Resources
Menopause can feel overwhelming, particularly when you're not sure where to look for reliable, honest, and accessible information. That's why we have created a growing collection of free resources to support women through perimenopause, menopause, and the broader midlife transition.
Explore Our Latest Articles
Our blog is regularly updated with honest, compassionate articles that reflect the real experiences of women in our community. From understanding perimenopause symptoms and hair loss to navigating anxiety and self-doubt, each piece is written to inform, reassure, and empower. Scroll down to read our most recent articles, and be sure to check back often, as new pieces are added regularly.
What We're Building
Alongside our blog, we are developing a wider library of supportive materials, including guides to understanding menopause symptoms, information on emotional wellbeing and mental health during menopause, resources developed specifically for women from diverse and underserved communities, guides to navigating menopause conversations with your GP, information on treatment and lifestyle options presented without commercial bias, and signposting to trusted organisations and support services across Reading and nationally.
Our Approach to Resources
Everything we create reflects our core values — compassionate, inclusive, and grounded in lived experience. We are committed to producing materials that are accessible to all women, including those for whom English is not a first language, and that reflect the diversity of the women we serve.
Our resources will always be free to access. We will never use this space to sell products, promote commercial services, or direct women towards options that benefit us rather than them.
Join the Conversation
Beyond our resources, we warmly invite you to join one of our upcoming Menopause Café sessions in Reading, connect with our community, and follow us on social media for updates and reflections between sessions.
The Gentle Reset: Rest, Reconnect, Renew
August invites us to slow down — a gentle reset for the woman who has been carrying, giving, and holding. Rest without guilt. Reconnect with your heart. Renew your strength.
Flourishing In Menopause
Flourishing in Menopause: Rediscovering Joy, Energy & Sensuality This June
By Coach Joan St Clair · 1st June 2026
Reading, Berkshire · Community Health Champions Menopause Café Happy June, beautiful souls. 🌺
After the deep, tender conversations of Mental Health Awareness Month in May, conversations about the silent weight women carry, the importance of emotional wellbeing, and breaking the stigma around menopause and mental health. June invites us into something beautifully hopeful.
This month, across all of our spaces at Utulivu and the Community Health Champions Menopause Café, our theme is:
Flourishing — Rediscovering Joy, Energy & Sensuality in Menopause
Because menopause is not the end of your vitality. It is not the end of your joy. And it is certainly not the end of your sensuality.
It is, in fact, the beginning of a deeper, wiser, and more beautifully honest relationship with yourself — if you allow it to be.
What Does Flourishing in Menopause Actually Mean?
When we talk about flourishing in menopause, we are not talking about toxic positivity. We are not asking you to pretend that the hot flushes, the brain fog, the sleepless nights, or the emotional shifts are not real, because they absolutely are.
Flourishing means something altogether different. It means:
• Giving yourself permission to feel good, even on the hard days
• Rediscovering the things that bring you joy, that light you up, that make you feel alive
• Reclaiming your energy, not by pushing harder, but by working with your body rather than against it
• Reconnecting with your sensuality, your aliveness, your embodied presence, your relationship with yourself
• Recognising that this season of life holds extraordinary gifts, alongside its challenges
Flourishing is not a destination. It is a gentle, daily practice of choosing yourself.
Why June Is the Perfect Time to Focus on Flourishing
June carries a particular quality of light and possibility. After the introspective work of spring, and especially after May's deep focus on mental health, June feels like an invitation to step forward.
This month also brings several important awareness themes that connect beautifully with the work we do together:
• World Wellbeing Week — a global reminder that wellbeing is not a luxury but a necessity
• Loneliness Awareness Week — deeply relevant to women navigating menopause, who often feel profoundly misunderstood and isolated
• Carers Week — many of the women in our community are carrying the invisible load of caring for others while quietly neglecting themselves
These themes remind us that flourishing is not a solo journey. It is something we do together, in community, in conversation, in connection with other women who truly understand.
Exciting News: The Menopause Café Has a Beautiful New Home! 🎉
We are absolutely delighted to share some wonderful news with our community this June.
The Community Health Champions Menopause Café is moving to a brand new venue, and we cannot wait to welcome you there.
📍 New Venue: Civic Offices, Bridge Street, Reading RG1 2LU
🗓️ Opening: Friday 19th June 2026
⏰ Time: Every 1st & 3rd Friday · 10:00am – 12:00pm
💚 Cost: Free to attend ·
All women welcome · No booking required
The Civic Offices on Bridge Street is a wonderful, accessible and central space right in the heart of Reading, easy to reach by public transport and with parking nearby.
If you have been thinking about coming along for the first time, June is the perfect month to start. Come as you are. There is no agenda, no pressure, and absolutely no judgment. Just warm, open, honest conversation between women who understand.
And if you know a woman who is navigating menopause and feeling alone in it, please share this with her. The more women who know, the better. 🌺
What to Expect at the Community Health Champions Menopause Café
Whether you are a first-time visitor or a familiar face, here is what you can always expect when you walk through our doors:
• A warm, welcoming and completely judgment-free environment
• Open, honest conversation about all things menopause — including the symptoms nobody else talks about
• A community of women who truly get it — because they are living it too
• Education and practical information to help you understand and navigate your symptoms
• A reminder, every single time, that you are never alone in this journey
The Menopause Café is hosted by me, Coach Joan St Clair — Sensuality In Menopause Coach, Community Researcher, Mental Health First Aider, Suicide First Aider and Licensed Menopause Champion 2026. I bring both professional expertise and lived experience to every session.
This Month on All Things Menopause — Online Sessions
Our Wednesday evening online sessions continue throughout June — free to join, welcoming and deeply nourishing. This month we will be exploring:
• Rediscovering joy — what does flourishing actually feel like in your body?
• Energy and vitality in menopause — working with your hormones, not against them
• Sensuality as self-restoration — coming home to yourself in midlife
• The power of connection — why women heal faster in community
• Loneliness and belonging — breaking the isolation of menopause
Sessions take place every 1st & 3rd Wednesdays at 7:00pm GMT. Join via the link in bio at @coachjoanstclair on Instagram, or send an email for the details.
The Sensual Shift — Deeper Coaching for June
For women who are ready to go deeper — The Sensual Shift is my bi-weekly online coaching programme where we explore menopause through the lens of healing, sensuality, mindset and wholeness.
This is the space where we do the real work. Where women give themselves permission to flourish — not in theory, but in practice. Where the conversation goes beyond symptoms and into the fullness of who you are becoming.
If you would like to find out more or join us for June,
visit: calendly.com/joanbarr2003/free-1-2-1 or send me an email: coachjoanstclair@gmail.com
I would love to welcome you in.
Your June Affirmation 🌺
As you step into this new month, I want to leave you with this:
"Menopause is not the end of your vitality. It is the beginning of a deeper, wiser, freer relationship with yourself. You are not declining — you are becoming."
— Coach Joan St Clair
So I ask you this: what would flourishing look like for YOU this June?
Drop your answer in the comments below. I read every single one. 💛
Stay Connected — Find Us Here
• 📍 Menopause Café: Civic Offices, Bridge St, Reading RG1 2LU · Every 1st & 3rd Friday · 10am–12pm · Free
• 💻 Online Sessions: Every 1st & 3rd Wednesdays Time: 7:00pm GMT - 8pm
Link in bio
• 📱 Instagram: @coachjoanstclair
• 🌐 Café Website: https://readingchcmenopausecafe.co.uk
• ✉️ Email: chcmenopausecafe@gmail.com
With so much love and gratitude,
Coach Joan St Clair 🌺
Your Sensuality In Menopause Coach
Licensed Menopause Champion 2026 · Mental Health First Aider · Suicide First Aider . NLP Practitioner · Community Researcher
Volunteer Utulivu · Acre
Community Health Champions Menopause Café · Reading, Berkshire
#Flourishing #MenopauseAndJoy #AllThingsMenopause #MenopauseCafeReading #MidlifeWomen #SensualityInMenopause
#WomensWellbeing #ChoosingYourself #ReadingBerkshire #MenopauseAwareness #CoachJoanStClair
