, sad or silenced because you feel like no one understands.

You don’t ever have to wake up each day and question the worth of your life because your hormones have gone into overdrive.

And you certainly don’t ever have to write your life off as being a failure, even though there will be days your brain will make you think otherwise!

If you are experiencing any of these feelings and you’d like to learn how to start taking control of your menopause journey, there are so many things you can do.

But the simplest is to message me. Let’s have a chat and see if working together feels like the best step forward. I would be honoured to support you.

Sending so much love,

Jo xx

29/05/2026

Part of preparing ourselves emotionally for the menopause transition is creating
meaningful focus in our lives.

Something that lights us up, challenges us and reminds us who we are outside of our symptoms.

Because believe me when I say, those symptoms have the power to consume, rule, and shut down everything we once knew about ourselves.

If you are someone who, like me, is experiencing a lot of emotional/psychological symptoms (anxiety, peri-depression, loss of confidence and connection to self), then focussing attention on the positive things you’re creating outside of menopause is crucial.

Of course there’ll be days when you can’t do much (I had one yesterday), and you must learn to give yourself a break and let it pass. Because it will pass eventually.

But the more you lean into it, succumb to it, or listen to those awful voices in your head that tell you to give up, or that you’re failing… the further away from you you’ll become.

Your goal, mission or purpose is the light at the end of the dark sh!tty tunnel. And it’s what will get/drag you through.

A new hobby. A business idea you’ve been thinking about. A fitness goal. A creative project. An adventure. A far-fetched dream.

Even if it feels ridiculously audacious, scary or impossible. The only thing you have to lose at this point is yourself.

We can do hard things, conquer fears, learn new skills and create new beliefs in menopause. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, especially that nasty little voice inside your head keeping you small, sad and anxious.

If you’re struggling right now, please try this. Choose one thing to focus on, and when you can, give it your all! I promise it’ll help 🩷

Sending all my love,

Jo xx

28/05/2026

I think it’s important to talk about early menopause and fertility issues. It’s part of my story and will be for many others 🩷

I had always wanted and planned to have children. But a few things happened.

Not having the best relationship with myself when I was younger led to many failed relationships before I finally did the work, learned to like myself, and met my gorgeous husband later in my 30s.

Then there were the years of managing endometriosis, being on synthetic hormones, and eventually early menopause at 41. By that point, kids just weren’t an option anymore. I never even got to try.

There has absolutely been a lot of grief, sadness, anger, self-pity, and deep questioning/self torturing about the life I thought I would have. I blamed myself, my body and many of my life choices.

But perspective really changes everything. Because although my life didn’t unfold the way I imagined, I do have an incredible life.

I have two awesome, gorgeous step sons and a beautiful family. I’m loved, valued, included, and made to feel “mum-like” in so many ways.

And during the menopause transition especially, when your hormones are playing havoc with your mental and emotional reality, perspective becomes so important. You need an emotional anchor to keep you from being swept away by the sudden storms.

Because we can become so consumed by what we’ve lost, what didn’t happen, or what feels unfair, that we stop being able to see the love, beauty, meaning, and connection that still exists around us.

I could continue to wallow in the life I never got to live, or I can bask in the love I do have and appreciate the life that I was able to create. This is a choice and I have found that I need the good to get me through the bad days.

For those experiencing a similar reality, life not looking the way you planned, it doesn’t automatically mean it’s without meaning, beauty, love, or purpose.

Sometimes the story still turns out okay, just differently than expected.

Sometimes you have to let go of what you thought life would look like, and learn to find the good in the life you are actually living.

Stay strong, you don’t have to go through this alone,

Jo 🩷

27/05/2026

Things we don’t talk about during the menopause transition - part 1…

Our home should feel like our sanctuary, our safe space, the place where we can be truly ourselves.

But the reality is, during the menopausal transition, we can feel anything but safe. In our bodies, our minds and in our closest relationships.

And the biggest reason for this is because we’re not talking about it enough - with partners, family members or friends.

Especially for those women who, like me, are experiencing symptoms (and full blown menopause) earlier than “normal”.

Awareness needs be raised, conversations need to be normalised, and women at any age and stage of this major life transition should feel supported and understood.

Let’s start right now.

Ladies, communicate how you’re feeling. Do not feel ashamed or embarrassed because what you are going through is part of the female experience, and deserves love and support. This is not a journey that should be travelled alone!

Gentlemen, support your ladies! Learn about what the menopause transition entails. It’s not all hot flushes and moods. Develop ways for her to communicate how she’s feeling daily (or hourly if needed). My husband and I use emojis or the different names we have for my hormonal selves (we can laugh about my multiple personalities and it makes it less shameful).

When we feel understood, supported and loved just as we are, it honestly makes things so much easier. Because this time in a woman’s life can be hard enough as it is.

Together we can make a huge difference 🩷

Sending lots of love,

Jo xx

26/05/2026

Something that’s really been helping me recently with the little hormonal flutters of low mood, anxiety, sleep disruption and paranoid thinking… is having a focus. A mission. A goal.

Yes, the HRT has been helping massively. But I still get moments from time to time where I feel myself spiralling.

What I’ve noticed though, is that those moments don’t consume me in the same way anymore. Because I have things pulling me forward.

My work right now is lighting me up. The mission I’m on to talk about early menopause feels meaningful and I’m waking up with purpose again.

I’ve also stepped back up as North East Scotland Regional Organiser for the TVR car club - something that fills me with utter joy - after standing down a few years ago when things started to get difficult hormonally.

And I’ve set myself a personal challenge. To climb all the Scottish mountains - Munros, Corbetts and Grahams - by the age of 50 (8 years to go 😅) because the mountains are my therapy!

During my darker months, I convinced myself I couldn’t do hard things anymore. That I was mentally weaker, less capable, less ‘me’.

So every climb now feels like evidence against that story. Every summit or successful event gives me a little piece of myself back.

During the week, I work away on new projects, plan car meets and mountain adventures. At weekends, we go on them. And the funny thing is, even when the hormonal dips appear, my goals still shout through the noise.

If I don’t have the energy to create, I can still read. If I can’t write, I can still learn. If my thoughts are noisy, I can still move my body forward. The mountains tire me out physically, which has helped my sleep massively too.

And I’ve realised something important…

Part of preparing ourselves emotionally for the menopause transition is creating meaningful focus in our lives.

Something that lights us up.
Something that challenges us.
Something that reminds us who we are outside of our symptoms.

A new hobby.
A business idea.
A fitness goal.
A creative project.
An adventure.
A dream.

Of course there will still be days where you don’t feel like doing anything. But when you have something meaningful pulling you forward, the difficult feelings don’t stick in the same way.

This, to me, is what the growth work of menopause transition looks like. Not pretending everything feels amazing all the time, but building a life strong enough to hold us through the moments when it doesn’t.

We’ve got this 🩷

Jo xx

22/05/2026

Every woman will experience menopause. That’s the certainty.

The uncertainty is:
😕 when it begins
😕 how long it lasts
😕 how intensely it impacts us and
😕 how supported or unsupported we feel through it

Some women experience mild changes. Others experience profound emotional, mental, cognitive and physical disruption that affects every part of their lives… for years!

Relationships. Parenting. Work. Confidence. Identity. Mental health. Self-belief.

This is why these conversations matter so much to me, especially around early menopause (around 5% of women experience natural menopause before age 45, and around 1% of women experience menopause before age 40 known as Premature Ovarian Insufficiency/POI).

Because too many of us are silently believing we’re broken, when in reality we are navigating one of the biggest neurological, hormonal and identity shifts of our lives.

And we deserve better understanding, better preparation, better support and far more compassionate conversation around it.

The menopause transition (which can take place over a decade or more!) isn’t just a biological shift or phase a woman needs to “go through”. It’s an emotional identity disruption happening very often in silence, and this is fundamentally wrong.

If you are experiencing any changes in your body you know to be abnormal, concerning or difficult to manage, please please please speak to someone.

I did and it made the world of difference, and absolutely saved my life.

You are not a failure or weak for struggling through this. And you are certainly not alone.

Sending you so much love,

Jo xx

Jo Rennie Coaching

05/06/2026

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31/05/2026

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