Hello, please tell us your name and where you reside?
Hey my name is Saschan Fearon-Josephs and I live in London
Describe yourself in five words?
Tenacious dreamer and joy spreader
Tell us more about what you do and how you got where you are today?
I started The Womb Room in response to my experiences with my reproductive wellbeing following surgery when I was 19, which resulted in the loss of my right ovary and fallopian tube after having the coil fitted. I left the hospital and felt a complete loss of my own identity and my sense of womanhood.
It was the first time I realised that I didn’t know anything valuable about my reproductive wellbeing, my reproductive system and its importance to my overall wellbeing. I started blogging as a way to get my feelings and thoughts out as I was on this journey with my changing body, shifting perspective of who I was and what I wanted from life and trying to work through healing from this loss both physically and emotionally.
I was diagnosed with endometriosis, fibroids, uterine polyps and suspected adenomyosis following four more surgeries. Still suffering from incontinence, struggling with my fertility and being told I would probably never have children if I didn’t conceive by the time I was 27); I became determined for other young women not to follow the same difficult route that I did—through the medical system, trying to advocate for my body and wellbeing.
I’ve spent a lot of time researching, navigating the system, working with doctors and specialists to find the best ways to equip women with the right resources to manage their conditions such as endo and fibroids. To enable women to live a life and feel empowered by the knowledge that they have about their health condition instead of their reproductive condition ruling their life.
I’m excited to be able to advocate for women by being an appointed member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists women’s network and supporting professionals to think about how to improve their working relationships with those with reproductive wellbeing issues when I lecture at universities, speak at businesses and host events. I thrive off connecting people with the things that can make their life easier and more fulfilling. It makes me so happy when I share with someone a product, information, a person, or an idea and they come back and say ‘oh I tried that thing we spoke about and it really changed XYZ for me’.
I feel one of my greatest successes has been helping someone who was struggling with extremely heavy periods; she was having blood transfusions due to her blood loss. She suffered extreme pain for several years and was struggling to get an answer after being passed from consultant to consultant. I was able to get her a consultation with the right specialist with only a 6-week wait of us sitting down together. The correct information and conversation with the right person can transform your life.
Which three words best define your philosophy? (the way in which you like to live life)?
Learn, create, love
What inspires your work?
My lived experience inspired my initial journey but the constant encouragement and lived experiences of others navigating their own journey with their reproductive health is what inspires me to keep going.
What does the word ‘Community’ mean to you?
Umm… shared space which is home to people connecting through shared experience. I think community is so essential for every area of your life and so is recognising that different communities you are a part of all serve an important purpose in enriching your life and you in enriching your communities.
Inspire our community, please share an affirmation, quote, poem, song, or playlist?
“You are your best thing” ― Toni Morrison, Beloved
How does your community best support you?
Accountability is really important and essential for growth but also by engagement by sharing knowledge, information and access to space and opportunities. I think there is always something we can learn from those around us or be inspired by.
What truly lights you up?
LOVE. Being in love, giving love, and for me, my expression of love manifests itself in wanting to equip others with the tools to support their growth and help people avoid walking the same zig-zag path that I have walked with my reproductive wellbeing. It doesn’t have to be hard, you just have to have someone willing to show you how to navigate your individual wellbeing effectively so that you can move forward making decisions in your best interest.
What in life are you being called to?
This is a really interesting question. I have been praying on a few things a lot recently and I keep getting the same answer around discipline, visibility and accountability. I feel as though discipline generally has negative connotations but I think it can be one of the highest forms of self-love over time.
I also think, being visible. I started The Womb Room as a way to connect with other women and support them through their reproductive journey by sharing elements of my own. And showing people how to avoid making the mistakes I made and how to advocate for themselves effectively.
Along the way, I wanted to separate myself and my personal experiences from The Womb Room as a business as it was becoming very emotionally draining but I feel as though that switch has disconnected me from the very people I want to empower because we connect with each other, not with businesses. It’s people that are the magic.
What makes you feel empowered?
Being vocally and visibly supported by others. It gives me superpowers and it reminds me to keep on going even if things feel a little bit like wading through quicksand.
What was the last sign you received from the universe?
I’ve been planning a project for the last 12 months and it hasn’t moved past the planning stage for a few different reasons but I was lying in bed a few nights ago and struggling to get to sleep and I said out loud how am I going to get this off the ground and out into the world it’s such a big and expensive task and literally like a light bulb the answer came to me so I quickly wrote it down and I’m so excited to share it with everyone.
I think it’s really going to change the way we engage with our reproductive wellbeing and the people who support us to manage it.
“I feel as though you can’t ignore what you believe your purpose is. It whispers to you and the more you ignore it and don’t act on it the louder that whisper becomes until it’s screaming at you to move forward.”
What is something you are really proud of?
I think I’m most proud of my tenacity. I go through cycles of feeling low and unmotivated but I feel as though you can’t ignore what you believe your purpose is. It whispers to you and the more you ignore it and don’t act on it the louder that whisper becomes until it’s screaming at you to move forward.
What will you never take for granted?
The people who surround and support me. I can be very insular and introverted at times and it’s so easy to feel like an island during those periods but other people constantly help bring me back to myself when I feel as though I’m drifting aimlessly in ways they don’t even realise.
How do you recharge/relax/unwind?
I love to read in the bath with some candles and incense burning. Getting lost in a book is one of my favourite things and since I joined @script_club a few years ago it has opened me up to reading a variety of things I would never have picked up previously. Reading is my accessible escape. Less than a holiday but longer than a movie.
Please leave us one tip, tool or technique that may support our wellbeing?
Try and get into a winddown routine for bed to help you sleep better and really shut off from the day. I have lemon, turmeric and ginger tea about an hour before I want to go to sleep. I turn off my laptop and switch my phone to do not disturb, read a book, listen to some relaxing music or meditation and try to avoid any technology about an hour before I sleep.
Share with us…What’s next for you?
I’m going to be working on connecting people with their own story, their reproductive experiences and giving women and menstruators the tools and resources to manage their reproductive wellbeing with confidence and consistency.
There are a few surprises in store for The Womb Room community coming in the next couple of months which I’ll be giving people a few sneak peeks into as I get ready to put this project out into the world. I’m really excited to share it but can’t talk about it too much right now.
Tune in to Saschans offerings:
www.thewombroom.co.uk
@thewombroom
Saschan Fearon-Josephs founded The Womb Room in 2011, creating a space for people with reproductive health problems to share information, learn how to manage their conditions and connect with experts. Having successfully supported thousands of women to improve their knowledge, understanding and lives through digital and social channels The Womb Room now wants to change the way people engage with reproductive health and well-being issues at work.