The Cure for Medical Gaslighting? Kyndred’s Black Women-First Approach to Health Care
Conversations about vaginal health flow easily in the right setting: among friends, with a thumping, mid-tempo beat creating the perfect backdrop for girl talk. More often than not, it’s the southern drawl of Megan Thee Stallion promoting sexual autonomy. Or perhaps your recent Spotify playlist features Sexxy Red’s unapologetically bold “Fat, Juicy, and Wet,” where her raunchy bars meet Bruno Mars’ smooth vocals. Count how many times the duo says “pussy,” and naysayers wouldn’t find enough pearls to clutch (15, to be exact—I counted).
But when it comes to addressing vaginal health—the wins and the concerns—the energy shifts. The lively, colorful camaraderie is replaced by the sterile walls of a doctor’s office. The soundtrack? Not a bass-heavy anthem of sexual liberation, but the unsettling hum of white noise as you wait for your provider to enter with the usual, “So, how can I help you today?” Despite the empowerment we feel elsewhere, bringing up sexual wellness in a medical setting remains taboo. Instead, people turn to TikTok, Google, or group chats before daring to voice those same concerns to a doctor.
That’s where Kyndred comes in. A new end-to-end telehealth platform dedicated to redefining how sexual health is understood and treated. Like a trusted family member, Kyndred aims to become your go-to provider who gets it, no judgment, no shame—and no awkward white noise. Ahead of its launch next month, here’s everything you need to know.
What is Kyndred and why is it important?
Kyndred is a Black-founded telehealth platform aiming to go beyond educating, by providing access to care across a wide range of health services, with a strong focus on sexual health. Founded by real-life friends Kimberly Huggins, LCSW, MPH, MEd, and Brittany Brathwaite, MSW, MPH, and Tesiah Coleman, MSN, WHNP-BC, AGPCNP-BC, CEO, Kyndred was born from the foundation laid by its predecessor, Kimbritive. Launched in 2014, Kimbritive—an amalgamation of the founders’, Kimberly and Brittany, names—was created as a space for Black women to access education and counseling on sexual and reproductive wellness while fostering community through in-person workshops.
Its impact grew through Paps on Tap, a quarterly conversation series where OBGYNs and other health care practitioners gather to discuss everything from cervical health to best sex practices. “[At Paps on Tap,] we learn in real time from doctors, therapists, doulas, and more about navigating your reproductive health journey,” Huggins tells ELLE.com over Zoom. “We’re providing a lot of information so that you can advocate for yourself.” After years of equipping their community with knowledge, Huggins and Brathwaite realized there was still a missing piece: access to care.
Given their backgrounds in health care and wellness, they realized many people didn’t know where to start when looking for a provider—Kyndred was their answer, some might say their North Star, guiding Black women toward the compassionate, culturally competent care they deserve. To further strengthen the company’s mission, Huggins and Brathwaite contacted Coleman who already served as Kimbritive advisor, founded Togather, a platform dedicated to collective care for health care providers that aims to reduce burnout, to join them on this new journey.
“I noticed, despite our intense mission to further women’s health care and make it equitable, the conversation around Black women kept getting ignored,” Coleman, who specializes in building femtech companies in the health care realm, explains. “At these appointments, you’re being dismissed and talked down. I hold medical degrees and walk into offices, but people still act like I don’t know what I’m talking about, or that I don’t know my body. You don’t need a medical degree to lead care, and that is what we’re trying to do with Kyndred—put the power back in the hands of Black women to lead in their health care [journey].”
What Black women want is a safe space where their health matters just as much as the next person. “Kyndred is community-centered care,” Huggins shares. “Navigating your health care alone doesn’t feel good; it’s isolating, it feels scary, and it feels intimidating, especially for Black women. So, we’re providing a model that allows you to navigate your health care journey with providers that see you and deeply care for you while also being a part of a community—your ‘kin’, so to speak. Kyndred supports you along this journey to shift what the experience will be like for Black women.”
What services does Kyndred offer?
Kyndred specializes in sexual health services and broader wellness support. With a whole-body approach to health, it aims to tackle a range of issues:
Sexual and Reproductive Health: Virtual consultations for birth control, STI testing and treatment, and fertility concerns.
Mental Health Support: Access to culturally sensitive therapists who understand the nuances of Black mental health.
Preventative Care: General wellness screenings, prescription management, and guidance on holistic well-being.
Under the Kyndred Care membership, members access a hub called Sugar, a one-stop destination for all things education, similar to the Kimbritive framework. “You learn more about some of the things that maybe you’ve discussed in your 60-minute visit or your 30-minute follow-up. While we’re making sure that you’re not alone as you’re navigating your entire health care experience, Sugar is also a beautiful touch point for learning more about your body and different topics so you can bring it up at your next visit. There are workshops; there are opportunities for you to engage with other Black women on the platform. It’s a holistic approach to care and education bundled in one,” Huggins explains.
What is the process like from start to finish?
After scanning the website (and this guide) to familiarize yourself with Kyndred’s offerings, you can sign up to create an account where you’ll be prompted to take a five-minute survey. From there, you’ll book a virtual consultation. Members will have a one-hour consultation to discuss their full health history and goals. Coleman adds: “You’ll be asked questions like, ‘What are your concerns? What does your medical history look like? But also, what is your social history like? What is it that you want out of your health? Because we’re seeing more and more companies talk about optimal health and longevity medicine, but they’re never talking about Black women. We deserve to not just be free from illness—we deserve to be fully healthy and happy, enjoying optimal health as we’ve defined it.”
From there, you are advised to complete lab work and schedule a follow-up appointment, where you will receive a personalized care plan and any necessary referrals to support your journey. Following this, you will be assigned a “health care homegirl” to ensure your path to optimal health is as seamless as possible. “They are a community health worker, combined with a patient care coordinator, who helps you navigate getting referrals and understanding your insurance for reimbursement. How do you navigate a health care system intentionally designed to be confusing to extract more money from us? This wraparound care includes a network of providers who recognize why we deserve this within the Kyndred Care membership,” Coleman explains.
Do I need insurance to join Kyndred?
Kyndred doesn’t accept insurance just yet, but it does offer membership packages that can be purchased monthly or annually.
How does Kyndred vet its health care professionals?
This is where Coleman’s femtech background and organization Togather comes in. “Two years ago, I founded Togather, a space for health care providers to unite and advance health justice,” she explains. “It’s based on the Together Ally framework, which emphasizes anti-racism, liberation, and intersectionality. These three principles aren’t new, but the health care industry isn’t incorporating them into its programs. Each health care professional will complete courses developed by Togather to be certified in the Togather ALi approach, ensuring they have that foundational knowledge in addition to their professional experience.”
How will it help solve the disparity in care for Black women’s health?
It’s no secret Black women encounter significant challenges in health care, including high maternal mortality rates, delayed diagnoses, and inadequate treatment for pain and other health issues. According to a 2023 survey conducted by KFF on racism, discrimination, and health, about 21 percent of Black women reported experiencing unjust treatment or disrespect from health care providers. The gap widened for those with darker skin tones and younger ages, with 23 percent of Black women between 18 and 29 and 26 percent of those between 30 and 49 reporting unfair experiences—all of which deeply impact how people approach care. Kyndred was created with these hard realities in mind.
“Sexual reproductive health care back then was very different from white women and the reproductive rights model,” Brathwaite shares. “To understand Kyndred’s mission is to understand what the landscape of reproductive justice looked like in the past, so we know where it’s headed.”
Why is Kyndred essential for Black sexual health?
For Huggins, Brathwaite, and Coleman, Kyndred is more than a health care platform—it’s an Afro-futurist vision come to life. “We’re building something that does not yet exist,” Brathwaite says. “Even in 2025, HIV and HIV-related illnesses remain a leading cause of death for Black women in the U.S. Kyndred forces us to think deeply about how we envision and create Black futures, in ways even Octavia Butler might not have imagined.”
At its core, Kyndred isn’t just about access to health care—it’s about shifting the narrative entirely. Black women deserve great sex, too, and Kyndred is here to make sure that sexual health care is part of the conversation, not an afterthought.
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