Penny Lancaster has revealed that she was mistakenly prescribed anti-depressants by her doctor before accessing hormone replacement therapy (HRT). The British former-model and TV presenter was recently unveiled as one of the famous faces fronting the Let's Chat Menopause movement.
It is a campaign spearheaded by the Wellbeing of Women charity focusing on women's health which aims to tackle the stigma surrounding the menopause. Speaking on ITV's Lorraine, 51-year-old Lancaster spoke candidly about her own experience.
She said: "I put it down to the lockdown. I thought 'Well everyone's under pressure at the moment, everyone's suffering' so it must be that."
"And it wasn't until I spoke with the ladies on Loose Women that they said, 'I recognise what you're going through Penny'. My doctor, unknown to him, obviously are the symptoms of the menopause.
"He gave me anti-depressants, so I was on them for a long time until I got HRT." Lancaster also admitted to initially using excuses in an attempt to explain the way she was feeling, before accepting she was going through the menopause.
She told Christine Lampard who was covering hosting duties for Lorraine Kelly: "Not every single woman suffers the same way. Some managed to sort of find almost excuses.
"I think one of the things is that maybe you're thinking, 'I'm not getting that old, how can it be menopause?' I'm not ready for that."
Lancaster is keen on raising awareness of menopause and has given numerous interviews to help educate and inform. Here is an interview with MP Carolyn Harris where the two women have a frank exchange about how they came to terms with menopause.
Lancaster, who is married to rock singer Sir Rod Stewart, advocated for women to be offered free, or heavily discounted HRT. She said: "We're not asking for extra, we're just asking for our hormones back, we're asking to feel normal.
"So if the government could just give us what they've promised and bring in, ideally, free HRT but if not, a huge discount on it. Because it's just too much, especially the way things are right now."
Lancaster also credited taking HRT with helping her start her new career as a police officer. She said: "I've got a new lease of life, started a new career, and like you said, so many women have to give up their careers [due to the menopause]."
Lancaster began volunteering with the City of London Police after appearing in the Channel 4 show Famous And Fighting Crime, in which celebrities swap their day jobs with those of emergency service professionals. She later completed her training to become a special police constable for the force in April 2021.
In September, Lancaster took to the streets of central London as part of the force policing the Queen's funeral procession. Lorraine airs every weekday on ITV at 9am.
