‘No Pausa’ walks with women on long road through menopause

“You will no longer be able to have children in any way,” they told María Eugenia Zapatero. She was 38 years old and had gone to the gynaecologist after a long time of noticing symptoms she didn’t recognise. Although motherhood was already out of her plans, she felt a knot in her stomach, as if a woman’s life ended when reproductive possibilities ceased. The reality was that María Eugenia was taking her first step on the long road to menopause – a journey that women living on this earth will experience at some point, yet few truly understand.

She was young and didn’t know why she was feeling what she felt. Why her body was changing naturally without warning: fluctuations in menstruation, intense hot flashes, insomnia at night. Added to this was the fact that she was living abroad, where medical sensitivity was different. So, she called an Argentine friend who was going through the same thing and asked what she could do: her friend suggested visiting the No Pausa website.

From her apartment in Madrid, Spain, she found a space of understanding on this website: “I’m not alone in this” was one of her feelings. From afar, she was able to navigate a place where...

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