The invisible struggle in the workplace: an interpretative phenomenological analysis of Turkish women’s menopause experiences

Menopause is a biological process that occurs in women between the ages of 45 and 55, indicating the end of their natural reproductive years. The menopausal transition usually takes place while women are in work, and difficult symptoms can impact their self‐perceived work performance, productivity, and impaired job capability. In Turkey, there is no qualitative research on the impact of menopausal symptoms in the workplace. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the way in which menopausal symptoms can influence the professional lives of working women by investigating their experiences and coping strategies in the workplace. A qualitative study design using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used. Semistructured individual interviews were conducted with 10 employed, postmenopausal women aged 49 to 61, who shared both their current and past experiences of how menopause influenced their working lives. Through the IPA analysis, four key themes were identified: Menopause and Professional Life; Menopause and Work Performance; Workplace Invisibility of Menopause; Navigating Menopause as a Social and Personal Transition. This study posits that the experience of menopause is individualized for each woman, as evidenced by the unique variations in the onset of symptoms, severity of symptoms, duration and severity of symptoms, and the impacts of this transitional phase. According to the results, menopause is not solely a biological transition; rather, it is a multifaceted and intricate experience that affects a woman’s identity, emotional well‐being, social relationships, and professional status. Consequently, future studies should investigate the intricate consequences of menopause on several facets of women’s lives, including identity and social interactions, to provide a more thorough comprehension of its implications.