Brenda Bridges

CDFA®, CDC®, MAT, RICP®, Family Mediator, Member IACP, IDFA, Mensa

Founder and Owner
Bridging Divorce Solutions

Website: https://bridgingdivorcesolutions.com/

Divorce isn’t just legal—it’s financial, emotional, and life-altering. Brenda Bridges gets it because she’s been there. After experiencing the financial and emotional toll of her own high-conflict divorce, she saw firsthand how poor financial guidance can derail a person’s future. Determined to change that, she became a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA®), mediator, and Certified Divorce Coach to help others navigate divorce with clarity and confidence.

Brenda’s career has spanned multiple industries, all connected by a common thread: helping people make informed decisions in complex situations. She started her professional journey in marketing, running her Chicago-based marketing firm for years before pivoting into finance. She became a financial advisor, guiding individuals in planning for their futures—only to realize that divorce was one of the biggest financial turning points most people would ever face.

Recognizing a significant gap in financial guidance for divorcing individuals, Brenda became a CDFA®, focusing on helping clients understand asset division, tax implications, and financial security post-divorce. But it didn’t take long to see that divorce isn’t just about money—it’s deeply emotional as well. Decisions made during divorce are often clouded by fear, grief, or anger. To bridge that gap, Brenda became a divorce coach and mediator, allowing her to bring balance to emotional and financial aspects of divorce.

She developed Informed Mediation™, a proprietary, out-of-court divorce process that empowers individuals to make sound financial and legal decisions without unnecessary litigation.  Bridging Divorce Solutions specializes in helping individuals and financial professionals navigate the financial, legal, and tax implications of divorce—especially grey divorce, where retirement security is paramount

She works with financial advisors, attorneys, and other professionals to help them understand how to serve and retain clients during divorce, what they should and shouldn’t do, and how to avoid financial pitfalls. She’s delivered numerous educational webinars on the financial and legal aspects of divorce, estate planning concerns, and strategies for financial professionals to support their clients.

Brenda is a Rule 31 Certified Mediator, a trained collaborative divorce professional, and previously served as President of the Illinois Association of Collaborative Professionals. She has also been an active community volunteer, serving on the boards of the University of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation (UCCRF) and the Family Service Center on the North Shore of Chicago, both focused on providing critical support to individuals and families.

When she’s not helping clients or educating professionals, Brenda enjoys traveling, teaching, gardening, and cooking—especially trying new recipes from her latest adventure. She believes that life is a series of reinventions, and that with the right information and guidance, divorce can be an opportunity to build a stronger financial future, not just a setback.