Los Angeles/ San Gabriel Valley/ San Fernando Valley/ Santa Monica/Topanga

Shelly Girard, LM, CPM, MPH
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
Master's in Public Health
Seannie Gibson, LM, CPM, LLC
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
Childbirth At Home, A Labor of Love
496 Rainbow Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90065
323-221-7822
fax: 323-221-8889
Email:
Web: Childbirth At Home: A Labor of Love

Shelly Girard, LM, CPM, MPH is one of the most experienced midwives in Los Angeles. She has attended over 4500 births since 1972. She provides wholistic prenatal care, well-woman gynecology and childbirth at home. Insurance billing available. She is licensed by the California Medical Board and is a Certified Professional Midwife accredited by the North American Registry of Midwives. Shelly has a Masters in Public Health from UCLA. With a focus on wholistic health care, her areas of expertise include nutrition, herbology and exercise physiology. She is a massage therapist certified by the Institute of Psycho-Structural Balancing. Shelly has practiced yoga for over 45 years and has a black belt in Kenpo Karate from the International Kenpo Karate Association (IKKA). She has two grown sons, Chesed and Shawn, who were born at home.
Email:

Seannie Gibson, LM, CPM, LLC trained as an apprentice with Shelly, and is Licensed by the California Medical Board and is a Certified Professional Midwife accredited by the North American Registry of Midwives. She is a mother of three home-born children. She worked as a Monitrice for many years before becoming a midwife. She also offers Enhanced Labor /Monitrice Support for hospital birth.
Email:

Homebirth Preparation Classes Offered

Taught by

Cordelia Hanna-Cheruiyot, MPH, CHES, CCE, CBA
Certified Childbirth Educator
Certified Birth Assistant
Assistant Midwife

Cordelia has taught hundreds of couples and attended homebirths an Assistant Midwife since 1991. She has a Masters in Public Health (Health Education and Promotion/Maternal Child Health) from Loma Linda University. Call or email for the dates of the next class or to schedule a private lesson. Go to Cordelia's Childbirth Preparation Classes for more information or Email:

San Gabriel Valley/ San Fernando Valley/Antelope Valley/ Greater Los Angeles/Santa Monica and Malibu

Leslie Stewart, CNM
Certified Nurse-Midwife
Catherine Williams, LM
Licensed Midwife
Homebirth Service of Los Angeles
3959 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Ste. A
Studio City, CA 91604
818-760-6541
E-mail: hmbirth@hotmail.com

Individualized prenatal care and home birth, including water birth, well-woman gynecology and family planning by ACNM Board Certified Nurse Midwives.

Greater Los Angeles

Aleksandra Evanguelidi, LM, CPM
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
Jake Sifford, LM, CPM
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
The Sanctuary Birth & Family Wellness Center
11965 Venice Blvd., Suite 204
Los Angeles, CA 90066
(310) 566-7690
Web: www.birthsanctuary.com

Whatever your preconception, prenatal, or postpartum needs are, our midwives and Sanctuary staff are committed to surpassing your expectations.  Our services include: Home Birth, Water Birth,  Birth and Postpartum Doula Services, Lactation Services, Acupuncture, Chiropractic, Massage, Cranial Sacral, Nutrition, Counseling, and Placenta Preparation.  Birth Center coming soon!  We are committed to care that leaves you not only with a great birth experience but also empowered as a woman, a mother, and as a family.

Orange County

Lorri Walker, CNP, CNM
Certified Nurse-Practitioner
Certified Nurse-Midwife
South Coast Midwifery and Women's Health Care
4650 Barranca Parkway
Irvine, CA 92604
Phone: 949-654-2727
Fax: 949-654-2735
E-mail: info@southcoastmidwifery.com
Web: www.southcoastmidwifery.com

South Coast Midwifery & Women's Health Care (SCM) is Orange County's premier birth center; the oldest and most established of its kind. SCM is actively the only nationally accredited Birth Center in Orange County and the third of only three in California. When accredited through the Commission for Accreditation of Birth Centers (CABC), the childbearing family can be confident that the center has demonstrated adherence to standards of quality above that of basic licensure and that the center's care is consistent with the philosophy of the American Association of Birth Centers. Accreditation is seen as a symbol of excellence by many.

SCM have been servicing Orange and surrounding counties for over 14 years. Lorri Walker, the founder and director, is one of Southern California best known midwives. Lorri has created a warm, nurturing place for women and their families to come for personalized health care, support, empowerment, and social interaction with people of like mind. Birthing options include home, birth center and water birth. We accept most insurances, as well as offer a wide variety of payment plans and discount options. Call today for your complimentary consultation!

South Coast Midwifery is proud to announce South Coast Milk Bank, Orange County's first mother's milk bank! Donations will be made available to acutely premature newborns in need of healthy human breast milk. Call us at 949.231.9813 or visit www.southcoastmilkbank.com today for more information on how you can help by becoming a donor!

FREE informational workshop

Inland Empire, South/Eastern Los Angeles, North Orange County, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties

Lori Luyten, LM, CPM
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
Ancient Paths Midwifery and Family Birth Center
5849 Schaefer Avenue
Chino, CA 91710
909- 464-0974
Email: contact@oakshouse.com
Web: www.AncientPathsMidwifery.com

At Ancient Paths Midwifery we provide holistic and compassionate care that honors the physiology of pregnancy, birthing and postpartum. Licensed Midwife Lori Luyten, has been in private practice since 2000 and is known for her warmth, integrity and for providing quality care. She specializes in waterbirth and attended her 400th waterbirth in 2009. Located in Chino, her beautiful birth center has over 3800 square feet of space offering plenty of room for childbirth classes, a magnificent spa area, and comfortable resting spots for your family to wait while anticipating your birth. Two large birthing suites with tubs offer you the birth of your dreams. Each of our birth packages includes massage therapy in order to help reduce your stress and stay healthy. Licensed massage therapist, Tanya Sissoyev specializes in massage for the childbearing year but provides massage therapy for the entire family. Homebirth is available and we have several childbirth education options, chiropractic and Osteopathic medicine and attend VBAC births. PPO insurance billing is available. Come to one of our Meet the Midwife and Tour sessions and discover Ancient Paths Midwifery!

Los Angeles/ San Gabriel Valley/ San Fernando Valley/ Santa Monica, Parts of South Bay

Diane West (van der Westhuizen), LM CPM
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
West Midwifery
1820 Glenwood Rd.
Glendale, CA 91201
818-913 0448
E-mail: diane@www.westhomebirth.com
Web: www.westhomebirth.com

Diane West received her midwifery license in 2004 and worked at the Hollywood Birth Center for several years. She is now in private practice and her services include: Preconception Counseling, Prenatal Care, Home Birth, Water Birth, Childbirth and Breastfeeding classes, Postpartum Care and Breastfeeding counseling. All appointments are provided in the comfort and privacy of the client's own home.

San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles, North Orange County, Inland Empire, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties

Joyce Moxley Thomas, LM, CPM, MHA
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
Masters in Health Administration
Certified Perinatal Massage Therapist
AquaNatal Birth Center and Amazing Babies Midwifery Services
Grandview Medical Plaza
13768 Roswell Avenue,  Suite 209
Chino, CA 91710
909- 591-2924
Email: info@aquanatalbirthcenter.com
Web: www.AquaNatalBirthCenter.com and www.amazing-babies.com

Offering holistic prenatal care, well-woman gynecology, childbirth at home, and they are proud to announce the opening of their new waterbirth center. Free seminar on waterbirth offered. Call for details. Insurance accepted. Focusing on holistic care for all women and their newly born children, Joyce's areas of expertise include nutrition and herbology. Joyce is also a Certified Perinatal Massage Therapist. Joyce provides birth control also. Joyce has four children. Her daughter Lyn is a midwifery student working in the practice. Joyce and Lyn have created a birth environment for personalized health care, support, and empowerment. Fees include 6-week childbirth education program and prenatal/postpartum massage. Joyce is licensed by the State of California Medical Board and is a Certified Professional Midwife, certified by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM). Joyce earned her Master's Degree in Healthcare Administration from the University of LaVerne.

Long Beach to Pasadena

Sue Wolcott, LM, CPM, RN
Licensed Midwife
Certified Professional Midwife
Registered Nurse
Traditional Naturopathic Practitioner
Naturopathic Midwifery
562-334-5706
Email: suewolcott2001@yahoo.com
Web: www.homebirthwaterbirth.com
 
Offering holistic prenatal care, well-woman gynecology and childbirth at home including waterbirth and has attended well over 800 births since 1985. She is licensed by the State of California to practice midwifery and is certified by North American Registry of Midwives (NARM). She earned a RN degree in 2000. Sue earned her Naturopathic Practitioners Degree in June, 1995 from Clayton University. With a focus on holistic health care, her areas of expertise include nutrition, herbology and homeopathy. She also completed a Lactation Counseling (LC) certifying program in 2002. Sue has been practicing midwifery in Northern CA for the past 20 years, and has recently relocated to the Long Beach area. PPO Insurance billing is available.

Los Angeles, Brentwood, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica,Long Beach, Los Feliz, Silverlake, Pasadena, San Fernando Valley

Davi Kaur Khalsa, CNM
Certified Nurse Midwife
Tender Loving Childbirth, Midwifery Services
1122 South Robertson Blvd., Suite 17
Los Angeles, California 90035
310-278-6333
email: info@tlcwomanscenter.com
Web: www.tlcwomanscenter.com

Tender Loving Childbirth, is a conscious, caring opportunity for women seeking a safe, positive and empowering home birth experience.TLC offers the best in midwifery and gynecological care, including home birth, water birth, prenatal and postpartum care, breastfeeding support, nutritional counseling, well woman care, and childbirth education classes. TLC now offers a class called, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Homebirth" for women thinking about homebirth and wanting more information. Download the flyer for the dates of the next seminar.

Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties and Northern Los Angeles County

Sue Turner, LM
Licensed Midwife
Dawn Dana, LM
Licensed Midwife
The Ventura Birth Center
3458 Loma Vista Rd.
Ventura, CA 93003
(805 ) 667-Baby (2229)
Email: stmidwife@aol.com
Web: venturabirthcenter.net

Sue Turner and Dawn Dana, California Medical Board Licensed Midwives, have had the privilege and honor of being with families as they welcome their newborns peacefully and respectfully. Sue and Dawn began working together as the Ventura Birth Center in 1998. Since that time, they have attended over 500 births at home, at the birth center, and in water.

Sue Turner is a Licensed Midwife and graduate of the National College of Midwifery, and is an instructor for the school. She has attended births in various settings including home, birth center and the hospital. Other certifications and training include Neonatal Resuscitation, CPR, IV Certification and Fetal Monitoring. Sue believes that each and every baby is a blessing and a gift from God. She is also a wife and mother.

Dawn Dana's interest in midwifery began when she read Midwife Ina May Gaskin’s Spiritual Midwifery in high school. This inspirational book resonated with her implicit faith in the natural and healthy workings of women’s bodies, and her belief in honoring the emotional, spiritual, and physical aspects of birthing. She took the prerequisites for nursing, planning to become a Nurse-Midwife. While she earned a Master's degree from UC Santa Barbara in Counseling Psychology, the beliefs she held so strongly about women, birthing, and families sang quietly in her heart. Her calling to midwifery was reinspired. After looking into all the paths to midwifery, Dawn chose a traditional apprenticeship as the most fitting way for her to acquire the art, knowledge, and technical skills that comprise midwifery. She began a formal apprenticeship with a homebirth practice in 1993. As Dawn's skills, experience, and confidence grew, she took on increasing responsibilities toward the culmination of her apprenticeship in 1996. In 1997, she became a Licensed Midwife.

1. How many years experience do you have as a Primary Midwife? 
2. How many births have you conducted as a Primary Midwife? (We recommend at least 100 to ensure competency).
3. How many births have you conducted as a Primary Midwife Under Supervision?
4. Are you licensed or certified? By whom?
5. How did you receive your training?
6. Did you attend midwifery or nursing school?
7. Did you complete an apprenticeship?
8. Who was your midwife-mentor? Was she certified and/or licensed?
9. Where did you receive your clinical training?
10. How did you learn your midwifery academics?
11. What is the year you received your license and/or certification?
    
    You may also wish to ask her for references (from former clients, childbirth educators and doulas, other midwives, and doctors who work with the midwife).
    
    As an expectant mother, you and your partner have a responsibility to educate yourselves and weigh the advantages and disadvantages of homebirth. Know that there are risks involved in all birth settings--both in-hospital and out-of-hospital. In a hospital you are at greater risk for side effect complications, and in a home birth, you will have less immediate access to emergency treatment. If you plan a homebirth, do not attempt to do it without a skilled birth attendant, as unassisted birth can be risky. Be certain that the midwife you choose is trained in emergency measures, and that you have a hospital transport plan, just in case. Make sure the midwife will bring the appropriate equipment to your home to stabilize you and your baby should an emergency occur until critical care can be obtained (such as oxygen, newborn resucitation equipment, anti-hemmorhaging drugs, etc.). Most of all, however, be sure you choose a midwife who will bring to your birth the most important skill of all: the sound judgment gained from years of experience.
    
    In planning a homebirth, you must be prepared for all eventualities. There are no guarantees your birth or baby will be perfect. No birth is without some degree of risk. Learn all that you can, and make informed choices. Most of all, be prepared to take responsibility for the decision you make. This way you can have a joyous and safe birth!
    
    It is wise to check out the midwife you are considering. You may wish to find out whether any complaints or actions have been filed against her. To do so, contact:
    
    The Medical Board of California
    1426 Howe Avenue, #54
    Sacramento, CA 95825
    (916) 263-2382 phone
    (916) 263-2687 TDD
    (916) 263-2944 fax
    8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PST
    Medical Board Website