guardian Malaysia today launched its ‘Embracing Midlife Wellness’ advocacy campaign to help more Malaysian women recognise the early signs of perimenopause – an often misunderstood life stage that could affect an estimated 3.59 million Malaysian women aged 35 to 49 (22% of females nationwide) between now and the next decade.
This sizeable number of
the population experiences truly serious life gaps on a daily basis. Seeking to
understand the gaps, guardian conducted a Listening Lab qualitative session with
women in both the perimenopause and menopause life stages in collaboration with
the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development.
The research uncovered widespread signs’ misattribution especially amongst the perimenopause participants. Issues like hot flushes are being blamed on the weather while acne is linked to stress, migraines being dismissed and mood changes seen as personality flaws. Support from those closest to them has also been lacking – as shared by one participant, “I think the people around us… generally, orang lelaki kat Malaysia ni, aren’t very alert to how perimenopause affects women.”
Perimenopause is
under-recognised and under-discussed.
“Many Malaysian women in
their late 30s and 40s are silently struggling with signs they cannot name.
This needs to change,” said Priscilla Wu, Managing Director of guardian Malaysia and Brunei.
Recognising and respecting
Perimenopause – right NOW!
In order to improve the
recognition of and encourage advocacy on perimenopause, guardian hosted a landmark panel
event in the city centre. Kickstarting its advocacy campaign across its online
and offline ecosystem, the special panel’s discussion on perimenopause raised
awareness about signs as well as the importance of access to trustworthy
information and support throughout this life milestone.
This expert panel saw Dr Premitha Damodaran, Consultant Gynaecologist, Menopause and Women’s Health at Pantai Hospital KL join Nadhrah Maidin, women’s wellness coach and Pilates instructor and Dr Lennie Soo, neuro-counselling psychologist and founder of 360 Wellness Hub, in discussion. Each of these ladies brought along their unique viewpoints on the physiological, mental and emotional needs of women going through perimenopause contributing to an intimate discussion moderated by celebrity TV anchor, Daphne Iking.
“Too many women spend
months – or even years – wondering what’s happening to them, searching for
answers, never realising that hormonal changes may be the cause. Earlier
recognition of perimenopause leads to earlier support, better care, and a
better quality of life. No woman should have to face this journey alone or
suffer in silence,” said Dr Premitha.
Embracing Midlife
Wellness: Supporting every woman
along the way
“The women in our Listening
Labs told us about their concerns and unmet needs. Perimenopause is not a
niche conversation – it is a national one. As Malaysia’s No. 1 Health and
Beauty Retailer* serving millions of shoppers annually, we believe in playing
an important role to help our customers make informed health decisions through
trusted expert advice, accessible and accurate information and curated
solutions throughout their life stages,” shared Priscilla.
To drive this nationally beyond the expert panel is guardian’s ‘Embracing Midlife Wellness’ campaign which holistically supports women across the following three dimensions:
- Education via
the Perimenopause Hub, accessible through the guardian app and
website
- In-store
guidance by guardian’s trusted pharmacists & dedicated in-store spaces
- Easier product discovery (online & in-store) via MTick®-certified products
Besides transforming its
stores from being a transactional stop to a proactive support space for women
in the perimenopause and menopause life stages, guardian has also step-changed its
online ecosystem via the launch of its educational Perimenopause Hub
that contains expert-backed information. Its eStore has also been enhanced with
MTick® certification, making perimenopause and menopause
support more accessible and empowering.
“A key enabler of these
enhancements is our decision to be part of GenM Collective and
the adoption of MTick® - a universal certification symbol helping
shoppers identify products across the categories of vitamins, sleep and heart
health, skin health, hair and body odour and feminine care that may support one
or more of the 48 signs of menopause,” explained Priscilla.
The curated selections of MTick®-certified
products are featured in dedicated in-store spaces and shoppers with questions
can consult guardian’s trusted pharmacists
at its stores.
“To all the Malaysian
women out there who are in their late 30s and 40s, midlife is no longer a time
of doubt and silent suffering. The new dawn starts today as we strive to help
empower you to navigate midlife with confidence,” concluded Priscilla.
