Turning loss into love HOW AMANDA GOT HER JOY BACK

After receiving some devastating health news, the TV star made a plan

- Sophie Neville

Back in 2016, when Amanda Gillies was not yet 40, she was hit by a barrage of mystery symptoms. Night sweats, brain fog and a sense that something just wasn’t right had left her grappling for answers at a time when she should have been feeling at her best.

“I was about to start my dream job hosting The AM Show and there I was, feeling really pretty awful,” she recalls. “Something had shifted in me – I was hot flushing, there was a lot of fatigue and I felt kind of down. Things that never bothered me before were getting to me and my usual keenness to do things was dulled. It was like the joy had gone.”

Determined to get back on track to ensure she was at her best for her new role hosting the flagship morning show alongside Duncan Garner and Mark Richardson, Amanda visited her GP and underwent blood tests. Several days later, during a rehearsal at the Three studios, she received her results by text message.

“You have entered perimenopause,” it read. Perimenopause refers to the years before a woman’s periods stop completely. During this time, the body’s production of oestrogen and progesterone, two hormones made by the ovaries, varies greatly, causing symptoms that can include hot fl ushes, mood swings, disturbed sleep, headaches and weight gain.

The news was a cruel blow for Amanda, who at 39 had no idea her body had entered this phase.

“I was sitting there between Duncan and Mark, and we’d been having lots of banter and lots of laughs, but suddenly the text came through and I just burst into tears. They were like, ‘What did we say?!’ I remember feeling so shocked and thinking, ‘I am not ready for this.’”