17/10/2026
🌸 WORLD MENOPAUSE DAY – 18 OCTOBER 2026 🌸
Did you know that menopause can not only influence pain prevalence but also how we experience pain?
Today is World Menopause Day, and this year’s theme, chosen by the International Menopause Society, is Chronic Pain at Midlife.
To mark the occasion, the International Menopause Society has published a scientific paper exploring the relationship between menopause, hormonal changes and persistent pain.
It’s an important topic, particularly because many women experience increasing joint pain, muscle aches and persistent musculoskeletal symptoms during perimenopause and menopause.
🔬 So, what does the research tell us?
Oestrogen does much more than regulate our reproductive system. It also plays a role in maintaining muscle, tendon and joint health, regulating inflammation and influencing how our nervous system processes pain.
As oestrogen levels fluctuate and eventually decline during menopause, several changes may occur:
🔹 Increased pain sensitivity: Hormonal changes may influence the nervous system’s ability to regulate pain, potentially making existing musculoskeletal problems feel more painful.
🔹 Changes in muscles and connective tissues: Oestrogen contributes to muscle and connective tissue health. Declining levels may influence tissue adaptation and recovery, although the relationship with specific injuries is still being investigated.
🔹 Changes in inflammation: Oestrogen interacts with our immune system and inflammatory processes, which may contribute to changes in pain sensitivity.
🔹 Poor sleep and fatigue: Sleep disturbances are common during menopause and can further increase pain sensitivity and reduce our ability to recover.
🔹 Persistent pain: Conditions such as fibromyalgia, migraine and other chronic pain syndromes may also be influenced by hormonal changes, alongside many other factors.
💡 What does this mean for physiotherapy?
We often see women in their 40s, 50s and beyond presenting with a flare of their shoulder pain, knee and hip pain, tendon problems or more noticeable back pain.
While there may be a clear mechanical reason for their symptoms, menopause may just be another contributing factor.
For example, two women with similar tendon problems may experience very different levels of pain, progression and prognosis. Hormonal changes, sleep quality, stress, physical conditioning and changes in pain processing may all contribute.
This is why treating the painful area alone isn’t always enough.
At Stratford Health Hub, we believe in looking at the bigger picture. Understanding the different factors contributing to someone’s pain helps us develop a more individualised approach to treatment, exercise and rehabilitation.
🌿 The key message from the research?
Menopause doesn’t mean that pain is inevitable, and not every new ache or injury is caused by hormonal changes.
However, menopause is an important piece of the puzzle that deserves more attention when assessing and managing persistent musculoskeletal pain.
And importantly, there is still much more research needed, particularly into the effects of oestrogen on tendons, muscles, pain sensitivity and recovery from injury.
📖 Interested in reading the research?
The International Menopause Society’s 2026 scientific paper, Chronic Pain at Midlife, is published in the journal Climacteric.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13697137.2026.2722558
