Halle Berry is joining a group of bipartisan senators to push for legislation that would put $275 million toward research and education around menopause, the significant hormone shift women go through in middle age.
The legislation calls for the federal government to spend more on clinical trials on menopause as well as the hormone therapy that is used to treat hot flashes and other symptoms.
Berry, 57, shouted about menopause outside the U.S. Capitol on Thursday. She said it’s a word her own doctor told her he was scared to say in front of her.
“I’m in menopause, OK?” Berry yelled, eliciting chuckles from the crowd. “The shame has to be taken out of menopause. We have to talk about this very normal part of our life that happens. Our doctors can’t even say the word to us, let alone walk us through the journey.”
In recent months, the leading Hollywood actor has been candid about the painful symptoms she experienced while going through perimenopause, which occurs before menopause when a woman’s estrogen levels start dropping. Her doctor initially misdiagnosed her with herpes, a sexually transmitted disease that both Berry and her partner tested negative for.
