Education

I earned my Bachelor of Science degree from Colorado State University.

I earned my Associate of Science degree in Midwifery through The National College of Midwifery.

I have my Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) credential and am also a Licensed Midwife (LM) through the state of California. 

You can find out more about this process here www.narm.org

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I started my journey into birth work when I attended my DONA doula training in Topsail, NC in October 2009.  We moved to Stafford, Virginia shortly thereafter, where once settled I started attending births as a doula the summer of 2010. I received my Birth Doula certification through DONA in May of 2012. 

To learn more about this certification process visit www.dona.org. 

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I received my Hypnobabies Doula certification in May of 2012.

To find out more about Hypnobabies Doula training and birthing resources visit www.Hypnobabies.com.

I received my Robozo doula certification in October of 2016 when I hosted The Rebozo Connection for Childbirth Professionals: The Gena Kirby Method.  Robozos are a fantastic tool for parents to use before, during and after labor and I am thrilled to be able to have this tool available to my clients.

In October 2016 I was thrilled to attend a Spinning Babies Training.  This was a fantastic training, and I am so excited to be able to help my clients understand their babies positioning and add this expertise to my knowledge of skills.  More information about this training can be found at www.SpinningBabies.com

I trained as a Placenta Encapsulation Specialist through Placenta Benefits.  I started my training in 2015 and received my certification in January 2016.   I have encapsulated over 100 placentas for clients and love offering this service!  I also have my Food Handler Safety Certification and my Blood Born Pathogens training.  More information about this certification program and placenta encapsulation research can be found at www.placentabenefits.com.

While living in North Carolina I have worked as a home birth midwifery assistant with the local homebirth midwife practice Midwifery Services.  I also assisted with prenatal and post-partum and breastfeeding assistance for my midwife's clients. I took my first adult and infant First Aid and CPR Basic Life Skills Training and Neonatal Resuscitation Training during this time and have actively maintained these certifications since.  In April 2016 I attended the Birth Emergency Skills Training.  This is a fantastic class for out of hospital birth providers.  More information about this training and certification can be found at www.BirthEmergency.com. 

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I worked with Birthing Your Way Birth Center in Utah for clinical work the summer of 2017.  We moved shortly after to Japan.  I then took some time off clinical work to focus on my midwifery academic coursework and enjoy time with our newest baby who was born in Japan at a local birth center the summer after we arrived.  I can attest having a baby overseas with local care providers is one of the most culturally expanding experiences a family can have.

 

The summer and fall of 2019 I traveled with our youngest son (then 9 months) to Taytay, Philippines and had the opportunity to learn from the midwives of Shiphrah Birthing Center.  With strict COVID restrictions in place in 2020, I got the incredible opportunity to partner with a Japanese Birth Center as a birth assistant and work with more than a dozen Japanese midwives.  The Yui Clinic took me under instruction as a primary midwifery student and while there I completed my continuity of care midwifery work and assisted with the care of 14 families who requested my assistance through their pregnancy.

 

After coordinating the craziness of moving across the world from Japan to California we took the summer and tackled remodeling our new home ourselves.  That project in itself offered lots of life lessons. I took a long weekend trip during this time to travel to Arizona and do a skills refresher at the Advanced Skills and Midwifery Business Training offered by Midwifery Wisdom Collective.  This was a fantastic way to do some self-reflection on how I saw myself as a midwife and the services I wanted to provide.  I spent my last 6 months as a student midwife training with Birth Matters, Inc.  and completing the additional stateside primary births needed for obtaining my CPM certification.   During this time, I also assisted various midwives in the community as a birth assistant.  I graduated from the National College of Midwifery the spring of 2021.  I shortly after licensed with the state of California and received my Certified Professional Midwife certification.

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I am a "lifelong learner" and love developing my skills.  I have completed the following C.E.U.'s since getting my license. 

 

• Spinning Babies(R) "Shoulder Dystocia and Breech Basics" classes with Nicole Morales

• Hands-On Suture Class - HIVECE

• Baby's Breath NRP - Lavendar Moon

• Defensive Charting Live Webinar - Augustine Colebrook, Midwifery Wisdom Collective

• The Midwife's Apothecary: Herbs for Pregnancy, Birth and Postpartum - Tina M. Braimah

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