Meet Taniqua Miller, MD | Life Coach, Board-certified OB/GYN and National Certified Menopause Practitioner

I have always been an advocate of women and girls, especially around reproductive transitions. Whether I was hosting fireside chats as a 10year old discussing menstrual periods with my buddies or simply reading textbooks to understand my own body, I have always seen empowerment in learning. Empowerment is my calling card. I don’t pretend to know everything. But I will empower my patients and clients and honor their concerns. I am a partner in their life journeys, not a patriarchal presence dictating what they can and cannot do. As a 1st generation American, I know firsthand the struggles immigrant families face. I watched my mother and grandmother work tirelessly to provide. But in one generation, I received the support needed to attend college at Yale University and then go on to obtain my medical degree from Harvard Medical School. The path wasn’t always easy. Shonda Rhimes coined the concept of “First. Only. Different.” There were times when I felt incredibly lonely in my journey through college and medical school, not knowing how to advocate for the support I needed. But I knew through it all, I could always go back home for a warm meal and some encouraging words. And after then, I would get back in the ring to fight another day. As I transition to building my business as a professional speaker and life coach, there are three lessons that have become integral to this phase I am in.

1. Build self-trust. so much of my training has led me to doubt my own gifts. By leaning into my strengths, celebrating even the most mundane wins, and taking time to cultivate rich communities, I have started to trust myself again. I have leaned on my intuition and put in boundaries.
2. Do the next best thing. life has no handbook. However, I know one thing: I am oriented towards good. And when you are oriented towards good, any decision I make will be the good one and the right one.
3. We cannot be on our journeys alone. When I admitted to myself and my family that I was burnt out in clinical medicine, I felt a great deal of shame. I isolated myself because the picture of perfection was no more. But here’s the thing? When I started sharing my story, I started having women reach out to me to talk about their own stories of burnout and shame. My sharing of my story set other women free to share theirs. My vulnerability and the aftermath inspired my coaching program, Burnout to Boundless™. I coach 1st generation professional women of color to QUIT. Quitting is not just about leaving a job. It is about centering your own needs and letting go of the busy, unfulfilling work that keeps you from living a boundless life.

Kevin Rathbun’s steakhouse has the best jalapeño cheddar corn I have ever tasted.

I also love sipping cocktails at the St Regis Bar.

We would of course do a spa day. I love Fabu Face Spa in Decatur for my facials and Two Hands to Heal in Buckhead for a massage.

I dedicate my shout out to my greatest cheerleader, my mom. As a single parent at the age of 20, my mother made a clear choice: she would afford me with opportunities to help me soar. While working nights at the post office, she would spend her days helping me prep for spelling bees, chaperoning school trips to the Bronx Zoo, or setting up the school Christmas store. As a grandmother now to my three children, she has taught me patience and perseverance, even when I am doubtful of how I am mothering my little ones. Most recently, my mother has been a source of strength as I made the bittersweet decision to leave my role in academic medicine to build my coaching business. I am forever grateful to her pouring so much into me and to my family.