What do women want in the midst of their lives?
Ever wonder what other women in midlife are experiencing? Like, who else is feeling anxious out of nowhere or waking up in a sweat puddle thanks to perimenopause? How are other women facing this transitory time of life?
Here at The Midst, we want to empower women to live their best life, and we want to know what our readers are facing. We conducted our first reader survey in 2021, and now it’s time for an update. Our second reader survey ran between June and August 2024. Your feedback helps us to create content that focuses on the joys and challenges women face in their mid-30s to 50s. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the survey!
*All percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number. Survey prize winners have been notified individually by email.
Who are The Midst readers?
Let’s start with some quick highlights about our community.
- 97% identify as women
- 88% are in their 40s and 50s
- 94% work in some capacity
- 54% live in cities; 34% in the suburbs
- 51% are experiencing perimenopause
Women’s health concerns and how to find the right doctor?
We asked our readers about peri/menopause health concerns, allowing for multiple choices. Which menopausal symptoms drive our readers to seek medical care?
- 59% of our readers say mood swings, anxiety, depression, and/or irritability.
- 50% say weight gain
- 47% say hot flashes, night sweats, and/or cold intolerance
- 45% say brain fog
- 44% say sleep disruption and/or insomnia
- 39% say change in sex drive
- 33% say frequent urination and/or incontinence
- 30% say headaches
- 26% say irregular menstruation
- 19% say food sensitivities and/or allergies
64% of our readers say they have access to medical care at an acceptable price and distance, but nearly half of them followed up with at least one reason that may prevent them from actually consulting a doctor about their peri/menopausal symptoms.
When we asked readers what reasons might prevent them from consulting a medical professional about peri/menopausal symptoms, 43% of our readers checked at least one box regarding difficulty with time, money and/or distance to the doctor. On the same question, multiple Midst readers wrote additional comments to express their worry about being dismissed.
“Not sure when what I’m experiencing is worthy of talking to doctor and not sure who I’d go to to discuss issues who would take my seriously.”
“Frustration! I feel like doctors (male and younger female) blow off my symptoms instead of trying to help.”
“I don’t want to be a pest about every little question, but I have many.”
“Worried doctor won’t listen”
What do our readers want to see from The Midst?
74% of our readers say their favorite section on the-midst.com is Health & Wellness, and 85% of our readers want to receive updates via email newsletters. We hear you! Our email newsletters will definitely continue and you can rely on us for more articles about women’s health.
Other feedback is more mixed. 74% of our readers say they want to see more midlife experiences and personal essays, but we also have comments that say they are “‘over’ the sea of personal stories.” Similarly, we have readers who want to see more beauty and style pieces on topics such as best makeup and swimsuit options, and readers who don’t want to see mentions of any products. We will do our best to balance our editorial coverage and continue to provide respectful and empowering articles for everyone.
What our readers say about The Midst
We are so grateful to all of you who responded to our survey. In your own words, here are some of the comments we received through the survey.
“I am grateful for the focus of The Midst and how relevant the content is to my life and personal experience. Thank you!”
“I want you to know that more often than not, there’s some little nugget that speaks to me / informs me from your email newsletters. I think you’re doing great.”
“The Midst is a fucking gem. I am in love with all that you’re doing and will do! I feel a sense of calm amidst this life changing know The Midst is there. Thank you and keep fucking going!”
