Six Inspiring Homebirth Practices in Denver/Boulder
Families in Colorado are blessed with so many incredible birth options. We have hospitals that support physiological birth, beautiful birth centers run by certified nurse-midwives, and compassionate midwives who support birth at home. Options and autonomy in birth is everything. And I’m so glad I live in a place that offers women so many choices.
Rebecca and I are lucky in that we get to witness and document births in all these varied settings. We’ve worked with almost every single homebirth practice in the Denver metro area, and we call many homebirth midwives friends. We get asked all the time - who would you recommend for homebirth? And I wish that answer was easy! But I just listened to an awesome podcast by Metro Midwifery that talked about the 10 questions you should ask midwives when interviewing them. It’s worth a listen because their questions really will help you get to the heart of the practice you’re considering…and they address situations that you might not think about if you don’t already have extensive birth knowledge (and yeah, most of us don’t!)
Today, I wanted to share a few of our favorite homebirth practices, as well as some images from births we’ve attended with these midwives. But one thing I must note before continuing: Colorado lacks black midwives, and this is a BIG problem. We don’t have a single black homebirth midwife practicing in the Denver/Boulder region, and we only have a few practicing in our hospitals/birth centers. One of the most important ways we can address the increased maternal mortality risk for women of color is to support more women of color to become nurses, midwives, doulas, and obstetricians. I will be attending a birth with Demetra Seriki later this fall - she is one of the few practicing black midwives in Colorado. I can’t wait to document a birth story with her in Colorado Springs.
Jennifer Dossett is a Boulder midwife with over 20 years of experience. The midwife for my second birth (Susan Mitchell) used Jennifer Dossett when she had her babies at home. I always love seeing how similar they practice - there is always such peace, gentleness and the right amount of humor when I attend a birth with Jennifer!
Elizabeth Moore is another Boulder midwife who has been practicing for around 20 years. I love to think about all the births and trends these midwives have seen! We’ve attended two births with Elizabeth, and they’re always marked by her compassionate protection of the sacred birth space.
Jen Anderson-Tarver lives in central Denver, and has two kiddos around the same age as my older girls. We often run into them at restaurants or at neighborhood parks, and for so many reasons…I love when I discover my clients are giving birth with her! She is calm and gentle, but also expertly handles any complications that arise. I love her!
Metro Midwifery is a practice comprised of two incredible midwives - Gina Gerboth and Nedra Hale (they’re the podcast midwives!) I’ve known Gina ever since I started photographing births, and she is such a passionate and educated proponent of midwifery. She’s also an IBCLC, which means that she offers her clients some of the best breastfeeding support available. I had the joy of visiting Gina and Nedra at their new office, which is beautiful, and ran into one of my former clients…who is now a student midwife with their practice. LOVE our birth community!
Community Roots Midwife Collective will always hold a special place in my heart. The work they do…and the stories we’ve documented together…so much power. From their website: “the Community Roots Midwife Collective is a team of dedicated, passionate midwives and reproductive health practitioners working to create a self-sustaining healthcare organization that provides homebirth options and reproductive health care to ALL, regardless of financial position.” I love the women behind this collective, and their mission is so important.
Kathryn Raynes is another midwife I’ve known since this start of my career. We’ve attended many births together -some fast and some slow - and we’ve become sweet friends. She is one of those midwives that puts you at ease from the moment you meet her - she is warm and knowledgable. Truly a joy to work with.
And yes! There are SO many more amazing midwives in Denver/Boulder (not to mention the THRIVING community down in the Springs). Today, I only shared a few of the more recent midwives we’ve worked with, but look forward to another post highlighting more Colorado homebirth midwives in the month to come.
And if you’re planning a Colorado homebirth - we’d love to chat with you about documenting your birth story.