Informed Choices and Reliable Information with Dr. Belinda Coker

I had the honor of chatting to Dr. Belinda Coker in today's episode of Fertility Life Raft. I love speaking to women who are entrepreneurs who have been through something incredibly hard, that have looked at what they’ve experienced and have decided to do something useful with it. It makes me feel really excited! I love that by using all of her experience both in life and professionally, Belinda’s chosen to put her energy into this amazing thing. She's so inspiring! Dr. Belinda Coker is the founder and CEO of Your Trusted Squad. Belinda has been a medical doctor for almost 20 years, initially training in obstetrics, gynaecology, reproductive and sexual health before becoming a GP. She is an executive medical director with extensive experience in virtual healthcare, quality, compliance, patient safety, and patient experience. But it was Belinda’s experience of infertility and repeated miscarriages that led her to start Your Trusted Squad. Your Trusted Squad empowers and supports couples who are trying to have a baby and finding the journey harder than expected. Your Trusted Squad helps you make informed decisions by providing coaching support and by signposting and introducing you to trusted services and sources of health information that are relevant to your specific needs. In this episode, we speak about: • Dr. Belinda’s story and how she ended up in this space • Using evidence-based research and information to make informed decisions • Situations and experiences Dr. Belinda’s clients are coming to her with and how she’s helping them • When you’re running a support space, making sure to have the community of peer support and also being clear on what’s a trusted, reliable source of information and what might not be • Mindset as a key part to the infertility journey to help take back self-ownership and reduce stress as much as possible • You don’t have to fight all of the time - there’s no shame in having others advocate on your behalf • The items in Dr. Belinda’s Life Raft • and more! Powerful Quotes: That’s what I found on my journey, even though I’m knowledgeable about the ecosystem of women's health, I still found I did a lot of research… It did take a lot of time and energy, so what I’m trying to do is just make it easier for others. When you make informed decisions, you need to know the pros and the cons of whatever choice you’re trying to make. Mindset is the key part to all of this. Having that right mindset, and feeling calm and in control as much as possible. So much is outside of our control. If we can get control where we can, it helps us feel that we are somewhat having some power over it. It’s helpful to have others to advocate on your behalf - your partner, relative, trusted friend. There’s so much power in that. That’s also something that does come up… You feel like you have to really fight, but sometimes you don’t have to. There are other people who can help you and there’s no shame in asking for help at all. Connect with Dr. Belinda Coker: Website - https://www.yourtrustedsquad.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/yourtrustedsquad/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/yourtrustedsquad/ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/your-trusted-squad/ Join our Instagram community for more support: www.instagram.com/thisisalicerose . As always please take a moment to rate and review right now or half way through or at the end - it makes the world of difference!! Thank you so much to everyone who has already. I’m running a free live event, Reclaiming You, on 21 April and 22 April for anyone trying to bring home a baby and finding themselves feeling lost; stuck in a ‘left behind’ mentality; exhausted and in comparison mode. Read more about it, to see if it’s suitable for you and join me by saving your space here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices