On a recent Saturday morning at 2am, after a rather late starting dinner party, I found myself sitting at a table flanked by two women I barely knew discussing our reproductive systems. As one spoke about the age her mum hit menopause and whether it’s genetic, I surveyed the scene around us. At the other end of the room, the men were taking part in a heated discussion—about what constitutes the perfect KFC order. Simultaneously I learnt that the KFC in Manukau, Auckland is, for some reason unknown to its avid fans in the kitchen, the only branch in New Zealand to have hot and spicy chicken all year round, and that, yes, according to studies, genetics do play a role in the age women start menopause.

The scenario would’ve been comical if it wasn’t becoming an increasingly regular scene as I approached 30. Despite us now living longer, marrying later and women having more opportunities in the workplace, our biology and science hasn’t caught up. While men continue on into their late 20s, 30s and beyond in a somewhat perpetual adolescence, women must still caveat each and every decision—about work, romance, travel, homes, savings, family—with the one choice that’s impossible to reverse and has