MILLIE ODHIAMBO BREAKS SILENCE ON MENOPAUSE AND PAINFUL PERIODS

Member of Parliament Hon. Millie Odhiambo has shared her decades-long struggle with painful periods and eventually getting to menopause.

In a candid account, the seasoned lawyer and legislator revealed that from her high school years onward, her menstrual cycle was a source of extreme pain and medical trauma, leading to hospital admissions every single month. “I was in hospital 12 months a year, and every time I was told, you have aborted, when my period stopped. I was very happy. I didn’t care what the impact was,” Odhiambo stated. Which she later understood to be the beginning of menopause.

However, the journey into menopause brought its own set of confusing and challenging symptoms. After two years without a period, she experienced a sudden return of bleeding, which sparked fears of cancer and sent her rushing to her gynecologist. A series of tests revealed she was perimenopausal, “I had to google and I am a lawyer with many degrees,” she shared.

She also opened up about the less-discussed symptoms of menopause, such as hair loss. She had attributed her thinning hair to chemical treatments before learning it was hormonally induced. “If you see my hair it starts at the back… sometimes you see a lot of women with a bald head and you say ‘you’re so creative’ but it’s just menopause and you are tired of wearing wigs,” she explained.