I don't have enough good things to say about Shannon and her business. She was absolutely…read moreincredible from start to finish. From the very first phone call I felt so comfortable and genuinely heard. She took the time to answer every question and listen to my previous birth story and never made me feel rushed. She listened with understanding and compassion and for the first time I truly felt like a care provider was really listening to me. For my first birth, I had a typical hospital birth with a typical OB. Although I did not have a traumatic experience, I wanted something different for my second time around. I found Shannon and it truly was a blessing. The level of care and attention to detail was above and beyond anything I had experienced before. When the day came to give birth, having her there made me feel so safe supported and empowered. If I was ever to do this again, I would not hesitate to use Shannon and her team and have another home birth. It truly was a defining experience and something that I believe that all women should be able to experience. If you're looking for a quality Midwife service that treats you like family and truly listens to you look no further. I cannot recommend Shannon enough!

We cannot recommend Shannon and her team enough. They made us feel cared for with so much warmth…read moreand expertise. From the first consultation phone call, I knew the fit was perfect. We always looked forward to our prenatal visits at Shannon's lovely office in North Berkeley. It felt like visiting a friend and the conversations flowed naturally, with a lot of attention to detail and with authenticity. We never felt rushed through any of the process nor pressured to make any decisions we were not comfortable with. During our daughter's birth, Shannon and Tara attended to me and baby with so much care, expertise. Even though it was such an intense experience, I felt absolutely safe in their hands. Postpartum, they check in on you with home visits and giving baby so much love and warmth. In every interaction you feel so genuinely cared for. It's clear Shannon and team give every birth so much special attention. We will absolutely be working with Shannon again for baby #2!

Yelp seems like a weird place to find a midwife but these reviews gave me the confidence to choose…read moreJinny and now I'd like to pass on the favor. Jinny is an incredible midwife that I'd recommend to anyone in a heartbeat. The least you can do is get in touch with her and see if you like her style. The Jinny we met at our first meeting was the same Jinny that showed up at every appointment, every diagnoses, and most importantly - at the birth. She is a knowledgeable professional that is supportive of your decisions. And the level of calmness she presents in the most intense situations is remarkable. Jinny provided thorough care from pregnancy to postpartum. Communication was easy and consistent. She heard my concerns about the birth and showed up 100% to help mitigate them as best as she could during the birth. I'm forever grateful to Jinny for giving me the home birth experience I had hoped for.

Jinny Pagle is an outstanding midwife who does both home births and can do pre- and postnatal care…read moreif you want a hospital birth. After several days of labor at home, she supported me at the hospital in making sure to remind me to remind staff about my wishes for how I wanted the birth to go, which enabled me to very narrowly avoid a C-section! She has a great roster of related experts in her network too including an acupuncturist who came to my house during labor and really helped a lot with the process. It was also really wonderful to be able to have her come to my house to check on me and the baby in the first few weeks after the birth. She offers her clients choices of a spectrum of options from alternative wellness resources to standard medical practice depending on your inclinations. Her attitude is very empowering! It was also super convenient for her to be able to do bloodwork at my house and save me time going somewhere else for that. She also does placenta encapsulation. If you're considering a homebirth, or if you want a hospital birth but want to have 60+ minutes per appointment and not the 10 min you get at an OB's office for pre/postnatal care, contact Jinny.

Ellen and her team of apprentices (at the time, Jaime and Kristina) are the epitomy of what…read moreguidance "for women, by women" should be during a natural birthing experience. That's what "midwife" means. And that's what Wombservice Midwifery is! We received care from them during the last two months of my pregnancy (as I'd just moved to the area...hmph, nesting!), our successful homebirth, and post-partum, and I couldn't have chosen a better option. None of the other midwives we'd interviewed in both Santa Cruz and the SF Bay Area "felt" right. None had the mixture of medical expertise, gentleness, presence, kindness, openness, and "can do" attitude that Ellen and her team have. I received hours upon hours of person-to-person (even text messaging!) support in our planned prenatal appointments. I felt nurtured, deeply cared for, and in experienced, sound, professional hands. We discussed back-up plans and she honored all my preferences. I'd say there was even a bit of emotional counseling in there for us as a soon-to-be-parents-couple. :) During the birth, I felt held, nurtured, and in the midst of pain and terror (and joy and ecstacy), they "had" me. Between the 3 of them and my partner, they all "had" me. I FELT SAFE. Jaime breathed EVERY single contraction with me, with her hand on me, moaning with me. I lived 4 blocks from the hospital but did not need to go. I pushed for 4 hours with an arm coming out first but DID NOT TEAR. Ellen's use of olive oil is second to none!! ;) And when my baby needed a little help breathing when he came out, my midwife team's medical expertise exceeded anything I'd ever expected. Quick, efficient, caring, and safe...they helped our baby off to a positive, healthy start. Post-partum, I received care & encouragement that every new mother would die for!! From spending 4 hours after the birth to clean up, check on me and the baby, and give us helpful guidance...to the many post-partum appointments that come with a midwife (and not a hospital birth...not in the same way...not nearly so personal or emotionally supportive!)....Our new little family were well taken care of!! My boy is now 12 months old (healthy and shining and bright!!) and when we have another baby we will DEFINITELY hire Ellen and Wombservice Midwifery as our midwife team AGAIN. (I can even still text Ellen with questions and she always makes herself available...I don't know how she does it! I *highly* recommend these ladies to anyone wanting natural, extensive, thorough, gentle, loving, encouraging, medically-sound guidance during the prenatal, birth, and post-partum phases of a woman's childbearing year!! PS - Ellen's apprentice, Jaime, and Kristina (who was an apprentice at the time) run a business called Placenta Apothecary - Jaime dehydrated my placenta the day after our birth and made it into Chinese medicine, tea, and prepared the umbilical cord as a keep-sake!

I was just emailing to recommend Ellen and her midwifery team to a friend and went on their website…read moreand it seriously makes me want to have another baby!! Ah.... to go through the process with these incredible women again - to be able to see them on a regular basis has enhanced my life, my husband's life and the lives that they helped usher in - our two daughters! So much! Ellen and her team helped us with our first pregnancy - which we lost - they were completely there for us and helped us feel safe to go through the intense process of miscarrying at home. They then were our primary providers for our pregnancy with our daughter, Zoe, and helped guide us through a very challenging 3 day labor - they were right there the entire time and helped us transfer to the hospital when it became clear we needed that and were there for another 1 1/2 days in the hospital with us advocating and supporting us. We ended up having a very necessary cesarian birth that with their support and care was really a beautiful experience. They helped to keep both the baby and me safe. And then they helped us have the most triumphant birth of our little baby Stella - at home - a home birth after C Section!! I love these people and am so grateful for them.

This was a wonderful experience for me and I have to give these caring midwives praise. Lael and…read moreShannon are a wonderful team. The hospital was always busy and giving birth during COVID 19 sounded like a disaster waiting to happen. We opted for the home birth and my midwife through lifelong submitted the approval to have a home birth. When it was time to give birth, it felt good being in your own home, that you know is clean and sanitized. I didn't need too much assistance since this was my second birth but I'd recommend the whole package. I met Lael to discuss the plan for the homebirth. I had so much going on and I truly appreciate Lael and her consistency with me. I would call or text any questions or concerns and Lael and Shannon were very patient. Delivery Day: Lael showed up and I was able to do things my way, if I wanted to do a cartwheel I could. I started in the pool and it was as comfortable as possible, it's childbirth lol. After maybe an hour or two, I asked if I could find do a different position and Lael and Shannon said it was fine. It is honestly the best feeling to do things your way especially bringing a baby into the world. After delivery, Lael and Shannon helped me and my little one start the breastfeeding process (Fast forward she's still exclusively breastfed, woohoo!). This was tricky during my first pregnancy so I was amazed at how the baby latched on, it also was a relief for them to debunk a lot of theories on how newborns are hungry. Also, they clarified what steps to take next concerning my health. They completed post-partum check-ins and even sent me lunch which was so helpful. It was an amaZing experience for myself and my family, a lot of relatives were interested in a homebirth after that. Lael and Shannon, me and my family are grateful for your services.

If you are reading this as a newly expecting couple, looking for the best midwives around, this…read moreletter is for you. In my review, I'd like to highlight everything I have found to be absolutely delightful about the midwives from Midwives Bay Area that my wife and I have worked with (Lael & Shannon). I want to share this with you as an aid for any families that desire to discover a diamond in the rough when it comes to everything related to Midwifery in the Bay Area. 4 children later, all delivered by these masterful women, and we have nothing but the best to share from our personal experiences! Dear Aspiring Family, When my wife and I were first looking for a midwife, we had various concerns about trust, expertise and care. After an extensive search through various different people and organizations, we were blessed to finally meet Lael. In this first meeting, we could tell that she was not only someone that could be trusted, she was full of experience, and she gave my wife a sense of care that we hadn't witnessed anywhere else. After leaving that meeting, we knew our search had come to an end, and we were so excited to embark on this journey with an such an amazing advocate. **Let me remind you that neither my wife nor myself had any prior exposure to home births at this point, and were completely new to the scene.** TRUST: I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that I trust Lael and Shannon with my entire family, because without them, we wouldn't have the same confidence in parenting that we currently have. See, the thing about home births is that they empower the entire family unit to be connected and helpful to one another - starting with husband and wife. Collaboration has always been encouraged, and I am forever grateful for Lael and Shannon's ability to listen to the husband as well as the wife as a team unit. EXPERTISE: We have had 4 home births with Midwives Bay Area, and each birth comes with a beautiful story that I will share for the rest of my life. Their professionalism has extended beyond anything a hospital has ever been willing to offer us, and even more than this we have life-long advocates for our family that continue to impact us to this day! Both Lael & Shannon have countless home birth stories they could share like ours (in addition to their very own family stories), however what is most amazing to me is that I continue to discover areas they specilalize in. These are some of the most authentic and hard-working midwives I have ever met, and we feel so priviledged to call them when we discover we are expecting another little one :) CARE: Whether it be text messages with slight concerns, or phone calls late into the night, we feel as though Lael and Shannon are family due to the depth of care they continually provide. It's truly hard to put into words how much this means to my family, it's really the "X Factor" in searching for a midwife. Finding someone you can trust is huge, knowing that your midwives are beyond capable to give you premium support thanks to their vast expertise is priceless, but meeting someone who cares for your family as a mother cares for her children is as I said inexplicably critical. Seeing the level of care that we have experienced the past 5 years and counting ties together all the trust and expertise, to make a perfect masterpiece of a midwifery team. If it means anything to you, who are reading this as a complete stranger, we love our midwives, and have no doubt that you will too. God Bless you and your beautiful family! ...& a very big THANK YOU from the bottom of my family's heart to Lael, Shannon and the whole Midwives Bay Area team for the opportunity we have had to witness something so undeniably special from you all.

I hired Susana as my midwife during my first pregnancy in 2021, during the height of COVID. I chose…read moreher because I wanted an unmedicated home birth, and at the beginning everything felt consistent and supportive. My prenatal home appointments were regular, and initially I felt comfortable with my decision. Toward the end of my pregnancy, however, I became increasingly fearful and ultimately ended up being induced at the hospital. What followed was a very traumatic experience that resulted in a five-day hospital stay and an unexpected C-section. During this time, Susana was only partially present, as she was dealing with serious health issues involving her husband. After my C-section, she did come to check on me at home and advised me to remain mostly bedridden and not move much. I followed this advice. Two weeks later, I was rushed to the emergency room with a blood clot. Based on what I later learned, I believe that early movement and walking could have helped prevent this, and I was physically capable of doing so at the time. Overall, my experience was deeply traumatic and left lasting emotional and mental scars that I am still healing from. Looking back, I believe things could have unfolded very differently had I received more comprehensive support and guidance during such a critical and vulnerable time. I'm sharing my experience in hopes that it provides insight for others as they make decisions about their care.

I had my baby with Susanna November of 2025 and started working with her in April of 2025. Susanna…read moreis extremely knowledgeable and was very supportive throughout my prenatal and postnatal care. She respected my decisions during pregnancy and guided me when I didn't know enough about certain tests and she never judged me or my husband. When it came time to give birth, she showed up promptly and extremely prepared. Her and Tiffany (her amazing birth assistant) monitored the baby's heartbeat during labor and knew what positions to guide me into to help the baby's heartbeat and position. My entire labor and delivery was so calm and peaceful- if I had another baby I would choose Susanna again and again.

I'm currently 7 weeks postpartum and I miss our visits with Michelle and her team so very much. My…read morepartner and I were undecided about where we'd give birth. We had an uncomplicated home birth with my daughter and another midwife 4 years before. Now, at the age of 43, I felt it might make more sense to have our second child in a hospital. I feared I'd have more complications. After sitting with it for some time, my chiropractor gave me the referral for Michelle Borok's midwifery services. When I met Michelle I went from being unsure about where we'd give birth to an absolute whole body yes to a home birth. My husband felt the same. We're so glad we chose Michelle as our midwife. I've worked in health care throughout the Bay Area for over 15 years, Michelle is a unique blend of warmth and professionalism. She is direct, transparent, honest, clear, wise, and knowledgeable. She's truly a gem! We would work with Michelle again if we were ever to have another child. Michelle was a grounding force that guided me through my fears. Every prenatal appointment we left her home feeling secure, loving, and afloat on that pink pregnancy cloud every person and partnership deserves to tap in to. Thank you from the depths of our hearts, Michelle, for ushering our sweet child Earth side.

I received prenatal, labor and delivery, and postpartum care from Michelle for my homebirth…read moreexperience in 2014. I continue to see her for annual exams because she'll come to my home and I can wear my own clothes. This provides me a whole other level of comfort that I didn't get during my anxiety-inducing check-ups at traditional medical offices. I had a hospital experience with my first child that was without complications, but wasn't the culture or environment that I truly wanted. My second pregnancy was low-risk and I was much more confident about birth that I sought out a midwife. Michelle taught me so much about pregnancy, my body, nutrition, and beyond. She helped me make better, more authentic decisions for myself and new baby. I still benefit from her lessons to this day. She is warm, takes her time, and considers my whole self (holistically) when giving advice. I cannot recommend her enough. She's someone you'll want on your team for the rest of your life.

Nova was recommended to me for a home birth VBAC (already had one successful one). After finding…read moreout I was a woman of plus size, I was denied service with them. Their claim was that their VBACs need to be "pristine" because of liability reasons. My being plus size is not evidence based and is in fact, the same kind of shaming that I would expect from a typical medical doctor and not someone who practices midwifery. This was deeply disappointing. I'm grateful they can offer home birth options for women but if you don't fit their mold, you won't be accepted. Huh.. I went on to have a successful unmedicated 2nd VBAC.

We found nova midwifery through a friend... we were interested in having a home birth but weren't…read moresure, so we reached out to a friend to learn about their experience. They recommended Mason at Nova, so we called for an initial consult. Our son was delivered in 2015 at kaiser without intervention, and we liked the experience... except for all the medical stuff like wearing a heart monitor and sleeping in a hospital and all the worry that seems to come along with being in a hospital. For our second birth, we wanted a natural birth, but maybe a little more comfortable. We ended up hiring Mason and Melissa at Nova for our prenatal care, delivery, and recovery, and had a really nice experience. First, they're both 5 star people. Good bedside manner, good sense of humor, a nice wealth of knowledge. They are very good at quelling your fears and questions that come along with pregnancy and delivery, and appointments are typically really positive (you got this girl!). I would say from the husband side that a homebirth was WAY more enjoyable for me. My own bed, my own home, my own food, and I got to catch my daughter as my wife leaned over the ottoman. What an experience! I'll never look at that ottoman the same. I feel like these women checked all the boxes, professional, fun, empathetic, and knowledgeable. I hear they have new space in Walnut Creek, but one of the nicest things for us is they did some home visits for prenatal care since they had other clients in our area. Towards the end, we saw them in the office, and it was always a tranquil environment, very different from the kaiser waiting room. I think the recovery is the biggest advantage to the homebirth. These ladies support you through the first few weeks, and being home with your newborn is sooooo nice in the first few hours of life. I don't think I would have been comfortable with my first child at home, but now that I know what I'm doing, homebirths and nova are the only way I would go for an uncomplicated pregnancy and delivery.

Amanda was our midwife for our second child and we had a better experience than we could have…read moreimagined. We used east bay midwives for prenatal care, home birth and post natal care. Amanda brought both experienced midwifery care (our son was her 314th birth!) and a strong level of personal care. She is a birth worker that truly loves what she does, is incredibly skilled in her work, and has a deep sense of care for the mothers, families, and babies she works with. We were so impressed by how supported we felt during the entire pregnancy, birth, and post partum period. I truly wish every mother could receive midwifery care as exceptional as east bay midwives. We also had excellent experience with Grace and Sophia- the team that Amanda works with are also amazing birth workers. I highly recommend east bay midwives to someone that wants a safe, supported home birth with experienced and loving help!

Had the home birth of my dreams; Amanda was with me starting 10 weeks gestation. She helped me…read moreovercome my worries, carried my troubles and showed up for me even during her own maternity leave. She was committed, confident and graceful. Amanda was excited for my birth and respected what I needed. From pregnancy, labor and delivery to postpartum; she showed me how the right care can make the world of a difference in one of the most powerful, challenging and vulnerable times. What an amazing way to bring life into the world.

I don't think words can truly describe how amazing this woman is. Charlee is such an amazing person…read morefirst and foremost. I had the pleasure and honor to get to work with her for not one of my babies, but two of them. I had given birth January 2023, she came to our house for every appointment. She listened to all of our concerns. She was so thorough and in depth. Never missing a single thing during any appointment. We Explained to her that we wanted something to where we could be the most hands-on during our birth, and that is exactly what we got. Throughout the entire pregnancy, she educated us. Answering all of my questions. She is so funny, but also extremely professional and truly just a joy to get to work with. When I went into labor, she was there a heartbeat more ready than we were we were taking our time we had two other kids lol. She always asked for permission before doing anything. I felt like I was being treated like a queen. After giving birth, she was so accommodating so attentive. She came to do checks on myself and the baby she always asked before even touching the baby. She respects everybody boundaries. I got the honor to become her friend and kept in contact giving her updates on our baby that she helped bring into this world. Then we got pregnant again and knew that we wanted to have a free birth. But we still knew that we wanted prenatal care and we only knew of one place we wanted to go to get that.. Charlee helped guide us to make sure that we got our blood work done during pregnancy, our anatomy scan, and even made sure that baby was headed down a few weeks before giving birth. Unfortunately, we were moving to Texas to give birth, so there was no way for her to be our midwife. But she helped us by making sure we had a healthy pregnancy the entire way. We made it to full-term and gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. After giving birth, though my placenta was being a little stubborn. I gave Charlee a call on FaceTime and she picked up it was a little late into the evening and she still answered! (That's because she's truly that awesome) she helped by simply telling me to stand up and cough and sure enough that did the trick! Talk about being such an amazing midwife over the phone in a whole other state. The financial aspect of it all she works with you. Some people are concerned that they want to have a homebirth with the midwife, but they can't afford it. She can come up with a payment plan for you and let me tell you 100% worth it with Charlee , if you were to invest your money anywhere for the birth of your baby every single time I would put my money into Charlee. The medical aspect of it all let me tell you when you see the bag that she brings to every appointment. She is ready for the impossible. I swear she's got like a mini hospital in that bag. The all natural aspect if you are somebody who is trying to avoid as much medical stuff as possible, she's also your go to woman. She will give you different stretches and things you can do to avoid medication pain relief etc The overall aspect of Charlee as a midwife is, she's the woman you want to go to . She's the one you want on your team. I'm so lucky that I get to share this intimate photo of my most recent birth just to show how amazing she is and how much she cares about her past, current, and future clients. Thank you so much, Charlee for everything you've done for me and my family . Words truly just don't express how amazing you are not only as a midwife, but as a person.

This is my second birth, but my first being a home birth. I didn't know what to expect but felt…read moresupport since the beginning to the end. Charlee is nothing but incredible in the care she provides and lets natural really take its course, very through, nurturing, trusting, and takes her time with you through the whole journey. I do have to pay out of pocket, but it's worth every penny for the experience. My toddler who was 23 months at the time was able to witness her little sister being born, and i strongly believe to this day, it's the reason why she's so in love with her sister. My husband even got to catch our baby with his hands, that's something you can't always say happen. The whole experience is what made it worth it, Charlee is the experience. My pregnancy, labor, and delivery were all smooth and calm, not once did i feel stressed. I even had a scare with some bleeding, but Charlee made sure i got all i needed for piece of mind, and getting checked out. I keep telling everyone how amazing it all was and i will be doing my next birth with Charlee, she's family. I highly recommend, if you can do a home birth, it is a must do, & Charlee & her team are the ones to do it with. Thank you for the amazing care, journey, and the experience you gave to my family and i, there aren't words to express how grateful we are, all great things to feel and say.

It's 8pm on a Saturday night and I am relaxing on my couch having a glass of wine. My little man…read morehas been sleeping in his crib since he fell asleep there, ON HIS OWN, SEVEN minutes after we put him down - without a peep. You read that right. Since I have such ample time, this review will be a long one. I gave you fair warning. I'm not so rigid to think or expect that every night will unfold like tonight. There will be teeth! walking! talking! more regressions to come. However, a month after starting this process, it has become a reasonable reality for me to expect that on more days/nights rather than not (meaning NAPS and bedtime), he will go to sleep. It is a work in progress, but Dahlia guided us through it with the confidence and clarify we ourselves needed to provide to our son for the process to work. The backstory: At 11 weeks old, my son morphed from our lovely sleeping newborn waking twice a night to waking EVERY HOUR, needing to be soothed back to sleep...while sleeping in our bed. As the weeks dragged on, it became clear he was not going to outgrow this hiccup in an amount of time that would preserve my sanity (or marriage lol), and things were snowballing from bad to dreadful (more on that below). He eventually settled on a pattern of waking 4-7 times per night; however, he started having negative sleep associations to most every soothing trick in the book. I won't waste time listing such strategies or the gimmicks I bought on Amazon. Well-meaning folks always shared their soothing strategies. Well, if you can envision it, we tried it. Don't start to tell me about white noise and black out shades. Eventually, NOTHING WORKED except the boob. So sleep - meaning all naps and bedtime plus the night wake ups - became an hour long battle with raging, screaming, kicking, tears. All of which did not guarantee an outcome of sleep in the end! This was a vicious cycle on repeat at least 4 times daily which went on for almost two months (give or take some days where baby was so exhausted he slept well for a night or two). On top of this, I had impending abdominal and oral surgeries. Just icing on the cake. We knew we had to sleep train. After pouring through blogs and books about the various sleep training techniques and studies, I still had reservations (and extreme anxiety subjecting my baby to this), and needed someone to lead me through its ups and downs. Alright I'll be honest - sleep training is mostly down. It is painful. Gutwrenchingly PTSD painful if your baby is anything like mine. Enter Dahlia. She is honest, positive, supportive, respectful, and above all, will use her knowledge to SEE YOU THROUGH IT. She makes herself available and genuinely wants to help you. I cannot thank her enough and I definitely promise you will not get that from a blog. So dread. I used to DREAD naps and bedtime. The clock would hit 5:30pm and my heart would sink a little. My soul would wail a sad song. Now, I think about the time I can spend writing long reviews and blogging while he's sleeping. And the biggest plus? The little man wakes up RELAXED and RESTED and happy to see me. THANK YOU DAHLIA!

Dahlia is the BEST! We hired her for 3 months of postpartum work, which is no small task with…read moretwins! She was so caring, nurturing, and gentle with our babies, her experience was only outweighed by her sweetness and profound gift for "twinning". I feel so lucky to have had her work with us, she taught us (first-time parents) so much, from swaddling to bathing to infant massage! Every morning when Dahila arrived it was a ray of sunshine and positive energy, my babies responded so well to her songs, her feeding techniques, and her cuddles. We were so sad to say goodbye to her when it was time, and are almost jealous of the next family that gets to work with her! :) :)