Meanings of Being There as a Menopausal Woman: A qualitative Heideggerian Hermeneutic Phenomenology Approach

Objectives: Menopause experience is not only a biological experience and is affected by women’s culture. Failure to identify the cultural needs of menopausal women can result in lower quality of care and patient dissatisfaction. The purpose of this study was to explore the meanings of menopause through women’s lived experiences to identify how the meanings of menopause were infused by women’s socio-cultural context. Methods: Qualitative phenomenology research applying the Heidegger Hermeneutic approach was used. Data was collected from one focus group including 9 individuals and 9 individual in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis was performed, and the themes related to the meanings of menopause were identified. Results: Two main themes were loss and stage. Subthemes for loss included femininity loss, loss of youth or aging, loss of health or disease, and loss of efficacy and competency. Subthemes related to the stage included the natural biophysiological stage and developmental womanhood stage. Menopause meanings were relative depending on losses and gains. Conclusions: Menopausal women revealed how social norms could positively or negatively infuse meanings to their existence. The language used for menopause revealed the underlying cultural meanings. When negative sociocultural messages about menopause were deposited to menopausal women’s beliefs, it was more likely that menopausal women link menopause to aging and a sense of loss. This study highlighted the importance of culturally competent care.