About Jen
My interest in birth began in 2002 when I was pregnant with our first child. Although my hospital birth was fine and I got a healthy baby out of it, it left me feeling like I had a lot to learn. Over the next few years, I delved into studying physiological birth and gave birth to two more babies, one in 2005 at a birth center and one in 2008 at home. My home birth was a transformative experience.
I heard the calling to birth work in 2010, and took labor doula trainings through Birthingway College of Midwifery and Birth Arts International. I began attending births for friends and felt frustrated that one of my main roles as a doula seemed to be to help protect a couple's rights in a hospital setting. I realized that in order to really help families have empowered birth experiences (like my homebirth had been), I would do better becoming an educator and a provider. I have been teaching childbirth preparation series since 2012 to prepare expectant parents for low-intervention births and parenting a newborn. In 2014-2016, I completed a 2 year full time midwifery apprenticeship at Bella Vie Gentle Birth Center, and received my CPM (Certified Professional Midwife) credential from the North American Registry of Midwives and my license from the State of Oregon.
Immediately following my midwifery apprenticeship in early 2016, I began training with Carol Gray to learn the art of Craniosacral Therapy for Infants. I had watched the profound effects of bodywork for babies throughout my apprenticeship, and was fascinated by the idea that I could learn how to help babies be more comfortable in their bodies and improve their experience (and their parents' experience!). The first sessions I had in the class clinic showed me I was on the right track. I spent many months offering free appointments to build my skill set, and have been offering baby bodywork ever since.
In 2012 I became a Registered Yoga Teacher so that I could teach prenatal and postpartum yoga classes at the birth center. What a wonderful time! We built a lot of community, and I will always treasure the support these mamas offered each other, and the dedication they had to prioritizing their wellness. I did a prenatal yoga teacher training in 2013 at 8 Limbs Yoga in Seattle, and realized I didn't really know anything about the pelvic floor! At the advice of a fellow student, I attended Leslie Howard's Pelvic Floor Yoga teacher training, and it ignited my passion for pelvic floor wellness. I taught biweekly pelvic floor wellness classes at a community acupuncture clinic and they were well attended, sometimes with up to 30 students, which showed me how great the need is for pelvic floor education and healing. In 2018, I completed Tami Kent's Holistic Pelvic Care training, a bodywork modality that focuses on balancing and healing the pelvic bowl. I was able to apply this knowledge to my work as a homebirth midwife.
I began attending births as a solo midwife in 2017. I loved the one on one connections with my clients, but the 24/7 call schedule was too much for me, and I wanted to be able to share the mental and emotional load (midwives carry a big load!) with another skilled midwife. My friend Meredith and I formed Fig Midwifery, and Crystal joined us as a student, and later as a midwife partner. From 2017-2022, I attended a few hundred beautiful homebirths. I am proud that I helped train an amazing midwife who continues to serve the community. In 2022, I decided to stop practicing as a primary midwife in order to focus on my bodywork practices, and to soak up the last few years of having kids at home. Our "babies" are 15, 17, and 20. (!!) It's hard to believe how fast it goes by, and I tell parents all the time that when they are where I'm at, they won't regret a moment spent with their baby sleeping peacefully on their chest!
I heard the calling to birth work in 2010, and took labor doula trainings through Birthingway College of Midwifery and Birth Arts International. I began attending births for friends and felt frustrated that one of my main roles as a doula seemed to be to help protect a couple's rights in a hospital setting. I realized that in order to really help families have empowered birth experiences (like my homebirth had been), I would do better becoming an educator and a provider. I have been teaching childbirth preparation series since 2012 to prepare expectant parents for low-intervention births and parenting a newborn. In 2014-2016, I completed a 2 year full time midwifery apprenticeship at Bella Vie Gentle Birth Center, and received my CPM (Certified Professional Midwife) credential from the North American Registry of Midwives and my license from the State of Oregon.
Immediately following my midwifery apprenticeship in early 2016, I began training with Carol Gray to learn the art of Craniosacral Therapy for Infants. I had watched the profound effects of bodywork for babies throughout my apprenticeship, and was fascinated by the idea that I could learn how to help babies be more comfortable in their bodies and improve their experience (and their parents' experience!). The first sessions I had in the class clinic showed me I was on the right track. I spent many months offering free appointments to build my skill set, and have been offering baby bodywork ever since.
In 2012 I became a Registered Yoga Teacher so that I could teach prenatal and postpartum yoga classes at the birth center. What a wonderful time! We built a lot of community, and I will always treasure the support these mamas offered each other, and the dedication they had to prioritizing their wellness. I did a prenatal yoga teacher training in 2013 at 8 Limbs Yoga in Seattle, and realized I didn't really know anything about the pelvic floor! At the advice of a fellow student, I attended Leslie Howard's Pelvic Floor Yoga teacher training, and it ignited my passion for pelvic floor wellness. I taught biweekly pelvic floor wellness classes at a community acupuncture clinic and they were well attended, sometimes with up to 30 students, which showed me how great the need is for pelvic floor education and healing. In 2018, I completed Tami Kent's Holistic Pelvic Care training, a bodywork modality that focuses on balancing and healing the pelvic bowl. I was able to apply this knowledge to my work as a homebirth midwife.
I began attending births as a solo midwife in 2017. I loved the one on one connections with my clients, but the 24/7 call schedule was too much for me, and I wanted to be able to share the mental and emotional load (midwives carry a big load!) with another skilled midwife. My friend Meredith and I formed Fig Midwifery, and Crystal joined us as a student, and later as a midwife partner. From 2017-2022, I attended a few hundred beautiful homebirths. I am proud that I helped train an amazing midwife who continues to serve the community. In 2022, I decided to stop practicing as a primary midwife in order to focus on my bodywork practices, and to soak up the last few years of having kids at home. Our "babies" are 15, 17, and 20. (!!) It's hard to believe how fast it goes by, and I tell parents all the time that when they are where I'm at, they won't regret a moment spent with their baby sleeping peacefully on their chest!