“Just Deal With It:” Memorable Messages About Menopause as Anticipatory Education

This study investigated memorable messages about peri/menopause received by women as forms of anticipatory education, framed through the Theory of Memorable Messages. Drawing from in-depth interviews with 33 women aged 35–90 (M = 51.35, SD = 8.21), this study explored the valence and content of memorable messages about menopause. Findings revealed that most memorable messages were negative or ambivalent, with fewer identified as positive. Memorable message content included lack of sexual education, messages of “deal with it,” validating communication, wholeness, and feeling the menopause was hard to manage. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.