Nicola Bulley’s family says the missing mother-of-two suffered a “crisis” after she stopped taking menopause drugs – as her loved ones revealed details about her struggles before she vanished.
Relatives also asked the public to end the “appalling” levels of speculation and “rumours” about her private life, as they spoke about the “significant” side effects she faced from the perimenopause.
The family said Ms Bulley suffered from brain fog and restless sleep and stopped taking hormone replacement drugs (HRT), commonly used to treat symptoms of the menopause, as it gave her “intense headaches”.
Image: Nicola Bulley with her partner Paul Ansell
In a statement, they said: “Due to the perimenopause Nikki suffered with significant side effects such as brain fog, restless sleep and was taking HRT to help but this was giving her intense headaches which caused Nikki to stop taking the HRT thinking that may have helped her but only ended up causing this crisis.”
The 45-year-old has been missing since 27 January after vanishing when she took her dog for a walk by the River Wyre in Lancashire.
WHAT’S THE IMPACT MENOPAUSE CAN HAVE?
Menopause is the process where a woman’s period stops due to lower hormone levels and usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55.
It can impact a person’s mental and physical health and symptoms can include anxiety, mood swings, brain fog and hot flushes.
The NHS says menopause and perimenopause symptoms can have a big impact on a person’s life, including their relationships and work, and campaigners believe there is not enough support for women.
Celebrities like Emma Thompson and Davina McCall have called for menopause to be recognised under the Equality Act as a protected characteristic.
They are a specific set of characteristics which it is illegal to discriminate against, including age and race among others.
But in January, ministers rejected a recommendation to make it a protected characteristic and rejected calls for a trial of menopause leave for women, claiming it could cause discrimination against men with long-term medical conditions.
Last year, the Women and Equalities Committee warned in a report that the impact of menopause was causing the UK economy to “haemorrhage talent”.
A survey last year found one in 10 women who worked during menopause had left a job due to their symptoms, while others had reduced their hours, gone part-time, or not applied for a promotion.
Ms Bulley’s family also said the public focus “must be on finding her” and not “making up wild theories about her personal life”.
The statement continued: “We, as a family, believe that the public focus has become distracted from finding Nikki, and more about speculation and rumours into her and Paul’s private life.
“As a family, we were aware beforehand that Lancashire Police, last night, released a statement with some personal details about our Nikki.
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“Although we know that Nikki would not have wanted this, there are people out there speculating and threatening to sell stories about her. This is appalling and needs to stop.
“The public focus has to be on finding her and not making up wild theories about her personal life.”
Police under fire for sharing personal details
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it had made contact with Lancashire Police to “determine if a referral to the IOPC may be required” after details about the mother’s private life were disclosed after a press conference on Wednesday.
But the family statement, published through the force, made clear the police “know the truth about Nikki”.
The family added: “Despite what some media outlets and individuals are suggesting, we are being updated daily and receive support from our family liaison officers.”
The defence of local officers follows widespread condemnation of the way Ms Bulley’s personal information was handled.
Two MPs criticised the apparent “victim shaming” of Lancashire Police’s disclosures this week.
And Martyn Underhill, a former detective who was involved in the Sarah Payne case in 2000, told Sky News that the force have “completely destroyed” Ms Bulley’s reputation adding that he was “confused” by the force’s strategy.
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The family’s plea for speculation to stop also included a direct message to Ms Bulley.
It said: “Nikki is such a wonderful daughter, sister, partner and mother and is missed dearly – we all need you back in our lives.
“Nikki, we hope you are reading this and know that we love you so much and your girls want a cuddle.
“We all need you home. You can reach out to us, or you can contact MissingPeople.org.uk.
“Don’t be scared, we all love you so very much.”
Ms Bulley was last seen at 9.10am on 27 January taking her usual route with her springer spaniel Willow, alongside the River Wyre.
Her phone, still connected to a work call for her job as a mortgage adviser, was found just over 20 minutes later on a bench overlooking the riverbank, with her dog running loose.
A league table of foreign criminals and their offences is set to be published for the first time.
The plans, due to be announced on Tuesday, will reportedly focus on those offenders awaiting deportation from the UK.
The latest data shows there were 19,244 foreign offenders awaiting deportation at the end of 2024, a rise from 17,907 when the Conservatives left office in July and 14,640 at the end of 2022.
Despite more offenders being deported since Labour came to power, the number waiting to be removed from the UK has been growing.
Factors are understood to include the early release of inmates due to prison overcrowding, instability and diplomatic problems in some countries and a backlog of legal cases appealing deportation.
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said the decision to publish the nationalities of foreign criminals showed Labour had “buckled” under pressure from the Conservatives to disclose the data.
The latest government statistics show there were 10,355 foreign nationals held in custody in England and Wales at the end of 2024, representing 12% of the prison population.
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The most common nationalities after British nationals were Albanian (11%), Polish (8%), Romanian (7%), which also represented the top three nationalities who were deported from the UK in 2024, according to Home Office figures.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is understood to have ordered officials to release the details by the end of the year, according to The Daily Telegraph.
The newspaper reported Ms Cooper overruled Home Office officials, who previously claimed it was too difficult to provide quality data on foreign criminals.
A Home Office source said: “Not only are we deporting foreign criminals at a rate never seen when Chris Philp and Robert Jenrick were in charge at the Home Office, but we will also be publishing far more information about that cohort of offenders than the Tories ever did.”
The source added that ministers wanted “to ensure the public is kept better informed about the number of foreign criminals awaiting deportation, where they are from and the crimes they have committed”.
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Foreign nationals sentenced to 12 months or more in prison are subject to automatic deportation, but the home secretary can also remove criminals if their presence in the UK is not considered desirable.
Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick welcomed the news, saying: “We will finally see the hard reality that mass migration is fuelling crime across our country… Frankly, the public deserved to know this [detail on foreign criminals] long ago.”
Rachel Reeves will pledge to “stand up for Britain’s national interest” as she heads to Washington DC amid hopes of a UK/US trade deal.
The chancellor will fly to the US capital for her spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the first of which began on Sunday.
During her three-day visit, Ms Reeves is set to hold meetings with G7, G20 and IMF counterparts about the changing global economy and is expected to make the case for open trade.
The chancellor will also hold her first in-person meeting with her US counterpart, treasury secretary Scott Bessent, about striking a new trade agreement, which the UK hopes will take the sting out of Mr Trump’s tariffs.
In addition to the 10% levy on all goods imported to America from the UK, Mr Trump enacted a 25% levy on car imports.
Ms Reeves will also be hoping to encourage fellow European finance ministers to increase their defence spending and discuss the best ways to support Ukraine in its war against Russia.
Speaking ahead of her visit, Ms Reeves said: “The world has changed, and we are in a new era of global trade. I am in no doubt that the imposition of tariffs will have a profound impact on the global economy and the economy at home.
“This changing world is unsettling for families who are worried about the cost of living and businesses concerned about what tariffs will mean for them. But our task as a government is not to be knocked off course or to take rash action which risks undermining people’s security.
“Instead, we must rise to meet the moment and I will always act to defend British interests as part of our plan for change.
“We need a world economy that provides stability and fairness for businesses wanting to invest and trade, more trade and global partnerships between nations with shared interests, and security for working people who want to get on with their lives.”
A woman who was stabbed to death in north London has been named by police – as a man was arrested on suspicion of murder.
Pamela Munro, 45, was found with a stab wound and died at the scene in Ayley Croft, Enfield, on Saturday evening, the Metropolitan Police said.
A 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday and is in custody, the force added.
Detective Chief Inspector Neil John said: “Investigating officers have worked relentlessly across the weekend to investigate the circumstances around Pamela’s death.
“We continue to support her family who are understandably devastated.”
Image: Police at the scene at Ayley Croft in Enfield
The Met Police has asked anyone with information or who was driving through Ayley Court between 6.30pm and 7.30pm on Saturday and may have dashcam footage to contact the force.