Penny Lancaster mistakenly feared she had coronavirus when her menopause started.
The 49-year-old model – who is married to Sir Rod Stewart – has admitted she worried that her soaring body temperature was due to the virus.
She shared: "I thought I was coming down with the virus because my temperature was soaring through the roof, but then I realised, it was just menopause."
Penny thinks it’s important that women are encouraged to speak with each other about their experiences of the menopause.
In an appearance on UK TV show ‘Lorraine’, she said: "I’m actually coping alright, lots of conversations with other women, talking to a doctor and understanding it.
"There are so many black areas with the menopause. So the more we can talk about it, the easier it is to talk about the problems that come along with it."
Meanwhile, Rod revealed last year that he’d beaten prostate cancer after a secret battle with the disease.
And Penny – who has Aiden, nine, and Alastair, 14, with Rod – subsequently admitted it was a "terrible time" for their whole family.
The model – who has been married to the music star since 2007 – said: "It was awful, such a terrible time. It was the shock of it.
"Rod isn’t like one of those men who will never go to the doctor. He has more check-ups than anyone I know. And yet, when they picked it up, it wasn’t just contained in the prostate. It had come through – but, thankfully, not to the point where it spread throughout his body.
"He just charged through. He said, ‘Oh well, could be worse’. That’s very him. He knows he’s had a good life, and is very grateful for everything he has.
"His attitude was, ‘What will be, will be.’"