'I can't remember things that happened 30 years ago' - Sarah Lancashire experienced frightening menopause brain fog

The actress suffered debilitating brain fog during what she describes as "the most terrible menopause."

There's no doubt that conversations surrounding menopause and perimenopause are carving out a space of their own and cutting through the plethora of other women's issues that go ignored.

While there's still a long way to go to fully understand this complex and often draining midlife transition, knowing you're not alone and that finding the right treatments for your symptoms is entirely possible, goes a long way to make this time less difficult.

In recent years, high profile celebrities have opened up about their experiences with menopause, with the likes of Kate Winslet and Naomi Watts speaking about one of the more taboo ways it affects women's happiness - the pair addressed what they needed to do during the transition and beyond, to keep their sex lives going.

British actress and national treasure, Sarah Lancashire, has shared her experience with what she describes as the "most terrible menopause," particularly just how debilitated she was by brain fog.

According to the BBC, Sarah's symptoms were particularly difficult when the then 58-year-old won the award for best drama performance at the National Television Awards (NTAs) in 2023, which was also the year she was given a special recognition award, presented by Sir Ian McKellen.

However, during what should have been a joyful time for the actress, she was suffering at the hands of the menopause. "I was in Sainsbury's the other day, and I found myself just stood there in the aisle and could not remember what I was there for," she said.

The star added, "It just comes over you all of a sudden. I can't remember things that happened 30 years ago either."

She's not alone with her experience of brain fog during the midlife transition, as studies show anywhere between 44 per cent to 62 per cent of women will experience similar issues with cognitive performance.

Although symptoms vary between women, they commonly include forgetfulness, difficulty concentrating, and difficulty make decisions or processing information. This can be so severe, it's not uncommon for women to question whether they might have dementia.

During the same awards ceremony, Sarah also struggled with another common menopause symptom, and probably the most well known of all of them - hot flushes. The actress needed two fans on her face throughout the ceremony to remain a comfortable temperature.

This impacted her enjoyment of the awards, due to concerns cameras would notice she needed to cool down. "I brought one of my closest friends with me and his job was to keep an eye out for the cameras and if it looked like they were going to pan across to us, then he'd let me know so I could hide (the fans)," she explains.

According to the NHS, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can help relieve most menopause and perimenopause symptoms, including hot flushes and brain fog. It can also help with joint pains, mood swings and vaginal dryness.

However, this didn't help Sarah Lancashire immediately, who recalls, "I am on the gel but it's not great for me so I might give the patches a go next." It's pertinent to mention that finding the right menopause treatment doesn't always happen first time, and it's often something that needs to be finely tuned.

If you experience symptoms you find particularly worrying or bothersome, it's best to keep in touch with your doctor or menopause specialist until the right treatment plan is found for you.