Introducing Author Dr. Juanita Washington Britton.
In additional to being an author she is the founder of Broken Beautiful Butterflies, a ministry service that seeks to INpower girls and women to break free of their painful past and domestic violence and sexual assault. We are excited to highlight Juanita who recently completed her Doctorate.
Juanita services as pastor alongside her husband at Prayer House of Deliverance Ministry and host the Women of War Conference.
We first asked Juanita If you had 30 minutes for an INpowerment Talk what would be your main subject? What’s the topic that lights your fire?
I would discuss dealing with hurt and brokedness in relationships and how to find yourself as well as dealing with multiple losses such as grief . I would talk about how to define yourself and become whole after you’ve been through a tragedy.
Tell us about the things that lead to you loving that topic and knowing you have a passion for it.
I am passionate for it because I understand pain, grief and brokenness due to major trauma. When I was a little child our home was invaded; my father was shot in the head and my mother was stabbed multiple times. I was molested from the age of 6-14. I was taken to get an abortion at age 14. I was forced into an abortion, miscarried seven babies and passed on my chest.
I married someone who I didn’t know was a functional drug addict, I didn’t find out until after we were married. I’m passionate also because It was a huge culture shock to relocate from New York to Mississippi when I was about 5 years old. At age seventeen my boyfriend put a gun to my head, I was able to move it but it went and shot me in my kidney.
Being molested caused me to make bad choices in relationships and be promiscuous.
I had to come to terms with it and say to myself ” it happened to me, it didn’t kill me and but it robbed me of my education!”. I was angry and bitter and fought a lot in school.
On your INpowerment journey what would you say has been one of the biggest challenges you’ve faced? How did you overcome it? AND if you’re in the process of overcoming it what steps are you taking right now that are helpful to you and may encourage others?
The biggest challenge I’ve ever faced is rejection. That has been challenging for me because I never felt I was good enough. I was given everything materially but rejection set in when my parents separated and me and my mother moved to Mississippi. I never felt like I fit into my maternal family and always felt like an outsider. The rejection got worse when I was molested by several family members on my mothers side. I overcame it by accepting it and facing it; before I suppressed it. I learned that suppression caused me to never heal and left me living a life that was filled with triggers. I dealt with by talking about it when I was 27 years old, before then it had been “My secret”! That when I began to start going to church. I said to God “if you’re real heal me” because I was desperate of being healed and need to be set free from the bondage of my mindset. I would self sabotage because I always saw myself as someone never good enough to complete any task.
What do you love most about yourself as a woman on an INpowerment journey? What are you most proud of?
I am most proud of getting Doctorate considering I was kicked out of school for three years straight. I don’t like test, my challenge was testing and I would free up because I didn’t want to get a bad grade. This was also a part of breaking free of rejection. I started school, I stopped. I started and I stopped. I started and then I completed.
Women wear a lot of hats , sometimes we play superwoman when we aren’t feeling it, has that ever happened to you? If so, how did you handle it? If not, how do you keep it from happening to you?
Yes, I have played superwoman. It can become overwhelming at times. I didn’t know how to balance or to say no when I needed to. Now that I am a caregiver for my mother I have a greater balance. I lost myself because I became everything for everybody. Now I do me time and steal away, put stuff down and take time for me. I am still learning this. I want to call myself an enabler…I know how to take care of other people but I didn’t know how to take care of me…I’m learning how to take care of me.
What are your three best INpowerment tips?
1-In your DNA is greatest, find YOUR best quality and enhance it.
2- Remove yourself from toxic relationships- anything that doesn’t allow you to be the best YOU. Surround yourself with people that challenge you to grow.
3-Be fearless. If you have a vision or a dream pursue it even if things don’t come out the way you think they should. Never stop, keep it moving.
Personal projects, tell us what’s going on now or pending for your personal projects ?
I do not have any personal projects at this time. I am full time caregiver for my mother who is in early stages of Dementia and also caring for myself. BUT projects are on the horizon.
What are your final thoughts for INpowerment?
I want to share my favorite Bible verses… 43rd Chapter of Isaiah because that’s what helped me to see myself in a new light. It let me know no matter what I went through and that no matter what things I had done I had found my Savior who healed me from my past hurts and disappointments.
Where can we find you online?
I am in the process of updating my website, the best place to connect at this time is via brittonjuanita64@gmail.com and also see my book HERE.
