Carol Vorderman, 62, recalls feeling suicidal amid struggle with ‘severe depression’ during the menopause
Carol Vorderman has spoken about her struggle with ‘severe depression’ during menopause.
In a new interview, the Countdown icon, 62, recalled feeling suicidal during the time in her life when she stopped having periods – a natural part of aging for women.
Carol admitted that her thoughts were “really black” for a few weeks a month in 2015, despite there being “nothing wrong” in her life.
She confessed to wondering, “what’s the point?’ and thought, ‘there’s clearly one way to stop this’, as he describes how devastating depression during menopause can be.
The presenter stated that it can be truly ‘horrifying’ for women to deal with, and expressed her happiness that society’s ‘old-fashioned attitude’ to menopause is changing.
Candid: Carol Vorderman, 62, recalled feeling suicidal as she discussed her struggle with ‘severe depression’ during menopause
Real talk: In a new interview, the Countdown icon admitted that her thoughts were ‘really black’ for a few weeks a month in 2015
Open: She confessed to asking herself, “what’s the point?” and thought ‘there’s clearly one way to stop this’ as he describes how devastating menopausal depression can be
Speaking about the Postcards from Midlife podcast, Carol said: ‘When I was going through it, I had severe depression for about six months. I think it was 2015.
‘There was nothing wrong in my life, I had made a lot of money, my children were fine, my mother was fine. There was no problem.
“And yet I woke up in this huge bed in this huge house, I’ve got an outside pool and everything, and I just thought, ‘What’s the point?’
“I understand clinical depression a lot more now, where you go, ‘I can’t go through this again, how can I stop this,’ and those thoughts of ‘well, there’s clearly one way to stop this’.”
‘Even when I presented Loose Women ten years ago, it was only acceptable to say ‘ooh, I’ve got a moment’ and make light of yourself when you’re going through this.
‘It’s not always horrible for people, but you can have horrible days.
“Now, thank God, women are saying, ‘No, things like that, this is what’s happening, I need help in the workplace, I need to be able to hear it from people who are doing this.’
“Because it was a patriarchy – you know, ‘women just go crazy and say crazy things.’
“We’re riding a horse and cart through that outdated societal attitude toward menopausal women.”
Last year, Carol spoke about her depressive episode for the first time, admitting: ‘I went through years of being ashamed and thinking we were crazy for having menopausal symptoms.’
“Well, I started in my early fifties, I didn’t have any night sweats or hot flashes or anything. I started feeling anxious, I have never felt anxious in my life.
‘I started worrying about what trousers to wear, whether to drink tea or coffee, all kinds of things.
‘That developed into a deep depression, I sometimes felt suicidal. What saved me was keeping track of when my period arrived using an electronic calendar and that helped.
‘I started a tailor-made HRT and within 48 hours I was feeling normal again and I haven’t had any complaints since, it’s great.’
Carol encouraged women to let them know they are not alone, stressing: ‘We are all going through it, there is nothing to be ashamed of.
“There’s nothing that makes you feel like you’re going crazy, you’re not going crazy, it’s just a hormone change.”