I highly HIGHLY recommend Eastside Birth Center! Chris and Angie are absolutely fantastic and I do not regret my choice one bit in choosing them! They are highly knowledgable and truly seek you and your baby's well being in mind. Each visit they took plenty of time to educate as well as address my concerns of my first time parent fears. They became more than just a provider, but family. Each visit was a pleasure and they really were thorough in their care. They caught a warning sign that my baby's growth had stagnated and referred me in for an ultrasound. The ultrasound doctor discovered that the baby was measuring smaller than expected and that most likely the placenta had stopped pushing nutrients to the baby. Good news was that the baby was still healthy, but he recommended induction so that the baby could have the energy to be born vaginally. After consulting with Angie and Chris, they thoroughly agreed with the doctor's assessment. It was heartbreaking to not be able to give birth at Eastside and have Chris and Angie as my team, but I'm so grateful that they put my baby's health first. They provided an excellent recommendation for an OBGYN and ensured that we were in good hands. In the end, we have a happy, healthy baby and I'm so grateful that Chris and Angie were on top of it. When baby #2 comes along, I will absolutely return to them. They are truly so wonderful and I truly could not recommend them enough. read more

Amazing midwives and staff. They've helped our family deliver beautiful babies at home while maximizing health outcomes for mother & child. Couldn't be happier! read more

My daughter who Chris and Angie helped deliver is now 2.5 years old and I still count my blessings each time I drive past the birth center - partially because my 5 year old almost always points it out as "mommy's doctors" happily too as she had such positive experiences visiting them with me. How lucky I am to have found Christiane, Kat and Angie! The absolutely the dream midwifery team. Chris and Angie were the ones who attended my daughter's water birth. It was like having my closest girlfriends who also happen to be birth experts and the best caretakers with me through a most calm, loving and well cared for experience. As this was my second birth, I can tell where Chris' experience in delivering over 1000 babies really shines through. During the most intense moments, Chris was able to know exactly when I was almost breaking and bring me back in focus. Try a better position, lower the tone of my voice, switch to a different pose, relax, breathe, cough (yes, cough!) Chris always seemed to know exactly what would help me ride out the contractions and Angie was the perfect assistant who just took care of things proactively and expertly. I can still remember how Chris' voice spoke so clearly and vividly in my face such that even in my weakest moments I had a clear guide to follow. Unlike the high pitched out of control screams you hear on hospital delivery tv shows, Chris guided me to remain calm, low, in control and yet let go. Let go and just allow my body to give birth. In the first week after birth, we were briefly worried about jaundice as our older one had to be hospitalized for it. Chris came and visited us in the middle of the night, when we panicked, it was outside of her call hours, yet she came just to make sure we are alright. She didn't have any obligation to do that. Yet she did it out of sheer concern and care for our baby. While Thankfully we had nothing to worry about, we are forever grateful for her love. I consider the birth experience with Eastside Birth Center a gift I will treasure forever. Thank you Chris, Angie and Kat! read more

Days before the birth of my second child, the trajectory of my birthing "story" changed and I had to make some decisions based on the new information. But I'm writing this because both Chris and Angie were supportive and knowledgeable the entire pregnancy journey. I always felt like they cared about my questions, concerns, and were cheering me on with so much compassion. Their recommendations to other people in the field were phenomenal, from chiro to I never ended up birthing there, but my experience was so great, if I ever had another child, I would return to them. read more

These midwives are phenomenal! They allowed me to opt in or out of every step for myself and baby. They never pressured me to do anything and let me make all decisions. They were extremely professional and made me feel safe and comfortable. Even during this pandemic they had flexibility and honesty about everything. My husband and I loved our experience and their continued support. We did a home water birth. read more

This is my 3rd birth and I had a homebirth with my first and planned hospital birth with my second. Everything from my prenatal visits up to the birth was a smooth and great experience. Chris and Angie are very attentive and patient throughout the prenatal visits. The birth was with Angie and it went smoothly at their birth suite, and the postpartum care was also amazing and attentive at our home and through texts/calls whenever we had any minor questions or concerns. Highly recommend for anyone looking for an unmedicated/natural birth experience whether at home or at a birth center. read more

I cannot say enough good things about this place. Circumstances made it so I was not able to give birth at this place but I was really forward to it. The midwives, Kat and Chris are wonderful. They are incredibly understanding, knowledgeable, relatable and supportive. They have one consistent midwife student for each of my visit. They too are amazing. This clinic really emphasizes a naturepathic approach. If I have any questions, I can call the office and if after hours, I can call that number too. They have a maternity portal that I used all the time to communicate with the mid wives and even their billing coordinator. Follow up on a message usually takes less than 24 hours. When I went into early labor days before my due date and my baby was breech, Chris helped facilitate my hospitalization. She called and asked for updates and essentially followed me from early labor symptoms to post c section surgery. Kat visited me at the hospital, spent time with my family and gave me tips regarding breastfeeding. I will still have a couple more wellness visits with them. Really going to miss them since this relationship was about 9 months in the making. They also offer 1/2 price mommy and daddy massage which is awesome! The space: The office space shares with a chiropratic practice so it can get busy in the lobby. Lots of parking spots. Though I didnt get to use their birth rooms, I did see it and the set up is nice. Large bed, large tub, big room. I had a visit when I was told there was someone who was in active labor. The birthing room was literally next to their appointment/meeting room and I didnt hear anything. If you are wanting a low intervention, no hospital birth for your baby, I suggest looking up this place and see if this place is for you. FYI: If complications arise during labor, they will transfer you to your chosen hospital. If you require pain medications that need closer monitoring and or your pain is not well controlled, they will transfer you to the hospital. Even if you wished for a non hospital birth (like me), situations arise and it can't be help but know these midwives will be there for you no matter what. read more

Eastside Birth Center PS - Midwives Near Me - Bellevue, Washington

They don't want your business as they ignore your calls and questions. I'm disappointed about EBC's response to me and cannot recommend this place to other expecting moms. read more

At 27 weeks with my first baby, I switched from my OBGYN to the midwifery care at Eastside Birth Center. It was the best decision I could've made for me and my baby. It made me feel empowered and better educated to create the birth plan that I wanted. The prenatal care was excellent bar none and didn't feel rushed unlike at my OBGYN. They took the time to understand us holistically including our diet, past medical history, current concerns, and postpartum support. Cris and Angie genuinely care about their patients and go the extra mile to make sure that our concerns are addressed, our safety comes foremost, and our birth plan and medical preferences honored. For my second baby, it was the most natural choice to go back to Cris and Angie as well starting at 6 weeks. read more

We had a wonderful experience! If (more like when) we are pregnant again we will be coming back for their expert care. We couldn't have asked for a more positive, life changing moment in time when we brought our little girl into the world at Eastside Birth Center. It felt like home away from home. We were very comfortable and felt incredibly supported throughout our whole pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care. read more

My wife decided that we should try a birth center instead of a hospital for our 3rd child. We never had a bad experience at the hospital, but we didn't have a good experience either. We were looking for a more personal experience with less stress and pressure. We toured a few birth centers and decided on Eastside Birth Center. They do all your appointments just like an OB/GYN does. In fact, at all the appointments I attended they did the same thing they'll do at the OB's office. They helped us to develop a birth plan and think ahead to things we wanted to try to help make the experience as positive as possible for my wife, which I really appreciated. When the big day came, my wife's labor went so fast we were caught by surprise. We rushed to the birth center and shortly our baby was born. Our midwife, Lauren was just awesome. She knew just what to say to my wife and was extremely positive and calm throughout the process. The experience was just amazing compared to what we had experienced doing a hospital birth. There was no rush. We were able to sit and cuddle with the baby and catch our breaths for a bit. Everything was done at our pace. My wife was able to get up and move around not long afterward, which she really liked. Once the baby was checked out and my wife was feeling good, they let us go home, which was just perfect. It's much easier to relax and recover at home than in a hospital with noise and monitors and nurses coming in and out of the room. Our baby is doing amazing and my wife has had a much quicker recovery, which really surprised us. I normally don't gush about a company, but I just had to post what an amazing experience it was and how awesome Lauren and the team at Eastside BC are. If you have any questions or are thinking about a birth center or home birth, talk to Eastside and you will not be disappointed!! read more

I haven't used their service but I was interested to give birth here. After getting information about the payment and insurance coverage, they tried to rip us off. Be careful if you tell them where you or your spouse works. The price vary from patient to patient and if you are not familiar with the insurance coverage, you will pay extra! Be smart, wise and do your research . this place makes me sick! This is the quote that they gave us XYZ Coverage: $3750 deductible 90% in-network coverage (applies to prenatal care, delivery, and postpartum care) 70% in-network coverage (applies to facility fee) Estimate of Patient Responsibility: We would need to collect at least 50% of her deductible amount = $1875 Plus, 10% co-insurance for the professional services (remaining after deductible is met) = ~$220 Plus, 30% co-insurance for the facility fee (if she is having a birth center delivery) = ~750 Total amount that she would have to pay prior to delivery would be ~$2845 read more

My assigned midwife, Loren, missed my baby's home birth. She was just in time to check the vitals, thank goodness, but she was not there to support me during labor, despite me literally begging her on the phone to come be with me. I was grateful I had chosen a doula so I was not completely alone, but I had chosen a friend for companionship, not an experienced midwife (because I thought that role would be covered). When the midwife arrived she scolded my doula for "letting" me push before she untimely arrived! I was livid, especially since I had no control over my contractions nor my water breaking nor my baby being born. For my 10 day follow up they put me with a newly hired midwife whom I had never met. She was supposed to be a lactation consultant as I was having trouble with nursing. My baby was way underweight, so she watched us breastfeed. She said there was no problem and that I just needed to work through my sore nipples and nurse more times during the night. Come back in three days. My baby continued to loose weight because she was starving! After 3days I took her to the hospital. I met with a lactation consultant there. She weighed my baby before and after nursing and we found that I was producing hardly any milk. We needed to supplement asap. It breaks my heart to know I was starving my baby! The midwives had said babies who nurse are expected to loose weight until the milk production catches up with the need, so they told me not to be alarmed! The consultant at the hospital recommended I get as much sleep as possible to let my body rest, instead of more nighttime feedings which was completely depleting my energy and ability to produce milk and they lent me a pump which was covered by insurance. My sweet baby chubbed up in just a couple days of pumping and formula bottles. And just for the record, since I'm writing this review, there were other nit-picky things that upset me as well. One time, a sunny day, the crew at Eastside wanted to bump up my appointment so they could all leave early. So I called my doula, who was my ride as I did not own a car at the time. She lived and worked in Seattle and couldn't make the change. I called EBC back to let the receptionist know I had to keep my original appointment time or switch to another day. In the middle of my explanation, Chris angrily picked up the phone and yelled at me, "what is the problem here?!" and grilled me about who else I could get a ride from! How rude. She was obviously over worked and spread thin. To the center's credit, I enjoyed my checkups with Chris who was gentle and receptive. I had hoped she would be the one to attend my birth, but the center does not let you choose as they have a rotation schedule, which makes complete sense. I hope my review is helpful and doesn't scare you out of choosing midwifery. It seems Chris has chosen new midwives since my experience and perhaps things have improved. Trust your gut and good luck to you and your new baby! read more

They're the absolute best.. We loved or experience and the team. Thank you all for everything. Westen is very thankful too:) We adore him.

I couldn't say enough great things about Eastside Birth Center. Everyone who works there is incredibly committed to their profession and truly believe in what they are doing. Chris was my midwife and I couldn't have asked for a better midwife. She is knowledgable, has a positive demeanor, and cares deeply for her patients. I contacted her constantly after birth and she has always been available to help. If you are interested in birthing outside of the hospital, go to Eastside Birth Center! read more

The care is so great and consistent. Everyone is so nice and completely experienced at keeping things low stress and calm. This is my 3rd time delivering with Eastside and every time has been completely amazing and just how birth should be. We wouldn't want to deliver any where else. read more

I loved working with Kat and Christine during my pregnancy and birth! They were patient with my questions, knowledgeable and experienced, and created a welcoming environment for all the appointments. I felt confident with my birth plan and with the staff the birth center has that would be present at my birth. I was able to have a home birth that was relaxing, comfortable and went as smoothly as possible. The EBC team was wonderful during my labor, delivery and post-care for both myself and my new baby. I recommend them to any mom looking for a natural birth with an experienced team!! read more

The experience my partner and I had in the hands of these wonderful midwives was beyond phenomenal and have decided if we ever move to a different state and I am pregnant again we are moving back up just to have our child in their care. To my partner and I giving birth is a really spiritual experience and we wanted to make sure to do it right. The midwives at Eastside birthing center go above and beyond to make sure your experience is what's best as well healthy for you and your baby all while being accommodating to the families care and needs. The student Midwives were so great, everyone has such positive energy, they're extremely supportive. You get to know all the midwives thoroughly and they become like close friends almost like family to you. when you give birth you're in an environment with people you know (the midwives) as well throughout labor whoever was the on-call midwives on your baby's birth your dealing with the same people, unlike a hospital setting where it's a different nurse every hour. You're free to move around as you labor not strapped to a bunch of monitors. We couldn't be more pleased with our experience at the eastside birthing center. Our positive experience is beyond whatever I could write as a review all I can say is if you're wanting to give birth the right way, this is the way to do it, in the care of people who are wanting to get to know you and your family, to build a connection and not treat you like another number or paycheck or that you're like the billionth client they've seen as with most Doctors. We absolutely loved our experience and loved working with the midwives read more

Christine delivered my daughter 8 years ago and it was such a perfect experience, when we got pregnant in early 2017, I knew I wanted to have my next baby at Eastside birth center again. The ladies working here are so incredibly nice, helpful, knowledgeable, and reassure you with any concerns through the entire pregnancy. I am grateful I was able to have two successful waterbirths with them and if I ever get pregnant again, I know where I'll go! read more

This is my 3rd child delivery with the EBC, and I can't imagine a better experience than the three I had with the midwifes. First, Christine (the owner of the center) is a wonderful, caring and empathetic midwife. Her experience only serves an expecting mother! I did not want a lot of tests, scans, etc. during the pregnancy and the midwifes were very respectful of my wishes and only suggested those tests which are absolutely necessary. I had 100% trust in their suggestions and approach. They were clear on what I should be expecting every step of the way and on the day of labor (the most stressful day of all) they were cool and communicative and led me through my labor as a collective force with precision and zero stress and anxiety. If you are looking for a positive birthing experience and genuine care during your pregnancy I couldn't suggest a better group! PS all three of my births were water births (with no medicines) and they were all tolerable in terms of pain and memorable experience for me. read more

I feel truly grateful I could work with the Midwives at Eastside Birth Center again for the birth of my second baby. They offer the most thorough care and knowledge for natural births at home or at the birth center! Their love for their job shows through in every aspect of what they do and the care they provide both mom and baby. They have truly became a part of our family! If you have ever considered and natural birth outside of a traditional hospital setting I could not recommend Chris Thain and her team enough! They will help guide you through every step of the way! read more

After watching The Business of Being Born and attending Liz Chalmer's Birth Zone classes, we decided a natural childbirth was the way to go. As we decided this about halfway through the pregnancy, the only birth center that had availability was Eastside BC. I loved the warm, friendly atmosphere and I never felt rushed during my visits. Chris and Loren were both great to talk with, and if I ever had any questions were quick to return phone calls. When I was 9 days past my due date, Chris stripped my membranes and 4 hours later I was in labor. It was a FAST labor and in less than 6 hours I had my baby in that corner tub in the main birthing suite. Chris was awesome--when I'd start to freak out a little she was right there, looking me in the eye and telling me I was okay and this was normal. Our baby girl was 9lbs 15 1/2 oz and we went home 4 hours after she was born. Chris came to our house the next day to check on baby and me, and both she and Loren were again very helpful on the phone if I had any questions. I highly recommend this place, and am bummed we've moved out of state and I have to try to find a new midwife for our next baby! If you're considering a natural childbirth but are afraid of the pain, know that it is SO doable (hello--10 lb baby!) and better for you and baby. Our little one knew our voices immediately and was so alert the first few days of her life. If you'd like to read more, you can read my birth story at http://yourmorningcup.blogspot.com/2011/08/tatums-birth-story.html read more

I decided early in my pregnancy that I wanted as little interference as was medically necessary. To my dismay nobody I contacted knew how to use a fetoscope or stethoscope to listen for the babies heartbeat, I hadn't really considered having our baby anywhere but a hospital until this... Now that I have had a non-hospital experience I would never dream of using a hospital or OB/GYN again!!... The midwives were wonderful!! Shout out, Thank you Kat!! The perfect combination of feeling safe yet still non-invasive and a shared belief that our bodies know how to have babies without a bunch of interference. To anyone on the fence I completely recommend the Eastside Birth Center, if we are lucky enough to have another go we be coming back too! read more

I had such a great experience with the birth center. My prenatal visits were fantastic - I had all the time I needed to ask questions, and I always felt well taken care of. I had a home birth, which apparently they don't get to do many of, but they were totally awesome and on top of everything. Cassandra was on call when I went into labor, and I absolutely adore her (and the other midwives as well - they're all awesome!). She came to visit me a few days after birth and helped answer questions I had about nursing and other things. So helpful! If I have another child, I'll definitely want Eastside Birth Center as my birth team again. Love you guys tons! read more

My husband and I decided on Eastside Birth Center for the birth of our 2nd and 3rd sons after paying a ridiculous amount of money for the hospital birth of our 1st son with no insurance coverage. I gave birth to my 2nd son at the birth center with Chris Thain as the attending midwife. My husband and I were both pleasantly surprised by how easygoing the entire experience was. Chris did a great job keeping me calm and the birth went very quickly and easily. The greatest part of it was that I was able to leave a couple hours later to heal in the comfort of my own home. I gave birth to my 3rd son at home with Kat Barron attending. The birth turned out a little longer and more complicated than my first 2, but Kat did an awesome job keeping everything under control. Both were absolutely fantastic experiences. Throughout the pregnancies the midwives were always easy to reach if I had any questions and were very kind and knowledgeable during all my appointments. The postpartum healing, both emotionally and physically, was SO much quicker and easier than with my hospital birth. My husband and I have been very satisfied with their services and would definitely recommend them to anyone else looking for an alternative to a hospital birth. read more

I've delivered 2 babies here and my experience was perfect. So relaxing and comfortable. I felt confident in the midwives and their experience showed during both my deliveries. Such a peaceful way to bring a baby into the world. My husband wouldn't have it any other way either, he's a total fan! read more

I loved my experience with Eastside Birth Center and would have had my pregnancy and birth no other way! Throughout my pregnancy I felt well cared for and emotionally supported. I always left every prenatal visit feeling positive and excited. My birth experience was beautiful and amazing. The midwife, her team, and the environment made me feel safe and empowered. I ended up having the birth I wanted because of Eastside Birth Center and I am eternally grateful for that! read more

I have given birth to two children here and have had a great experience each time. I hope to have the opportunity to do it again and again.

I'm so grateful to have found EBC. I received exceptional care during my pregnancy and labor. Kat and Chris are both highly skilled and incredibly compassionate. They answered my bazillion questions with patience throughout my pregnancy, and I never felt rushed during my appointments. Everyone from the front desk (Amy & Angie) to the billing manager (Lori) to the Midwives-in-Training (Leslie, Serenity, Jenna) were absolutely wonderful. If I have another baby, I'll be back! Thank you! read more

I delivered both of my children with the amazing, competent, attentive, nurturing, compassionate midwives in the birthing suite at the Eastside Birth Center in Bellevue. I decided to work with the midwives because after writing my birth plan I realized that my Plan A or my ideal natural birth didn't need to be written down because it was a given for the midwives. They plan on natural births and prepare you. I did not want my labor or my decisions to run away from me and I knew that in a hospital setting this can often happen. Dozens of people have told me their birth experiences in the hospitals and felt like the decisions were not their own. This is absolutely not the case with these incredible midwives at the EBC. Both of my children's labors were extremely different from each other. My son's labor was complicated and could have resulted in a C-section or a hospital transfer were in not for the incredible skill of my midwife. She worked and labored with me for hours on end to make sure that everything was being tried before resorting to a hospital transfer. My second child was a born in under 2 hours and a different midwife skillfully navigated the birth without the blink of an eye! Most importantly, these women deliver babies all year round. They are the gurus on all things natural child birth! Literally, thousands of babies, yet somehow it always felt like I was the only mom they worked with because they spend so much time and gave so much love and attention to me as an individual. I could write all day and all night about how wonderful these women are! Absolutely the best birthing experiences I could hope for. read more

I had the best experience at Eastside Birth Center. The midwives and students were all so great and truly cared about my pregnancy experience. Even though I ended up having to have a hospital birth they helped me navigate that as well post birth check-ups! I would recommend Eastside Birth Center to anyone who really wants a personalized and positive birth experience! read more

I had a great experience with Eastside Birth Center. Christine and Kat were wonderful in providing the best support during my pregnancy and delivery. Coming here for the past 9 months was so amazing and now that baby is here I'm really going to miss coming here. I highly recommend their services! read more

I've had both of my children at ESBC. With my 1st- I started with an OBGYN at Overlake. She spent 10-15 min with me per visit max & kept saying I would need a C-Section for everything. I found Chris, and LOVED her, & since my 2nd have gotten to know and deeply appreciate the rest of the team. When I transferred from my OBGYN I was so anemic I almost needed blood. ESBC never took any chances. They spent 45-60 min with me each visit, made sure they were very thorough & were by far the SAFEST bet for our kiddos. Many people doubt the safety of midwives- but from my experience, I would argue they were the safest choice. 2 kids nearly 10lb each. 1stX at the center & the 2ndX at home (Tulalip- they're worth the distance!). Also- I struggled with postpartum issues & the entire staff (April is wonderful too) has been absolutely fantastic. I cannot say enough in praise of this group. This is not just their job- these ladies love what they do, & it shows! read more

I transferred to Eastside Birth Center from Group Health when I was 30 weeks into my pregnancy because I wanted as natural of a birth as possible. With Group Health all of my prenatal appointments started on time, at EBC ALL of my prenatal appointments started late even though I showed up 5 minutes early to every one. I even tried scheduling a morning appointment versus evening hoping that things wouldn't be backed up early on. And I'm not talking about 5 minutes late, we commonly waited 15-30 minutes past our appointment time. I feel like the prenatal care I received was great. I really liked all of the midwives and students, except for the owner/midwife Chris Thaine she just seemed fake. I started labor on a Sunday morning at 4 am and called EBC at 4pm to let them know I would be coming in that night. Lucky me, the midwife on call was Chris Thain, the one that I didn't want! At 4pm my contractions were about 3 minutes apart, no big deal we were planning on laboring at home more. At 7pm I was pretty sure we needed to leave, they were about 2 minutes apart lasting for 45 seconds. We called Chris but she didn't want us to come in yet and wanted to wait until the contractions were about 60-90 seconds long (they never got that long because I was having double contractions). By 9:00 I told my husband that we were going in whether she wanted us to or not, he called her and she wasn't convinced until she heard me go through a double contraction and she thought I was sounding like I wanted to push. We got to the center 25 minutes later. She hadn't told us to go to the side door, so we went to the inside office door and no one was there. My husband left me at that door and went to find them. Instead of letting me in that door, they made me go all the way outside and back around to the outside entrance. Just what a gal wants to do during a contraction. I wanted to call my mom to join as was the plan, but she said that we shouldn't and I can do that later. She checked me and I was at 9 cm!! Needless to say there was no time "later" to call my mom to come and join, even though she was waiting for us to call all night. The laboring and delivery went well, the assistants/students did most of the work and according to my husband Chris napped while I was laboring. I was happy with how the delivery went. Another woman came and delivered her baby about 1 hour after mine, so Chris was often in the other room helping her out (I'm not sure if they normally call in a second midwife). I got less than 5 minutes of help with breastfeeding and ended up needing to see a separate lactation consultant within 2 days because it was going to poorly. I was not ready to leave when they started packing me up (3 hours post birth), I lost a good amount of blood and needed more time to take in some fluids and food. Chris was supposed to come 24 hours later for my and baby's check-up, she didn't call until 2 days later and said that she would be there in 30 minutes. Thanks for the head's up! She ridiculed me for not calling her to get breastfeeding help and for going elsewhere. Why would I call her for help when she gave me less than 5 minutes of help to begin with and was a day late for the 24 hour check up? My experience sounds A LOT like Beth G's experience, her review is on the "2 other reviews that are not currently recommended " page for some reason. I had a significant tear and had to have quite a few stiches so I was in a lot of pain. When I went to my first post partum appointment in the office, Chris wasn't even planning on looking at my vagina to check on the healing. I had to ask her and convince her to look at it to let me know if it is healing well or not so that I could adjust my physical activity if necessary. I will not return to EBC for my next birth, it left such a sour taste in my mouth that I am even considering a hospital birth (non-medicated of course!). read more

Eastside provides warm, compassionate, competent care both during and after pregnancy. They provide all the needed prenatal services like appointments and referrals for ultrasounds; manage the birth with professionalism and skill; and check up and care for mother and baby afterwards. Now my daughter is born I'm going to miss these guys! read more

All the midwives at Eastside Birth Center are knowledgeable, personable and professional. We delivered all three of our children with them and each time, the staff went out of their way to make sure our wishes were being met and that we were comfortable and safe. Throughout the labor and delivery, I felt a constant reassurance from my midwife that everything was going well. She was very comunicative, informative and discerning of what I needed. I highly recommend this place to all my family members and friends and can't see myself going anywhere else. They have become like family. read more

Amazing labor and birth experience and awesome prenatal and postnatal care. I felt supported and informed the entire time and will definitely be using Eastside Birth Center in the future if we have another baby. Beautiful birthing suite at the birth center! I can't say enough good things. My husband and I are so thankful for all of the midwives at Eastside Birth Center and are very grateful for Christine Thain who delivered our son. It was the hardest and most empowering thing I've ever done and everyone at Eastside Birth Center will always have a special place in our hearts. read more

This post is a little late, but that's what happens when you have a wee one! :) My wife and I were completely welcomed by the entire staff at Eastside Birth Center, from the first day we stepped in to tour the facility, to the Christmas Day birth, all the way through the baby/mama check-ups. We could not have been more pleased with our entire pregnancy and birthing experience. The team of midwives and the student midwives were absolutely amazing. We went into labor on Christmas Eve and gave birth to a healthy little girl on Christmas morning. We certainly weren't planning on keeping the staff away from their families during the holiday, but Ashley and the students present were overwhelmingly comforting and gracious (not that we would have expected anything different). Certainly one holiday we will never forget. We plan on going back to Eastside Birth Center for future pregnancies, and we would highly recommend this team to anyone. Thanks, ladies! read more

From prenatal care, to the birth, to post partum care, everything about my experience was excellent. Every member of the team made me feel like I was part of the process. They all got to know me and my wishes, and I felt like my baby's safety and my safety were always in the forefront. Compared to my hospital experience, the best part was the part immediately following the birth of my son. Nothing was rushed or felt stressed. I felt that the birth team's actions allowed for the joy and the reverence of the event to felt to the deepest level by my husband and myself. I'm filled with only fond memories of the entire experience, and I'm grateful to have had such smart, kind, and caring midwives welcome my son into the world. Should we choose to have a third child, we will be back! read more

I've been putting off writing this review for a long time, and was trying to figure out how to process the experience at EBC, particularly because birth is such an emotional experience and it's hard to admit making a mistake in choosing your care provider or location. First off, I will say that the care I received throughout my pregnancy was excellent and I felt happy with the birth center and the midwives throughout pregnancy. But my overall feeling ultimately changed based on my postpartum experience, which was very disappointing. Going in to my pregnancy, I was very opposed to hospital birth and had read and educated myself extensively about natural birth, home/birth center birth, midwifery, etc. I interviewed EBC and Puget Sound Birth Center, and ultimately decided on EBC. I liked that they were a slightly smaller practice and so I felt like I would get to know the midwives better and that the birth center would not be full when I went into labor. I also clicked with Chris when I first met her -- she was warm, confident and competent. As others have mentioned, the exams are comprehensive and similar to those you'd receive in an OB's office...blood work, urine tests, etc. In addition, you feel that there's time to really address all your questions and that Chris and Loren answer everything big and small. So up until the day I gave birth, I was feeling wonderful about the birth center, the midwives, and my experience there. My water broke and I went into labor at 2am and since things weren't super intense right away, I waited until the morning (around 9am) to call the midwives and let them know. At that point, contractions were picking up, but certainly still able to be managed at home. When I talked to Chris, she was very nonchalant about the fact that I was in labor. When I called back a few hours later to update her, I sort of felt like I was "bugging" her. By around 1pm, my contractions were 4 minutes apart and lasting 1-2 minutes, which is definitely active labor and when a hospital would have you come in. But still Chris said I shouldn't come in to the birth center yet. It wasn't until around 5pm and I was starting to feel the urge to push, that she finally "agreed" to let me come to the birth center. Looking back, I'm sure that she was in clinic all day seeing other clients and was trying to push off a birth until the evening after all the clients had been seen. I was all for staying at home as long as (reasonably) possible, but was getting scared being home and feeling like I needed to push and was being discouraged from coming to the birth center, especially because by that point of the day we hit major traffic driving there. By the time I got to the birth center, I was 8 cm dilated and almost ready to push! I feel I should have been allowed to come in sooner. I proceeded to labor/push for another hour or two and then our baby was born. I was satisfied with the immediate postpartum care of both myself and my baby, and felt that Chris handled several situations that arose skillfully and competently. We rested and recovered for a little while, but then my baby's breathing was not sounding so good. She monitored the situation for a little while longer and finally decided we should take him to children's hospital to be checked and monitored there. This was absolutely the right decision, and Chris came along with us and made sure the transfer went smoothly. While I was scared and upset about the transfer, I knew going into a birth center birth that it was a possibility we'd have to transfer. It wasn't an extreme emergency (we didn't take an ambulance there...drove ourselves), but still stressful nonetheless. Chris checked in with us a couple of times over the next couple of hours, but then went MIA for the next 5 days! Normally, the midwife comes to your home 24-48 hours after the birth to check in on you and the baby. Maybe Chris assumed that since we were at the hospital, we would be receiving care. This was true for my baby (who was a patient at the hospital), but not for me...I was receiving no care, check-ups, lactation help, etc. and had there been anything going wrong with me, I would have had no idea. I texted Chris several times over the next few days to see when she'd come for a home visit, and got no response. Finally, after 5 days, she showed up. Over the next few weeks, I had major nursing issues (baby not gaining weight, major pain, etc). I developed mastitis and Chris at first refused to prescribe antibiotics and made me feel guilty for wanting to take them. She also made me feel guilty for supplementing nursing with formula (which our ped wanted us to do since baby wasn't thriving). I'm almost out of space but in general was left very dissatisfied with my care following our transfer, particularly surrounding breastfeeding. I'm all for "natural" and "crunchy" but felt very criticized and unsupported in the breastfeeding situation I faced. I would not recommend EBC or return there. read more