Only the strong can be vulnerable and courage is contagious

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Twenty seven years ago, back in 1995, Hilary Rodham Clinton took to the stage at the UN’s 4th“World Conference on Women” in Beijing to present the now infamous case that women’s rights are human rights and human's rights are women's rights



Healthcare is one of the main areas in which women face discrimination on the basis of sex and gender (the other ones being domestic and sexual violence, lower pay, and lack of access to education).

It’s 2022 now, so I’m hoping we are all aware of the motherhood penalty and the bias that exists from the moment a woman announces she is pregnant. But in my experience, we are less aware of the many other female health-related issues which are shrouded in silence, stigma, embarrassment, pain and, worst of all, shame. From periods, being childless, childfree or ‘when’ to have children to menopause – they shackle us and hold us back at work.

As Hilary said, rights are important, but they are nothing without the power to claim them. And in order to claim them, we need to be aware of them and to understand them.

Which is why this week, in collaboration with many of the amazing women I’ve worked with and learnt so much from, I’m launching a new content series called Courage is Contagious. The aim is to make us all a little bit more conscious of women’s health, particularly sexual and reproductive health in the workplace and to be courageous in normalising conversations around them.

Why? Because knowledge is empowering, it can help us stand up for what is right and against what is wrong. Women’s health issues don’t need to be embarrassing or shameful, but actually should be recognised as what define us and unite us all as women. And if we don’t normalise the conversation around them, then how can we ever hope to build an equitable workplace which meets the needs of us all?

I’m neither a professional presenter or journalist - I am a professional woman who’s had to navigate my own career whilst tip-toeing round my own stigmas of never having been married, not having children, being “bossy”, “difficult”, “feisty” and “outspoken” whilst also managing many women along the way. It’s not who we are that matters, but what we do that counts. I’m pretty nervous about putting myself out there, but it is time our stories are told, and I do know that empowered women empower women.

We’re going to be courageous in covering all the taboos. Childfree, Childless (not by choice), Same Sex Motherhood, Solo Mum by Choice, Mid Life Women and many more. I’ve been humbled and empowered by the courage and openness from all the women I've interviewed who’ve been generous enough to share their experiences.

I’m equally as proud that the series is produced, designed, project managed, promoted and edited by women (our logo was designed by my colleague Shahnaz Ahmed on her first day back from maternity leave).

Of course, these are sensitive, emotional and delicate topics, which can be triggering for many of us. But our intent is to help everyone understand what we can do collectively, both as colleagues and companies, to make the workplace as equitable and inclusive as possible for all women and for us all to be better allies, colleagues, managers and employers.

Remember, we don’t get to exclude ourselves from the wrong side unless we are actively learning and speaking up and out for the right side.

So, here’s to us all working together towards a world where expectations are not set by the stereotypes that bind us or shackled by the stigma of health issues that can cause us so much stress, pain and shame - but where we are freed by our personal passions, talents and interests to live our best lives and be our best selves.

Only the strong can be vulnerable, we rise by lifting others and I know from personal experience that courage can be so very contagious. I hope we can all be courageous together in listening, learning and joining the conversation.

Follow us now on Instagram @courage_is_contagious

Watch the first episode here.