Today we’d like to introduce you to Tejanita Bush.
Hi Tejanita, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up dreaming of helping mamas and babies, but as I got older, I wasn’t thrilled with the amount of schooling and costs associated with becoming an OBGYN, so I just dismissed the dream. I went into childcare, and even early childhood education. Eventually, I became a flight attendant for a major airline and started attending Northern Arizona University online, where I graduated with my Bachelors in Criminal Justice Studies and Intelligence. My next goal was to become a pilot and mix it with a job in law enforcement, something along those lines. In the midst of exploring new career options, during a work trip, I met my husband, and soon after we started growing our family. My first birth I didn’t prepare for. I just assumed you go into a hospital and walk out with a baby and very little knowledge on the in-between. Her birth left me with a lot of questions about the medical system and the “what-ifs” from decisions that were made in the process. I vowed and prayed that if I had another baby, I would do a lot more research and really try to understand the natural process of childbirth, as well as trusting my body more.
Be careful what you pray for because 9 months later I became pregnant with my second child. From the moment I found out, I really started preparing my mind and body for what was to come, and my second birth was very healing and very eye-opening in regards to trusting your body and the birth process.
It was a few months after the birth of my second daughter when I woke up with the word “Doula” weighing heavily on my heart. I talked with my husband, who is always so supportive, and realized I was ready to leave the flight industry and pursue my calling as a birth worker. It was in the middle of the worldwide pandemic, but when God opens doors and gives you opportunity, you don’t ignore that. While it was intimidating, it has been so, so worth it. I jumped in full dedication.
I completed my training for becoming both a birth and postpartum doula in August 2020 and supported my first client in September. and since then, I have supported over 20 families and counting in my first year, which is pretty incredible and extremely humbling.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Now that I am through the thick of setting up and getting established, looking back I have to say it has been pretty smooth. I have been blessed beyond my wildest dreams. When I was in the beginning though, it was definitely intimidating and sometimes stressful. I experienced insecurity and fear of failure for sure.
I would say the biggest struggle was getting organized and figuring out how to market myself. Thankfully my sister-in-law is a genius in marketing and web development and sort of took that part off my plate so I could focus on other tasks at hand.
It was also a struggle of balancing building a business from scratch while also being a present wife and mother. My husband also owns his own business and works in the home, so us balancing our time with work while raising three daughters ranging from newborn to 10 years old had its challenges. Thankfully we communicate well. I am grateful for a supportive husband and his family stepping in to help when I really needed the peace and quiet to lay the groundwork for my vision.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a birth and postpartum doula, maternity, and birth photographer, and I am also certified in Placenta Encapsulation. As a doula, I don’t provide medical advice or care, but rather I am there for physical, emotional, and informational support. I don’t take anyone’s place on the care team, but rather aim to enhance their knowledge and abilities to fully support the new mother through the birth and postpartum stage. My passion lies in presenting expecting and new parents with all the options that are available to them, providing them with evidence that supports each option, and then supporting them through whatever decision they choose is best for their family and their beliefs. At the end of a birth and the fourth trimester, I want parents to feel safe, confident, and empowered in caring for their new baby or babies.
Capturing the memories of growing your baby and birthing your baby is also so important to me. No matter how you birth and meet your baby, the beauty, strength, power, and resilience that is manifested in birth and nurturing your baby is one that should be celebrated and cherished for years to come, especially in those moments when we as mothers feel down about ourselves in a society where bouncing back is more important than embracing your newly transformed body. To look back on those memories and feel the victory pouring forth from that life-changing experience can be encouraging and even therapeutic.
I’m proud to be a safe space for clients to process their emotions and memories surrounding their birth experience and also be available to walk with them as they navigate the postpartum period. I do not impose my personal views and beliefs on clients, but rather focus on helping clients bring their own values and traditions into their birth planning and experience. I have walked with several families from various walks of life and belief systems and I value each experience and often learn some incredible lessons from them as well.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
I mean, first and foremost, thanking God for the blessings, the opportunities, the guidance, really coming through even when I have my doubts. I believe in community and am a huge advocate for surrounding yourself with like-minded and motivated individuals. Upon entering birth work, I immediately started messaging who ever I saw supporting families and asking to meet for coffee. I am grateful for those doulas and midwives who met with a stranger to impart tips and tricks on succeeding in this industry. I’m grateful for the great friendships I have developed.
In the beginning, I sought out mentorship from two very successful and very intelligent doulas in the birth community.
Nicole Hamic taught me everything I needed to know about becoming a birth photographer (I had never touched a “fancy camera” before in my life, so she definitely had her work cut out for her). I also learned some important work/life balance tips and marketing strategies from her.
Patricia Alatriste helped me finish my doula certifications so I could go on to support clients in a hospital setting, as well as teaching me many tools, like comfort measures, that still help me better support my clients in any birth setting and scenario.
I credit my successful first year to their time and knowledge they shared with me. Any time I doubted myself or felt the “imposter syndrome” they both came at me with such strong words of encouragement and motivated me to keep at it.
And I can’t thank my husband enough. Seriously he is my biggest fan and biggest cheerleader and even when I am gone at a birth for sometimes days at a time, when the kids are driving him insane and he is swamped with his own workload, he doesn’t gripe once and just says “Do what you gotta do. I’ve got it under control here.” And his family is pretty amazing too. They step up in big ways when we need extra help.
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@nurturedempowerment.com
- Website: www.nurturedempowerment.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nurturedempowerment/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nurturedempowerment
Image Credits
Comforts Photography
Aicia Samone Photography
Nicole Hamic
