Madonna helps Rosie O'Donnell deal with menopause

The '4 Minutes' singer and the stand-up comedienne have been communicating via email and Rosie says the pop queen has been like a "big sister".

Menopause usually occurs between the ages of 45 and 55 when a woman's ovaries stop producing oestrogen and signals the end of menstruation. Speaking on 'The Tyra Banks Show', she said: "Madonna's great, she's a lot like a big sister. When I started having my hormone things, I'm like, 'What the hell is going on?' She's like, 'Get the cream.'"

Openly gay Rosie went to tell former model Tyra and the studio audience intimate details about how her body has been changing. She said: "Well let me tell you one thing, Tyra, I am about to be 47 next month and 'Aunt Flow' has not shown up for nine months.

"It started for me at 41. I would be in the bed, and I would wake up and the sheets would be soaking wet. Not damp. Soaking wet. I thought, 'Oh my daughter Vivi crawled in here last night and maybe she wet the bed.' "So I would throw the covers off and turn to look - and there's no Vivi, it's just my partner Kelli. Then I'm like, 'Kelli is incontinent!' And then I realised, no it's me!"

First Published: Feb 26, 2009 21:22 IST