Shirley Ballas says she suffers in silence with the menopause

“My life is like a tumble dryer and — like a lot of women — I suffer in silence."

Strictly Come Dancing head judge Shirley Ballas revealed that she often suffers in silence when it comes to dealing with the menopause. The TV personality was told recently that her testosterone levels were abnormally high for a woman of her age, after viewers of the dancing competition spotted a concerning lump near her arm. Speaking with the Times, Shirley said that before she was diagnosed, she had been hiding for months feeling permanently tired and suffering from insomnia. She told the paper: “For a while I’ve felt I have to push my buttons to get going. But then suddenly it’s ‘lights, camera, action’ and I put this mask on because that’s your job. “My life is like a tumble dryer and — like a lot of women — I suffer in silence. “You’ve constantly got this on switch; the off switch only comes at night when you’re on your own and you go into this dark place.” Shirley thanked her fans and viewers of Strictly Come Dancing after they helped her discover a "concerning" lump under her arm. Spotting lump during the show, viewers reached out to the dancer on social media and asked her to go get it checked out. The head judge also said that viewers from BBC's The One Show had previously gotten in contact with her about the same lump. Speaking about the ordeal, Shirley said that doctors had gotten back some "concerning" results after she went for blood tests. "The doctor said that she thought my levels were not right, my hormone levels weren’t right," she said on Instagram. Adding that her testosterone and oestrogen levels aren't as they should be, she added: "All in all, a little concerning for my doctor."