This October 18 marks World Menopause Day and the opportunity to take stock of French women’s perception of the effects of aging on their lives: 54% of women over 50 say they are more fulfilled than at 25. .
- Nearly 9 out of 10 women over 50 report a complex linked to aging on at least one part of their body.
- However, 54% of women surveyed said they felt more fulfilled than at 25.
- Nearly four out of ten women also believe that their sexuality is more fulfilled than when they were 20 years old.
The arrival of menopause can be a real physical and psychological upheaval for women. A parapharmaceutical site survey Humasana and the agency specializing in data FLASHESproduced by IFOP on the occasion of World Menopause Day, shows that French women aged 50 years and older are shared between a feeling of fulfillment linked to maturity and the physical and psychological difficulties linked to this period of female life.
Menopause: 54% of women are more fulfilled than at 25 years…
We’re not going to lie to each other, menopause – stopping of periods for more than a year without identified cause and occurring between the ages of 45 and 55 – brings its share of troubles. Three-quarters of postmenopausal French women interviewed admitted to having gained weight, 72% of them have sleep problems. Furthermore, more than 6 out of 10 respondents said they had observed a drop in their libido.
If 39% of those who have gained weight and 29% of those who have troubled sleep recognize that these disorders impact their morale, fifty-year-olds nevertheless seem to benefit from their maturity. 54% of them say they are more fulfilled than at 25. This is particularly the case (64%) women belonging to wealthy categories. In addition, nearly four women (38%) out of ten believe that their sexuality is more intense now than in their younger years. This is almost twice as many as those who, on the contrary, feel less free in bed (21%).
… but 35% admit to envying women more youth
However, menopause is not always an easy transition. Almost half (46%) of women over 50 confess that they fear growing old and 23% fear doing more than their age. In addition, if 37% of the volunteers questioned find themselves as attractive as before, 35% admit to envying women younger than them.
Having a rather positive self-image does not prevent you from also having complexes. Nearly 9 in 10 women over 50 have confessed to having a complex linked to aging on at least one part of their body. 75% of them don’t like their stomach, 64% their arms and 61% their face. Furthermore, more than 6 out of 10 respondents (63%) would like to act on their stomach to limit the effects of age. This represents 13% more compared to a 2007 study. The parts that give rise to the least complexes are ultimately the buttocks and the legs. (42%).
These fears surrounding aging seem to fuel an attraction to youth among some respondents. One in five participants (21% and 29% of those who are very afraid of aging) admitted to fantasizing about men younger than herself, three times more than those who dream of an older partner (7%).
However, men close to their age remain at the heart of their desires, with 72% of respondents being attracted to them, and not to “young people”.
