SEATTLE fine art
WEDDING & PORTRAIT
photographER

Lena Porter

Inquire 

arrow

Maternity

Find The Right Tacoma Midwives for Your Unique Journey

Hi, I'm Lena.
Welcome to the blog, a place for helpful parenting resources and planning tips for couples. Stay a while and say hello!
Learn more
arrow
Search

There are few things in the world more natural than childbirth; after all, women have been delivering babies since, well, the beginning of time! And while there’s nothing wrong with a hospital birth, it just may not be the right choice for everyone. If you’re pregnant and thinking about what you’d like your ideal birth experience to be, you may want to consider using a midwife for your journey to parenthood. Midwives are licensed medical professionals who are experts in low-risk pregnancy. While only Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs) are able to deliver in hospital settings, there are others who spend their careers delivering at birth centers or attending home births. Tacoma midwives typically take a more hands-off, holistic approach to childbirth, allowing clients to have more control over their birth experience. 

4 Incredibly Supportive Tacoma Midwives For Your Birth Journey

Is this starting to sound ideal? Great! Keep reading to learn about some Tacoma midwives who offer a different perspective on what childbirth can be. 

Off The Grid Midwifery

6002 Westgate Boulevard, Suite 274, Tacoma, WA 98406

Off the Grid Midwifery is owned and operated by midwife Kay Jackson, who brings over 28 years of midwifery experience to her Tacoma patients (including time as a labor and delivery nurse and throughout her military service.) Kay is South Sound’s only independently practicing midwife who can provide Midwifery Model continuity of care both in and out of the hospital. This means that should you choose to deliver at The Birthing Inn but need to be transferred to the hospital for any reason, Kay would still serve as your medical provider and continue responsibility for your care. Kay also takes a special interest in perinatal and postpartum mental health, offering continuing support for moms who may struggle with the transition into motherhood. 

Firstlight Midwifery Care

1415 South 7th St, Tacoma, WA 98405

Firstlight Midwifery Care was founded by Licensed Midwife/Certified Professional Midwife Dawn Wadleigh in 2003. She was joined by fellow LM/CPM Emily Coates in 2021, and together, they have continued to uphold Firstlight’s commitment to providing pregnant women with the compassion and respect they deserve. Their goal is to make sure every family they serve comes away from their birth experience feeling supported and loved. Firstlight’s midwives are confident and comfortable with water births, offer herbal, homeopathic, and alternative therapies throughout pregnancy, labor, and delivery, and can provide extensive breastfeeding support once your baby has arrived. 

A mother and father laugh together while standing in a field of lavender holding their newborn baby after meeting Tacoma Midwives

The Birthing Inn

6002 Westgate Blvd, Suite 120, Tacoma, WA

The Birthing Inn is Tacoma’s only freestanding birth center, practicing a family-centered, holistic, and alternative approach to birth with midwives. This beautiful birth center features a handful of midwives. All of them practice independently (and stay listed on The Birthing Inn’s website). Each of their midwives offers a unique personality and approach to childbirth. All while utilizing the center’s amenities for clients pursuing an out-of-hospital birth. The Birthing Inn has delivered over 3,000 babies since opening in 1999 and offers families three spacious birthing suites with large soaking tubs and plenty of other tools and equipment to emotionally and physically support laboring clients. 

A mother in a floral blue dress smiles down at her newborn baby in her arms while standing in a field after meeting Tacoma Midwives

Natural Beginnings Midwifery Care

5302 104th St E, Tacoma, WA 98446

Natural Beginnings Midwifery Care is home to two Tacoma midwives, Marie Wakefield (ND, LM) and Chelsea Rice (LM, CPM.) They both offer assistance with home births, offering families a unique and empowering approach to welcoming a new baby out-of-hospital. They both take a minimal intervention approach to labor and delivery, allowing birthing clients to take control of their experience and guide their own birth. So, they deliver in a way that feels best to them. Above all, your Natural Beginnings midwife stands by in case you need a little extra skilled care or support. 

Build Your Dream Birth Team With These Great Tacoma Midwives

These Tacoma midwives are fabulous providers when it comes to prenatal care and childbirth. Be sure to meet with a few teams. So you find the right person to have by your side throughout this amazing, chaotic, wonderful phase of life! 

Your little one will be here before you know it, and life will be turned upside down. (In a good way, I promise). Before that happens, let’s plan your maternity and newborn photography sessions. Check out my work and give me a shout when you are ready to start booking!

Leave a Reply

reader faves

Browse
Categories

browse by category

Weddings

Maternity

Newborn

Family

Education

Hello

Hi I'm lENA

Welcome to the blog, a place for helpful parenting resources and planning tips for couples. Stay a while and say hello!

Learn more

arrow

Search