How to Navigate Menopause While Working Full-Time: 7 Self-Care Tips That Get Results

Adjusting to the roller coaster of menopause symptoms is challenging enough in the comfort of your own home. But trying to manage these symptoms while navigating a full-time job can feel overwhelming and isolating. 

For years, menopause has been treated as a taboo subject—under-discussed, misunderstood, and often unsupported. That silence has led to negative economic, professional, and personal consequences for women who are often at the peak of their careers when they begin their menopause transition. 

But menopause doesn’t have to mean a decline in your professional life. In this article, we’ll uncover the reasons behind your symptoms and outline practical strategies you can implement to continue to thrive at work.

The Reality of Menopause in the Workplace

Women between ages 45 and 55 account for approximately 20% of the female workforce in the United States. And as more and more women remain actively employed later in life, there is an urgent need to address the impact of menopause on women, their workplaces, and the economy.1

Research indicates that untreated menopause symptoms, such as night sweats and hot flashes, are associated with higher rates of absenteeism, reduced work performance and productivity, and higher healthcare utilization.2

According to the RAND report titled “The Economic Impacts of Menopause in the United States,” the annual economic cost of menopause symptoms was estimated to be $5.4 billion. This estimate doesn’t include additional economic costs like early retirement and missed promotions.3 

A 2025 Stanford study reported similar findings, revealing that women experience a “substantial” drop in earnings during menopause.4 These figures reflect menopause-related disruptions in paid work only. They don’t include the effects of menopause on unpaid work, such as caregiving, that many women perform. 

In light of these findings, helping women find solutions to address menopause-related symptoms is imperative for our continued success in the workplace.

7 Tips to Navigating Menopause While Working

It’s important to understand that any challenges you may be facing with menopause symptoms are not personal failures. Your body is undergoing significant, natural physiological changes. Fortunately, there are many evidence-based strategies to help you navigate this stage:  

1. Synchronize Your Circadian Rhythm

Your body has an internal clock that operates on 24-hour cycles known as the circadian rhythm. You might think of your circadian rhythm as simply regulating your sleep, but it actually acts like the master conductor, coordinating not only sleep-wake cycles, but also body temperature, metabolism, digestion, and more. 

Your circadian clock responds to light, which is why you feel energized during the day and ready to fall asleep at night when your circadian rhythm is well-supported. 

But even your circadian rhythm isn’t spared by the fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone levels that occur in the menopause transition. One of the most frequent complaints from working women is the “sleepless nights” followed by an important morning meeting. 

To reset and anchor your circadian rhythm, aim for at least 10 minutes of light therapy daily. If possible, we recommend going outside and getting exposure to natural sunlight within the first hour of waking. In the winter, use a 10,000-lux light box in the morning since sunlight is limited. Research shows that exposure to bright light in the morning may help improve sleep quality, which is essential for staying sharp and productive during the workday.5

2. Leverage Dietary Protein to Support Sustained Energy

Maintaining muscle mass should be a high priority for women in menopause. Muscle mass begins to decline much earlier than most people think (at the age of 30!), and it can impact your overall health and longevity.6 

But if you’re like most people, you may have noticed that it’s harder to build and maintain muscle as you age. That’s partly attributed to the skeletal muscles in your body responding less readily to amino acid and insulin levels, a state called “anabolic resistance.”7 Your body also needs more protein as estrogen decreases due to increased hormone-induced protein breakdown.8 

In short, ensuring adequate protein intake is more important now than ever. 

The current standard recommended daily allowance (RDA) of protein for women is a modest 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight, regardless of age.9 But studies show this is insufficient for women in menopause. In fact, inadequate protein intake could be why many people gain weight as they age. According to the “Protein Leverage Effect,” we overconsume non-protein foods to meet energy needs in a low-protein environment, leading to weight gain.10 

So how much protein is enough? Experts now recommend at least 1.0 to 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. For a woman who weighs 150 pounds, that’s roughly 80 to 100 grams of protein daily. Women who exercise regularly and/or have acute or chronic diseases will need even more protein to maintain muscle mass.11 

One strategy can be to start your workday with at least 30 grams of protein. This will help support sustained energy throughout the day. Try to avoid highly processed carbs like bread or pasta at lunch as these will cause insulin spikes followed by a crash and contribute to weight gain.

Here’s a sample menu to show how you can reach 80–100g of protein per day without overcomplicating meals:

• Breakfast—2 eggs + ¾ cup Greek yogurt + chia seeds (~27–30g)
• Lunch—4 oz chicken + quinoa bowl (~28–30g)
• Dinner—4 oz salmon + lentils (~30g)

Just add in vegetables, fruits, and healthy fats to complete each meal.

3. Eat the Rainbow for Micronutrient Support

When patients ask what is non-negotiable for aging well, we always point to nutrition. Hormonal metabolism is a nutrient-intensive process and needs a lot of micronutrient support, including:

• Phytoestrogens: These are plant-based compounds that can exert estrogen-like effects in the body. Research studies show that a diet rich in soy isoflavones and flaxseed lignans can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of hot flashes.12
• The Rainbow Strategy: Each pigment represents a different class of phytonutrients. For example:13
  • Deep Purples/Blues: Contain anthocyanins that support memory and cognitive processing. They may also reduce risk of cardiovascular disease. Include blueberries, purple grapes, blackberries, plums, purple cabbage, acai, and even black beans.
  • Bright Oranges/Yellows: Provide beta-carotene and lutein for eye health and skin elasticity. Include carrots, squash, oranges, yellow/orange bell peppers, pumpkin, mango, pineapple, and egg yolks.
  • Dark Greens: Provide sulforaphane, which assists the liver in detoxifying “used” hormones, reducing symptoms of estrogen dominance. Include spinach, kale, broccoli, Swiss chard, and brussels sprouts.

Incorporating at least three different colors into every meal gives your body the antioxidant support it needs to thrive — something that’s especially important during times of workplace stress.

4. Exercise to Boost Dopamine

After a busy workday, exercise is probably the last thing on your mind. But there’s one reason you should prioritize exercise—the dopamine boost that naturally follows. 

Dopamine is known as the “feel-good” hormone, though it also plays a role in numerous other functions like movement, mood, and sleep.

When estrogen levels plummet during the menopausal transition, dopamine levels also take a hit.14 As a result, you may have a harder time concentrating, experience more memory challenges, feel mentally foggy, and notice lower mood.

Exercising can help increase dopamine levels. Clinical studies show that moderate-intensity exercise can significantly increase dopamine levels in women experiencing the transition to menopause.15 

Aim for at least three 30-minute workouts a week. For best results, we recommend progressive resistance training to support bone density and muscle mass. Resistance training can also help with cortisol spikes on your high-stress days. 

5. Incorporate Micro-Acts of Self-Care Into Your Schedule

Far too many women feel overwhelmed and burned out because of their never-ending to-do list. Our society has ingrained in our minds that if we’re not staying busy and productive, we’re doing something wrong. 

But human beings are not designed to operate at full capacity all day, every day. And it’s simply not possible to support our health and well-being by trying to do so.

We often associate self-care with big experiences, like spa days or vacations—but how can you incorporate rest into your daily routine?

Try micro-acts of self-care. Think of activities you can do in “time bites” that last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Here are some examples:

• A quick breathing exercise between calls
• A short walk during lunch time
• Short stretches every 30 to 60 minutes
• A water break every hour
• 5- to 10-minute breaks between meetings

Researchers have consistently found that even short bursts of activity can make a big difference in cognition, stress, mood, memory, and executive function.16,17 And treating these acts of self-care like appointments can help ensure they actually happen, protecting you from burnout in the process. 

6. Foster Connection Through Family Time

For decades, many of us were told to strive for “work-life balance”–a state in which working professionals find joyous harmony between their professional and personal lives. 

But nowadays, work-life balance seems like nothing but a myth. We often feel the need to sacrifice our social lives for professional advancement. And when so many things are changing for us, menopause can be a time of profound loneliness for many women. 

One reason for this feeling of detachment is that as women transition into menopause, declining estrogen leads to a drop in oxytocin (your “happy hormone”). This drop in oxytocin contributes to a higher risk for mood disorders, sleep problems, osteoporosis, and cardiovascular diseases.18 

This is where friends, family, and other connections (even online ones) can play an important role. Social connection has several positive benefits, including:

• Improving mental health
• Encouraging healthy habits
• Providing useful information about menopause transition
• Having a source of comfort and understanding

A great way to ensure meaningful social connection occurs regularly is to cook at least one meal a day at home and make it non-negotiable time with family or friends. Cooking at home and spending time with your loved ones provide your nervous system with a clear sensory transition from work mode to rest mode, giving your body a chance to switch gears and relax. Setting clear boundaries for this transition will also help with sleep quality.

7. Explore Hormone Replacement Therapy

Brain fog is a common symptom of the transition to menopause, making it difficult for many working women to function optimally at work. Some even begin to worry that they’re starting to show symptoms of cognitive decline. Fortunately, the right type of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may be the missing piece of the puzzle. 

In addition to its role in your reproductive system, estrogen is vital to healthy brain development and function. Research shows that estrogen can modulate neuron firing, reduce inflammation, improve blood flow to the brain, help convert glucose into energy, and even prevent plaque formation in the brain.19 This is why your brain may feel “sluggish” or “foggy” during menopause transition—as estrogen levels drop, your brain’s energy levels also drop. 

So, what can be done about it? Some women benefit from HRT, but it’s not a cure-all. Research indicates that timing of HRT is critical.20 This is why we strongly advocate consulting with a women’s hormone expert who will look at the whole picture of your health. 

Get the Menopause Support You Need to Thrive at Work

Remember, menopause is a natural stage of every woman’s life, and you deserve support to move through it and thrive.

While many women feel pressured to step back from their careers or leave the workforce entirely due to unmanaged menopause symptoms, that doesn’t have to be your story. 

Your story can be one of empowerment, health, confidence, and clarity. Learn more about how we can support you by booking a free 15-minute consultation with us today.