Former ER actress Gloria Reuben opens up about the ‘ravages’ of hot flashes

“ER” alumna Gloria Reuben is adding her voice to the growing chorus of women opening up about the challenges of “life transition,” also often known as menopause.

In the face of increasing transparency about the various nuances of menopause symptoms, courtesy of such famous women as Halle Berry, Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama, Reuben shares his experiences at the onset of menopause six years ago.

“I was sitting in the makeup chair and I felt a dragon in my stomach… and there was this fire up above,” said the 59-year-old “Elsbeth” actress. People Magazine. “I felt it like, ‘Oh, it’s coming.’ I try to stay calm and it’s like in silent movies with steam coming out of my ears until I finally feel embarrassed and just say, “Sorry, I’m having hot flashes.”

Reuben’s memories echo those of former first lady Black, who detailed her embarrassing experience with hot flashes a few years ago.

“I remember I had one on Marine One,” she recalled during “The Michelle Obama Podcast” in 2020. “I’m dressed, I even have to exit, go into the event and it literally felt like someone turned on a furnace to my core and I turned it up to the max after which the whole lot began to melt. And I believed, “Well, this is crazy, I can’t, I can’t, I can’t do this.”

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Hot flashes, formally often known as vasomotor symptoms (VMS), are the result of hormonal changes that always occur in midlife women. According to the researchers, these fluctuations cause “some form of temperature dysfunction.” National Library of Medicinewhich noted that hot flashes are the symptom of menopause that the majority often prompts women to hunt treatment.

For Reuben, unpredictable hormonal changes “wreaked havoc” on her each day life, especially when “she was standing in front of the camera during a very intense, very intimate scene, and it’s a close-up. I feel the dragon rearing its head again and I’m starting to lose touch with my work,” she explained. “I’m starting to feel insecure and worried. And these two things for an actor… not good.”

Now ambassador for Veozah — the first FDA-approved non-hormonal drug available to treat moderate to severe hot flashes in menopausal women — Reuben shares her story to let others know that there are treatments for pain relief. The veteran actress told People magazine that the vulnerability she felt during the natural transition into midlife compelled her to talk out publicly, especially now that she has found effective treatment. Most importantly, she urges menopausal women to speak openly about their symptoms.

“The reaction (to Veozah) in my body was fantastic,” she said. “I can’t promise what this will do for anyone else; however, I encourage women to go to their doctor and talk about it.”

She added: “There is something wonderful about opening channels of communication to eradicate shame, stigma and embarrassment.”