A Neilston mum is launching a podcast which aims to use real-life stories to connect women and bust myths surrounding the menopause.

Nikki Oliveira, who is a certified menopause support coach, hopes the power of storytelling will help women relate to each other and feel less alone at a time when “a lot feel unsupported”.

For the series, the 34-year-old is calling on women to take part by sharing their menopause story through a 30-minute interview.

She told the Barrhead News: “Menopause in general is a topic that’s misunderstood and stigmatised.

“There are still a lot of people who believe that menopause doesn’t happen until your late fifties and that’s really not the case.

“A lot of women can experience perimenopause symptoms as early as mid-thirties. The average age in the UK is 41 for perimenopause but there are definitely special cases out there.

“It’s one of those things that not every single woman will experience every single symptom. It’s not always recognisable. There are different patterns and symptoms do change from month to month as well.

“There are so many people out there giving really informative, educational advice, but I think there is nothing better than hearing someone’s real-life story.

“By women sharing their experience, it might just trigger a listener to go 'actually I’ve got the same thing, I’ve got the same issue, but that’s how that woman dealt with it' and it will help them realise there is a way to move forward with it.”

Nikki, who is a personal trainer and has always had an interest in women’s health, got into menopause coaching after working with women and seeing their struggles with the transition.

She now also helps them take back control of their lives through help with their lifestyle, mindset and nutrition.

Nikki already has a few people lined up to take part in her Menopause Unplugged podcast but she hopes as many as possible will get involved so a variety of experiences can be shared.

“Any sort of weird and wonderful experiences of the menopause are absolutely welcome,” added Nikki, who is expecting her second child in August. “[We will] go through some questions like ‘what were your symptoms?’, ‘did it affect your mental health?’, ‘did you seek any medical advice or treatment?’ and ‘how did it affect your personal relationships?’.

“We will also talk about things like ‘what do they wish they knew about the menopause?’ and ‘what advice would they give to other women entering into menopause?’.

“There is an option to record video as well as audio but I think most women will be comfortable with just audio recording to keep their privacy a little bit so I think audio is the way it’s going to go.

“What will make each episode different is just maybe delving a bit further into specific topics that have been bothering them and what I would advise as a menopause support coach if they are at a point where they still require support.

“If they have everything under control and everything is great and they don’t have any worries and issues it will just be a case of them sharing their experience, but if they still need assistance, it will be a bit of a live coaching.”

To take part contact menopausecoaching@outlook.com.

Nikki can also be found on TikTok and Facebook via the handle @menopausecoaching and on Instagram @menopause.coaching.