Trauma & Menopause THE INTERSECTION OF
Exploring the Impact & Importance of Relationships during the Menopause Years
Welcome From the Conference Hosts
We welcome you to the second Trauma & Menopause Conference hosted by
Fabienne Chazeaux
Aneesh de Vos whose training and research explores The Collision of Trauma and Menopause.
This year, the day conference will focus on how relationships can differ and change during the menopause years. Within our community setting we can both share and explore what relationships mean and why the changes occur.
A panel discussion will take place in the morning after which there will be various workshops offered by a diverse group of presenters. Their lived experience remains at the forefront of the day which we hope is relatable to you. Academic and theoretical research will be offered too to help you make sense of the how and why relationships are an important part of the intersection of trauma and menopause.
We continue to work together to foster a sense of connection where all stories are respected. Through recognition of each other’s experience our aim for the day is to continue to build a narrative reflective of individuality and community.
Aneesh de Vos Aneesh de Vos
Aneesh is an experienced trainer, therapist & supervisor. All Aneesh’s work is underpinned with both compassion and somatic-based practices which she sees as an integral part of a holistic understanding of ourselves. As an autoethnogapher, Aneesh believes that our connection with the lived experience in relation to culture is to be found in the therapeutic space. Working with that paradigm, there we can find the sense making of our reactions to events that can cause us distress.
Aneesh is currently studying for her doctorate in Psychological Trauma and she holds a Masters in Trauma Informed Practice, and a PGC in Coaching. As an independent researcher into the intersection of trauma and menopause, Aneesh has become more passionate about her belief that there is a definite place for therapeutic practices to offer support for women and people to explore how the experience can impact their lives.
Aneesh also co-produces the ‘Community Connections’ podcast, which introduces trauma and its many guises, without the fancy jargon. Guests are invited to share their lived experience and knowledge to create meaningful conversations that reach out to the viewers. When she is not sat at her computer, she is invariably to be found wandering somewhere in nature with Morris the Dog - sending the odd text to her daughter that she is indeed alive but a tad distracted with doing nothing! .
FFabienne abienne Chazeaux Chazeaux
Fabienne Chazeaux is a psychosociologist, counsellor, supervisor, and trainer, holding the European Certificate of Psychotherapy (CEP). With over 25 years of experience, she facilitates Person-Centred Psychotherapy training programmes in France and internationally. She is the director of Temenos Education, a psychotherapist training institute founded in 1993.
She runs a private practice for supervision and counselling, both online and in person, and also works as a business coach, supporting senior leaders and leadership teams in global corporations. Since the pandemic, she has hosted over 1,000 workshops with Onlinevents, working with mental health practitioners worldwide.
As a painter and sculptor, Fabienne values non-verbal communication and creativity in therapy. She has developed guided visualisation programs, somatic practices, and powerful creative tools to help clients process trauma when words are not enough, particularly in cases of body-based and relational trauma or restrictive organisational settings. These methods facilitate deep healing and therapeutic movement, helping individuals regain balance and move towards meaningful change. To promote these approaches, she founded Éditions Hellotools, a publishing house dedicated to innovative therapeutic resources.
Fabienne is passionate about supporting therapists in their professional growth and sees her role as helping individuals realise and express their full potential. She likens her work to that of a midwife, assisting others in unfolding their abilities and developing their true selves. She feels privileged to witness profound transformations and is dedicated to helping students & therapists refine their professional identities and develop their skills.
Website = https://fr.fabiennechazeaux.com/
Somatic & Therapeutic tools = https://www.hellotools.fr/
Training institute = https://www.temenos.education/
Death & Its Impact During the Menopause Years
Aneesh de Vos
In this workshop Aneesh will bring her own lived experience through an autoethnographic framework to share death’s impact. She will explore how the death of those she loves/d during the menopause has not only been a physical loss, but also a profound emotional and psychological experience that interacted with the changes happening in her own body and life.
Aneesh will gently take the time to connect our understanding of deep grief and reflect on how personally and culturally this emotive – often avoided - subject can reignite adverse childhood experiences. Reflections on how, for many women, it can be a complex time of mourning not just for others, but for themselves and the life they have lived up to this point will be an important part of the discourse.
By opening this conversation within an informative and experiential workshop Aneesh hopes that it will support participants to gain new perspectives on life, legacy, and identity, as well as prompt a re-evaluation of relationships and one's place in the world.
Aneesh is an experienced trainer, therapist & supervisor. All Aneesh’s work is underpinned with both compassion and somatic-based practices which she sees as an integral part of a holistic understanding of ourselves. As an autoethnogapher, Aneesh believes that our connection with the lived experience in relation to culture is to be found in the therapeutic space. Working with that paradigm, there we can find the sense making of our reactions to events that can cause us distress.
Aneesh is currently studying for her doctorate in Psychological Trauma and she holds a Masters in Trauma Informed Practice, and a PGC in Coaching. As an independent researcher into the intersection of trauma and menopause, Aneesh has become more passionate about her belief that there is a definite place for therapeutic practices to offer support for women and people to explore how the experience can impact their lives.
Aneesh also co-produces the ‘Community Connections’ podcast, which introduces trauma and its many guises, without the fancy jargon Guests are invited to share their lived experience and knowledge to create meaningful conversations that reach out to the viewers. When she is not sat at her computer, she is invariably to be found wandering somewhere in nature with Morris the Dog - sending the odd text to her daughter that she is indeed alive but a tad distracted with doing nothing!
Peri/Menopausal & Single
Chris Oxborrow
The Single Woman's Peri/menopausal Journey: challenges of being single through perimenopause systemic narratives about single and menopausal women taking care of and accommodating for our single, menopausal selves symbolism and archetypes as guides for navigating peri/menopause: - transition and transformation - reconnection and rewilding - empowerment
Chris Oxborrow is a Psychotherapist based in Shropshire but working almost exclusively online, except for a small outdoor therapy practice Her varied experience in counselling and social care has culminated in a private practise currently focused mainly on high achieving personalities (doctors, lawyers, self employed entrepreneurs etc.), neurodivergent individuals and those navigating the menopause – sometimes the intersection of all three!
As a trained menopause and HRT coach, her menopause service offers consultations to those who want to find a better balance through perimenopause, usually involving HRT, providing a collaborative plan and a report that can be forwarded to medical providers in order to advocate for more effective, evidence-based and personalised treatment.
Chris is a single, neuroqueer, menopausal woman who lived for the majority of her adult life as a ‘passing’ straight, neurotypical!
She lives delightfully alone except for her 2 cats Merlin and Morgana and enjoys the freedom and independence that singleness is currently affording her.
https://www.beyondcounselling.org/menopause
https://www beyondcounselling org/
Reflections on the Role & Experiences of a Male Counsellor in the Address of the Intersection of Trauma and Menopause
David Buckler
What happened to you? As opposed to, what is wrong with you?
Advocates the need for empathic understanding of emotional response to adverse experiences, rather than categorisation and/or diagnoses, and consequently, the medication of supposed disorders. This discussion invites participants to consider the question that we have become so accepting of the formalised address of psychological distress that the causes often remain unexamined.
This must surely be the case for trauma response to the difficulties experienced during menopause, given the absence of understanding, and reluctance, particularly from a male perspective.
In practice, I have never been approached directly for support in the case of menopause, and its varied and distressing symptoms, hardly surprising; however, it has been the case on occasion that this has been the direction therapy.
The influence of feminism, societally, and as a positive movement in counselling and psychotherapy has been fundamental to my own practice. The feminist writers of the counselling and psychotherapy world offer a definitive alternative to the established bastions of hierarchy within the professions, and particularly, in my opinion, the understanding and elucidation of psychological trauma, eminently applicable here. I believe that this is necessary to address informed balance in terms of knowledge and application. This influences my own practice relationally, and philosophical.
David is a freelance psychotherapeutic counsellor based in the East Midlands. The Eden Practice, was born of need, and driven by compassion for the provision of consideration for personal narrative, and lived experience in counselling practice
In direct apposition to the current regimen of pathologising psychological trauma, and the prominence of indorsing emotional dis-ease as illness. David aspires to the promotion of empathic understanding, and support, rather than the categorisation of emotional response to adverse experiences, and the medicating of supposed disorders David is concerned that the current provision of NHS Talking Therapiesformerly IAPT, advocates almost exclusively, manualised cognitive behavioural therapy.
There is an absence of immediate choice. Conventional training, MA* Trauma Informed Practice; BA* Humanistic Counselling Practice has been fundamental to his practice as a therapist “I believe that the basic tenets of Rogerian person-centred practices, and that the therapeutic relationship are essential. However, my own life experience has been equally as informative”.
Mothering Teenage Daughters Through the Menopause
Joan Palmer
With the perimenopause sometimes described as a woman’s second puberty because of the once again turbulent behaviour of hormones, this could become an explosive time of emotions if you’re going through this life phase with teenage girls in the house!
There’s plenty of information to read about what’s happening with the physiology within these phases, but nothing on combining the two together and how it might play out within a household, so now is the time to consider this.
This workshop is based on my experiential knowledge of this phase. I’m now 53, a single mum, and have two teenage girls with very different characters, so getting through the teenage years hasn’t been a rinse and repeat process!
I will be providing you with some of the scenarios I have faced and managed, share the things I have learnt from the outcomes and in turn ask you to reflect on how you are managing and how you might further navigate you and your teenagers through this potential turbulent time.
Joan qualified as a physiotherapist from Glasgow Caledonian University in 1993 and after working in a variety of specialties and a year of work in Canada, she specialised in Musculoskeletal Outpatients. This specialty led to further studies and Joan gained an MSc in Manual Therapy from Coventry University in 2007.
Joan continued to work part time in physiotherapy following the birth of her 2 girls (now 19 and 17) but in 2012 decided to branch out into postnatal health and became a fitness instructor to help women recover well from pregnancy and birth.
With a growing interest in women’s health, Joan became further specialised in pelvic floor rehab and along with that came an interest and further studies in Menopause care
Along with Joan’s ongoing pelvic floor rehab work with women of all ages, she has a growing community of women at her indoor and outdoor exercise classes that cater for women of all ages looking to keep fit and active.
Joan delivers educational talks around the topic of the Menopause to groups of women and men in schools/business/local groups and continues to keep herself educated within this field with qualifications from Burrell Education and The British Menopause Society.
Grounding in Groundlessness
Dr Stella Duffy
An experiential workshop in attending to the embo the menopausal transition into postmenopause, our vital third act.
Stella Duffy has been postmenopausal since her mid 30s when chemotherapy for her first cancer made her menopausal, infertile and childless-not-by-choice. Queer and happily out for over forty years, living with chronic pain for decades, Stella is especially interested in making space for our losses so that we can choose to agree with the life we have, rather than fighting against it.
Alongside her lived experience of the profound difficulties of involuntary transitionphysical, emotional, spiritual - and using existential thinking as a guide to possibility, Stella now understands menopause as an experience of awakening to our mortality, which offers the possibility of creating our own ground within the groundlessness of constant change.
As well as sharing thinking from her research and the experience of her diverse group of postmenopausal participants, Stella will offer creative writing exercises to gently consider the possibilities around menopause as a transitional space for revisioning our future and developing a life in which we can creatively live-towardsdeath.
Stella is an existential psychotherapist and teaches existential theory and practice. An award-winning writer of 17 novels, over 70 short stories and 15 plays, she is also a theatremaker and workshop facilitator, with a particular interest in the creative possibilities of existential psychotherapy.
Her doctoral research was in the embodied experience of postmenopause and she is currently writing a non-academic version of her thesis for a mass market publication with Virago.
How We Embrace Change Together
Jacqui McGinn & Tony Spence
Tony and Jacqui will share their lived experiences of navigating menopause together, highlighting the relational dynamics and growth it has brought to their partnership
Through their unique blend of creativity and therapeutic practices, they will guide participants in practical activities designed to inspire deeper, more authentic conversationsandfosterhealingconnections.
Jacqui and Tony, celebrating 10 years together in 2025, bring a rich blend of creative and therapeutic practices to their work. Tony is a dedicated sound healing practitioner and a trainee art therapist, passionate about using creativity and vibration to facilitate emotional healing and transformation. Jacqui is an experienced teacher of Japanese and wellbeing, blending her love of language and culture with her deep commitment to personal growth and intuitive practices.
Together, they share their lived experiences of navigating life’s challenges, including menopause, and inspire others to embrace change with authenticity, creativity, and connection. Through their collaborative work, they create spaces where healing and self-discovery flourish.
Capacity: The Challenges of Menopause
and Parenting Yo Children - Our Changed Capa
- What Can We Do?
Emily
Haslam-Jones
Ever felt overwhelmed? Grizzly and running on empty? Like you're burning out? Ever felt like you could have handled a situation with your kids or others better? Haveyoueverwonderedwhereyourcapacityfordealingwithotherswentwiththe menopauseactivatingtraumaandwonderedifyoucouldimprovethewayyoudeal with what life throws at you? Parenting is one of the hardest jobs and it just got harder! How we face challenge and adversity predicts our mental and physical health outcomes so finding our way parenting young kids during the peri and menopauseisessentialtousandthosewelove Thisisapracticalsession,taking apolyvagalperspectivebutalsoinformedbylivedexperienceofthechallengesof parentingwithperimenopause,ADHDandPTSD.
Emily will talk you through how to improve your relationships using simple and immediatelyactionableplan.InthesessionwewillbuildaCapacityCachethatyou can begin to apply immediately. You will need paper, coloured pens or pencils, anything else for decorating (glitter, stickers, paint, sticky notes, whatever kind of effortyouwouldliketomake,andyourdiary,paperorelectronicorwallcalendar, whatever you use to track your appointments. Participants will then be able to experience how this approach improves relationships, dealing with difficult conversationsandchallengingsituations
Emily is a professional speaker, parent therapist and yogi. At the heart of what she does is help people find psychological safety and emotional regulation Be that in their own body through her yoga sessions for ADHD and trauma or through improving relationships in her playful parent/carer therapy sessions. She also offers workshops for psychological safety to the workplace. Her work enables people to function better and have more fulfilled relationships.
She is a mother of two, and had to balance perimenopause, a job, a university course, PTSD with mixed results during lockdown From the stress of fashion media to humanitarian responder in a warzone, from mental health specialist in the understaffed health system, to self-employed yoga teacher and professional speaker, she has at times thrived under adversity and she has also burned out. Through this she has studied the key factors that make the difference in this outcome, bringing a wealth of experience to the subject of capacity building.
How Does Islam Empower the Menopausal Woman?
Tayba Azim
In this experiential workshop Tayba will discuss the womb to self, others and most importantly connection between trauma and the womb/ menopause, release exercises. The workshop will give a historical overview of the significance of the physical, spiritual and energetic womb from birth to menopause, and discuss how the Womb(an) in Islam is truly empowered and given a high status and recognition in this life and the Hereafter.
Tayba runs her own private practice as a psychotherapist and clinical supervisor. With over a decade of experience in mental health, domestic abuse, and trauma, she focuses on serving women around the world. Tayba offers Mizan Therapy, which incorporates healing techniques to address reproductive health, emotional well-being, and unresolved trauma Tayba has been organising and delivering unique retreats for women blending mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health and wellbeing.
Tayba is committed to anti-oppressive practices and is culturally attuned to the needs of her clients, including those who are neurodivergent. She emphasizes the importance of community, working to educate individuals and communities on the impacts of patriarchy, colonialism, and capitalism
She focuses on healing intergenerational trauma, helping women reclaim cultural practices that are empowering. Her approach is informed by Islamic principles, allowing her to educate women on dismantling the guilt and shame imposed by cultural and patriarchal norms. Through her work, she empowers women to make informed choices by fostering a supportive environment for personal growth and healing Tayba thoroughly enjoys wearing the hat of being a solo-parent and Glam-Ma
My Mother’s Menopause Spiritual Lessons of Our Linea
Lynda Wisdo
In this workshop, we’ll explore the ways in wh menopause affected us during that time as well the influence they have on how we feel about our own midlife transitions today. Were our mothers’ lives affected only slightly by a few hot flashes and night sweats? Or were they thrown completely off course by severe mood swings, depression, anxiety, or even mental illness? Did they discuss these changes with us and how did this affect our views about this stage of womanhood?
We’ll use this opportunity to also look more deeply at the spiritual aspects of this major life transition through our connections not only with our mothers but with other elder women who may have influenced how we respond to this powerful feminine threshold—sisters, aunts, grandmothers, friends We’ll also take a look at how menopause was viewed by women in days of yore and the changes in perception we are experiencing today. The workshop will include a brief Power Point Presentation, discussion, journaling prompts, and, if time allows, a guided meditation to meet with our inner elder Wise Woman
Lynda holds an MA degree in Transpersonal Studies with a focus on Feminine Spirituality along with a Diploma in Tarot for Women. She is also a Certified TraumaInformed Yoga Instructor, Spiritual Guidance Mentor, Level II Reiki Practitioner, and author of a memoir about her experience with a menopause- related Psychosis/Spiritual Emergency titled, Menopause in Crisis~ When Spiritual Emergency Meets the Feminine Midlife Passage
The focus of her writing and healing practice is to offer insights and support to women who are dealing with the challenges of childhood trauma and its effect on their perimenopausal journeys and the years beyond. She can be reached through her website at https://menopausalpsychosis.weebly.com/ or through her email at lyndawisdo@gmail com
Black Women and Menopause Relationshi and Lived Experiences
Nina Kuypers & Anita Pow
Founded by Nina and Anita, Black Women in Menopause creates space for open conversations about menopause, particularly its impact on relationships and the lived experiences of Black women.
Menopause and Relationships
Menopause affects romantic, social, and family relationships:
Romantic Partnerships: Symptoms like mood changes and low libido can challenge intimacy, especially when menopause remains a taboo topic in many Black communities.
Friendships: While some friendships strengthen through shared experiences, others may strain due to a lack of understanding. Support groups provide muchneeded sisterhood.
Family Dynamics: Many Black women juggle caregiving roles, often neglecting their own health due to cultural expectations of resilience.
Lived Experiences of Black Women
Black women often face:
Medical Disparities: Earlier menopause onset, severe symptoms, and limited support from healthcare providers.
Cultural Silence: A lack of open discussion leaves many unprepared and isolated.
Strength vs. Vulnerability: The expectation to always "be strong" makes seeking help difficult.
Through advocacy, storytelling, and expert guidance, Black Women in Menopause works to break the silence, foster understanding, and empower women to prioritize their well-being.
Nina Kuypers is a dedicated menopause activist and the founder of Black Women in Menopause, an organisation committed to creating a safe space for Black women to share their menopause experiences and access support Confronted with a lack of culturally relevant information and representation, Nina recognised the need for a platform that addresses the unique challenges faced by Black women during menopause.
Nina's advocacy extends to public speaking and policy influence She has shared her personal menopause journey at an All-Party Parliamentary Group for Menopause, highlighting the need for inclusive conversations that consider the diverse experiences of menopausal individuals. Additionally, she has contributed written evidence to parliamentary inquiries, emphasizing the importance of addressing menopause in the workplace, especially concerning Black women.
Beyond her work with Black Women in Menopause, Nina serves as a board member for the Hwupenyu Health and Wellbeing Project, a charity based in Glasgow that supports Black ethnic communities in Scotland living with chronic health conditions.
Anita Powell is a passionate community advocate, mental health professional, and menopause activist. She is the founder of Menopause Alliance CIC and co-founder of Black Women in Menopause Anita uses her extensive local knowledge to empower women through peer support groups, workshops, and educational events. Her work connects women with healthcare professionals, raises awareness about menopause, and advocates for better workplace policies.
As a public speaker and Patient Experience Consultant, Anita collaborates with leading pharmaceutical companies and was a presenter at the 6th Patient Centricity Conference 2024. She is also a dedicated volunteer panel member for the IDERHA/NICE Patients and Advocate Europe Panel. Additionally, Anita hosted the podcast Black Menopause and Beyond, providing a platform for meaningful discussions on menopause and midlife experiences.
Anita’s expertise and advocacy have led to appearances on BBC, Magic FM, and other media outlets, where she has shared insights on menopause, health, and community engagement.
The Wisdom of Change: Navigating Menopause Through the Spiritual Lens of Kabbalah (Judaism)
Dr Kalanit Ben-Ari
In this enlightening session, we will explore the inte spiritualitythroughtheprofoundteachingsofKabbala ancientwisdom,wewillexaminehowthislifetransit andtransformativeprocess,offeringdeepspiritualinsig
Through the lens of Kabbalah, we’ll uncover the spiritual significance of change, growth, and renewal, offering a framework for embracing menopause as an opportunityforinnerstrength,wisdom,andconnectiontotheDivine.Thistalkwill provide practical tools for navigating this powerful phase of life with spiritual mindfulness, empowering women to honour their bodies and souls during this transformativejourney.
Kalanit Ben-Ari, Ph.D. is a senior psychologist, psychotherapist, and author with over 20 years of experience working with couples, individuals, and parents With a private clinic in Hampstead, London, she is an international speaker, trainer, and supervisor of therapists. Kalanit is a member of the Faculty at the Imago International Training Institute and served as the Chair of Imago UK from 2013 to 2023.
Dr. Ben-Ari’s expertise is well-recognised; she has trained thousands of therapists worldwide and is frequently featured in professional journals and the media
Two gals and A ho Navigating Menopau
Genie Crow & Kelly
Join us for this workshop exploring the impacts of trauma menopause as seen through the lens of a lesbian couple. experience greater adverse experiences than heterosexual lesbian women and 43.8% of bisexual women experiencing versus 22.6% of heterosexual women experiencing the same. them at greater risk of developing increased symptoms of menopause.
In this workshop, we will share each of our stories of menopause from our upbringings, as well as the impact of messages about sexual identity and sexuality. The discomfort felt with our own sexuality during adolescence, seemed to negatively impact openness to ask questions about female sexual development, puberty, sexual health and even menopause. We will look at research about lesbian/same sex relationships during menopause and compare this to our personal experiences and/or experiences shared within the LGBTQ+ community.
We will also discuss what types of support have been missing and what types of support have been most helpful from each other, from other women and from providers. Finally, we will examine how the common experience of menopause has helped us feel more connected with women as a community regardless of sexual orientations.
Genie lives in Denver, CO with her partner Kelly and their dog Benito. She is a substance use counselor and works as a case-manager in the Arapahoe County Problem Solving Court which helps individuals overcome barriers associated with criminal justice, mental health and substance use. She is a passionate advocate for individualized care that is strengths-based and preserves the dignity of the individual. She is also a trained auricular acupuncture technician. When not working she loves spending time with her granddaughters, cycling, running and travelling.
Kelly Lives in Denver, CO with her partner of 23 years, Genie and their dog Benito Alejandro. Kelly has a master's degree in mental health counseling and addiction counseling and a master's in public health. She has a psychotherapy practice called Open Heart Clear Mind Counseling. Her areas of interest include trauma, life transitions and existential issues using approaches such as EMDR, Internal family systems, Buddhist psychology and Psychedelic-assisted approaches. When not working, Kelly enjoys spending time with her partner and granddaughters, cycling, traveling, learning about Buddhist practice and supporting Genie in her endeavor of qualifying for the Boston Marathon.
onlinevents.co.uk onlinevents.co.uk
