About

“Cysters was born from the belief that menstrual and maternal care should never be a privilege. Our work is rooted in community care & collective liberation, because true health justice means every voice is heard and every body is valued. We will keep challenging stigma, dismantling barriers, and building spaces where everyone, especially those too often ignored can thrive.”


Neelam Heera-Shergill, Founder and CEO of Cysters

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Our Vision

A world where menstrual, maternal, and mental health are free from stigma, inequality, and silence. Where everybody feels seen, supported, and able to thrive. We recognise that healing goes beyond treating the body; it also means nurturing the mind, the spirit, and the community around us.

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Our Mission

To challenge cultural taboos and systemic inequalities by creating safe, inclusive spaces that bring together lived experience, education, and advocacy. We centre communities in shaping solutions and policy change, ensuring that those with lived experience are not only heard but valued with their time, voices, and expertise properly recognised and remunerated.

Through this commitment to community-led action, health equity, and collective liberation, we work to dismantle the barriers that prevent people from accessing the care they deserve. By embedding compassion, culture, and justice into everything we do, we are building a future where menstrual and maternal health are not just medical issues, but matters of dignity, equity, and liberation.

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Our journey

Cysters began with one voice, a story of lived experience, of fighting for recognition and care in a health system that too often ignored, belittled, or misunderstood reproductive and mental health struggles.

What started as a grassroots movement has grown into a community-led charity with a national reach. Along the way, we’ve supported thousands of people, influenced research and policy, and challenged outdated narratives around menstruation, miscarriage, menopause, mental health, and more.

But our heart has never changed. We remain a safe space for those navigating silence, stigma, or shame, committed to walking alongside our communities with radical love and care.

We’re here to make space for all bodies, all conversations, and all communities.

Meet the Team

  • Neelam Heera-Shergill is here to amplify marginalised voices, drive inclusive research & champions justice. Her work spans grassroots activism, maternity care, creative storytelling and community building to challenge systemic health disparities.

  • Dr Farah Ahmed is a GP with over 15 years of NHS experience and a special interest in women’s health. She is a diplomate of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare. She also holds a Certificate in the Management of Menopause from the British Menopause Society and is a member of the National Association for Premenstrual Syndrome.

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  • Fayee is a solicitor by profession and has been one of our first trustees since the charity was founded in 2016. Fayee has been crucial to its inception and has been instrumental in supporting the many changes Cysters has gone through.

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  • Dr Divpreet Sacha is a UK-based GP with specialist expertise in fertility, hormonal health, and postnatal recovery. Her approach is grounded in clinical insight but shaped by lived experience, having personally navigated IVF, miscarriage, PCOS, and postnatal challenges.

  • Sarah Harris is a freelance journalist and PhD student at the University of Nottingham. Her interest in women's health stems from her lived experience. She has also written for several international and national publications about topics related to women's health, including Cosmopolitan, Glamour and Refinery29.

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  • She specializes in women's health, sexual and reproductive health, and menopause care. She is a member of the British Menopause Society and the Primary Care Women’s Health Forum, where she serves on the Rock My Menopause Committee. She is also a member of the RCGP North West London Faculty Board, leading the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion strategy. 

  • Dr. Claire Mann, is a researcher and entrepreneur, is a leading expert in menopause management, with a strong background in qualitative research, education.

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  • Kirsty is an award-winning journalist and editor, who has been supporting Cysters group almost a decade following her own PCOS diagnosis.

  • Raveena Jacobs has a background in freight and logistics who has supported the charity’s grassroots work for nearly a decade, leading on distribution, operations and community delivery to strengthen and grow its impact.