Jane Seymour shares how she embraced aging and menopause without fear: ‘I feel freedom’
She acknowledges the societal pressure women face to maintain a youthful appearance but emphasizes that aging can be a positive experience.
Cover Image Source: Actress Jane Seymour attends Terry Fator’s 10th anniversary show at The Mirage Hotel & Casino on March 15, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images)Women are expected to conform to several beauty standards set by society one of which includes the idea of always looking young. Many women go to great lengths to delay the aging process and find themselves feeling insecure about their aging bodies. In a recent interview with Hello! Magazine, Jane Seymour attempts to break these stereotypes and encourage women to embrace aging with open arms.
Image Source: Actress Jane Seymour attends the Premiere of “Mad Max: Fury Road” during the 68th annual Cannes Film Festival on May 14, 2015, in Cannes, France. (Photo by Ben A. Pruchnie/Getty Images)The “East of Eden” actor is in her 70s and has completely embraced the process of growing up. She shared, “I feel an extraordinary freedom at the moment, I really do.” Having had all her children leave the nest, the actress now has more time for herself and the things she wants to do. She does not feel compelled to hold herself back, “If someone says, ‘Do you want to?’ I say, ‘Yes.’ And I say, ‘Let’s do it now.’ Not tomorrow.”
The actress known as the “Bond Girl” is aware of the pressure women go through because of aging. However, talking from experience, she firmly believes it to be a good thing and says, “The world is against aging. We hate aging. We look at aging and we go, ‘Oh, no, there’s a wrinkle, oh my God. Get rid of it. Grey hair. No. Terrifying!’ You can look at it the other way and you can say actually, I now have time in my life to do things I really want to do. Maybe I can now become the person I want to be.”
The actress also discussed her experience with menopause on the occasion of Menopause Awareness Month, per Everyday Health. She criticized how the world makes women feel about it and said, “Menopause is a taboo subject no one wants to talk about aging, especially women because they’re doing everything they can to look 20 or 30 years younger. So the last thing they want to do is to talk about that and there’s always been this whole thing that when you turn 50, you’re not having babies anymore, so now you’re kind of useless. You’re on the fence, you’re done.”
Though she understands that the phenomenon could be scary, she still encourages women to experience it head-on for their own well-being.
The actress hit menopause between the ages of 50 and 51, then went to her doctor to get it “accurate.” After seeing her medical history, the doctor put her on hormone replacement therapy (HRT), making the entire process a lot easier.
Seymour’s doctor commended how she approached the whole thing. Rather than be embarrassed, she maintained an active approach to it. The actress adds, “I had two small children, five-year-old twins to deal with and a lot of business as well. And I was just pushing right through on all of it. So, that’s what I did. And she feels that my attitude towards that part of my life had as much to do with the success I had of getting through it as did the medications that I was given.”
The Emmy winner gave the credit of her positive approach to her mother. She elaborated, “I learned a lot from my mother about surviving, about accepting, about moving forward. She didn’t let being in the camps for three and a half years stop her from having a vibrant fabulous life, so menopause was not such a big deal for her.”
