Gabriella Union is opening up about how she came out of the feeling of shame due to menopause.
The 53-year-old actress revealed in a recent chat with People how she again started feeling “empowered” after overcoming the stereotypes attached with menopause.
The Bring It On star told the outlet that she used to feel like her “value as a woman was diminishing.”
She continued, that menopause “challenges you to look at life differently — and not as an ending, but as a beginning.”
“When you’re dealing with, you know, hot flashes — whether it’s the first time or the 100th — everyone is different. There are no two that are the same,” Union noted.
Explaining the pause of menstruation as a time that “forces you to shift. And initially, I felt shamed. I felt like my value as a woman was diminishing. I felt very isolated.”
However, Union noted that her mindset shifted soon. “Over time, now, I feel empowered and I’m going to talk about it and I’m not going to lose a thing.”
She is now thrilled to be “encouraging people to talk to their health care providers so they can figure out what best options are for them, because there are options.”
