What a great birth experience with Napa Valley Midwives. Originally we hired Heather as our doula…read morefor our second baby. Once Covid hit we decided to change course and have a home birth. From the very beginning Heather and Kristina were so engaged with me and my pregnancy. It was the complete opposite of my OBGYN who changed all my appointments to be virtual and even forgot to schedule a few. Heather and Kristina saw me in their office and in my home following all the best practices during the pandemic. I felt safe every time I saw them. I really enjoyed the fact that they rotated which one of the saw me each appointment so that I could develop a relationship with each of them. By the time I went into labor I felt so comfortable with both of them. I believe this made the birth experience just that much better. During my labor and delivery, they were so professional but also felt like close friends since we had developed a great relationship and they truly care about their mamas. Once I delivered my baby, they gave us time to bond as a new family. While we did this they busily cleaned up. It was so impressive- you'd never know a birth had taken place in my house (haha). If you're considering a home birth, you'll be in loving and supportive hands with these two fabulous midwives.

I am not one to write yelp reviews, however, the care we received from Kristina and Heather was so…read moreegregious that I am scared for other women and feel an obligation to write about it. Our care with these midwives ended when I was 37 weeks pregnant and on day 5 of contractions. These contractions were not "real" labor contractions but rather contractions brought on by drinking large quantities of red raspberry leaf tea. They prescribed this to me because they said my son was too big and needed to be induced 2 weeks before his due date (this was later proven to be incorrect, as my son was born 11 days after his due date at a normal size and weight). During this bout of fake contractions, they registered a high blood pressure reading and told me that they feared for my life and needed to take me to the hospital or call 911 and have me removed from my home in an ambulance. I knew my high blood pressure reading happened as a result of feeling stressed out by the midwives and ultimately unsafe in their presence. They seemed to have little knowledge of white coat syndrome (a common occurrence where people have higher stress levels in the presence of a medical professional). I decided to fire them on the spot and switch my care to another midwife. Thank goodness I made this decision, otherwise I would have had a traumatic, premature hospital birth for no good reason. There were several signs along the way that Heather and Krisitina were incompetent. They made several incorrect diagnoses which were later proven incorrect by an MD at the hospital who said I was "a healthy pregnant woman ready for a homebirth." Misdiagnosis: Gestational diabetes: They put me on a very restrictive diet which caused me a lot of stress. When I raised concerns about the validity of at-home diabetes testing, Heather said she still thought it was in the ball-park. My health really suffered because of following their weird diabetes diet (I was encouraged to eat large amounts of meat, even in the middle of the night--this was the worst!) They told me they feared my son was too big and needed to be induced. This put enormous stress on me in the later phases of pregnancy and was completely inaccurate. My son was born at a totally average weight less than 8 pounds even 11 days after his due date. Another misdiagnosis! GBS. After my own research about this, I decided against antibiotic use. They went along with this, but encouraged a very expensive regime of supplements and consistently encouraged me to have antibiotics during the birth. Heather admitted to my mother that she herself had GBS and refused antibiotics in the birth of her own child. Hypocrisy?! They misdiagnosed me with a fever. Thankfully my mother was there and suggested it was warm in the house because of the heating (In December). When I went outside, my temperature was totally normal. Lack of Professionalism: They were late to most appointments. Kristina was 45 minutes late to one appointment. One time, Heather completely forgot an appointment and never showed up. She never even followed up with me to apologize, and I had to reach out to her to schedule the next appointment. They frequently did not have the right supplies for tests I needed to take, were missing batteries for their devices, and they only gave us the birth supply list at 37 weeks, when the baby could already have been born! As a first time parent this was very unsettling! Poor Communication: They didn't tell me which provider from their team would be at my birth, which was very unsettling. Then they set up an appointment with a colleague of theirs who gave me totally different suggestions about how to manage my "gestational diabetes," and at the next appointment Heather said I wasn't doing what I was supposed to do even though I was following her colleague's recommendations. Lack of Emotional Attunement. Both of these midwives acted from a place of extreme fear, rather than actually being able to see the person in front of them. They both never checked in with my husband and barely acknowledged his presence in our appointments. They asked questions in a style that felt more interrogatory rather than helpful/understanding. We left every appointment in fear, which was the last thing we wanted to feel approaching the birth! In addition to all of the grievances listed above, when we reached out to them to let them know that we had a healthy home birth and requested a refund for the fees we paid them, their response displayed a lack of compassion and accountability. They only gave us a 25% refund and never even congratulated us on the healthy home birth of our son, which was supposed to be their number one priority! I think their lack of professionalism, incompetence and lack of knowledge is evident with the numerous examples above. If you want to have a safe home birth and get good quality care, I would highly recommend choosing more experienced midwives.

After reading Shannon's beautiful and transformative book Born Far From Home, I felt so drawn to…read morehaving a homebirth. I loved reading about Shannon's journey to Islam and birth work, and how her faith and spirituality intertwined with her midwifery care. I also enjoyed reading the compelling birth stories and the beautiful way in which she writes about birth. I especially felt connected to her book as a Muslim woman who was curious about homebirth, but wasn't sure if it was for me. Once I finished the book and had my first appointment with Shannon I felt confident, reassured, and excited about having a homebirth for my first baby. Since the start of my prenatal care with Shannon, I felt so comforted by the amount of time and personalized care she dedicated to us by listening to our concerns, answering our many questions, and providing the guidance we needed during this special time in our life. Her level of knowledge and expertise combined with her warm and comforting presence brought us ease during such a delicate time. I also have the same great things to say about Tara who was the second midwife to be present at the birth and meet with us for the postpartum appointments. Tara also has such a warm, beautiful, and comforting spirit and has been such a pleasure to meet with. When expressing the troubles I have with breast feeding, she has been so sweet and reassuring and I really appreciate the level of care she not only provides for our baby, but to me. I feel so fortunate and blessed to have had a successful and empowering homebirth with the utmost care and support from Shannon and Tara and I highly recommend them. I am so grateful to have been in their care.

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!

Made an appointment, got multiple confirmation emails, including an hour before the appointment…read more She never showed. I also emailed her two days before to try to get a response since I assumed the confirmation emails might be automated. She never responded. Phone number listed on Kaiser goes straight to voicemail. Unprofessional - can't imagine trusting this person with anything

Davon is just the BEST person you could ever have as your Doula! My husband and I are extremely…read morehappy for choosing her and will definitely recommend her services for everyone we know. Since our first interview, we felt a deeply connection with her and we chose her because of her KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE, NATURAL APPROACH to pregnancy and childbirth and, most importantly, because we just felt that she understood us and would support us in the way we needed. This is my second baby and I've had a very traumatic experience with my first kid birth, so I wanted to have someone by my side who I could trust and who would help me to trust myself and my body to have a positive birth experience. My husband was a little reluctant to hire a doula, but after meeting her he was already feeling supported and more confident in the birth process. During the pregnancy she was always making herself available for questions and/or concerns and sharing resources to help us navigate through the different stages of this process. She also has an amazing Childbirth Course, that helped us to prepare for the big day. During the prenatal visits, we had an amazing time together, just like friends hanging out. She would spend enough time talking to us about everything we needed; she was never rushing out and would listen to us carefully. Davon is so KIND and she made us feel so comfortable from the very start. She is also very knowledgeable and would help us with our questions, doubts and insecurities. The whole time she was showing her trust in me and my body to go through the birth. On the birth day, she was available right away when we contact her. She arrived at the Birth Center at the same time we did and was there for the whole time. We arrived there at 2am and my baby was born at 7:30am. She never left my side and stayed there until the first hours of postpartum were over, making sure we were both fine. During labor, she always knew what to do and what to say to help me cope. She had many comfort measures for me during my painful contractions. Although I was almost giving up and asking for medication, she never got discouraged or let me feel that I couldn't do it. Her positive affirmations, calmness and confidence were definitely the reason I was able to go all the way through with the unmedicated birth, even when I thought I couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't have done without her!!! She also has an amazing back up doula (Tanara), who we met virtually and then in person at our last prenatal appointment. This made us feel even more comfortable because we knew that if Davon couldn't make it to the big day for any reason, we still would have someone we trusted to support us over there. She also encapsulated my placenta. She took care of everything in the birth center and brought the capsules to my home on our postpartum appointment. She also made a cute keepsake out of my dehydrated cord, which was a special touch. Davon is like family to us know! We are extremely grateful that she came into our lives and will never forget this experience.

Best decision we ever made regarding our care for pregnancy and labor/delivery! This is our first…read morebaby and with everything going on in hospitals, policies and now covid issues, my husband and I were weary about going the traditional route for pre and postnatal care. So I started looking into alternatives and then I met Fawn, Kim and their midwife student Jamie! I was convinced they were the right choice for us from the very first meeting. These ladies care and actually show that they care. Every appointment they listened to what I was going through and made helpful suggestions. They were able to monitor my vitals and order labs like blood work and ultrasounds. Near the end of my pregnancy I had some liver issues and they caught it by listening to what I was going through and ordering more blood work. Labor and delivery went better than I thought it would. They were very understanding! This being my first delivery, everyone thought labor would be long. However, a few hours later, I believed things were progressing. They came out to check on me when I expressed my concerns, even though everyone thought it would be a long time. They cared about me and my peace of mind, dropping everything to check on me. Sure enough, labor was progressing quickly and I had my daughter a few hours after they arrived. During delivery, they were calm and peaceful. They encouraged me to listen to my body and to try different positions to find what was best for me. I was able to focus on what I needed and nothing else. I loved my experience with Fawn, Kim and their midwife student Jamie. I recommend these lovely ladies to any and every expecting mother who wants to have amazing and attentive care.

Fawn, Kim and Jamie are three of the most wonderful human beings you will ever meet. They are an…read moreincredible team that know how to create a kind, caring, safe and loving environment that lasts from your first visit to your last. Collectively they have an incredible amount of experience and expertise. My wife and I looked forward to every single visit we had as they were fun and relaxed while always remaining professional. The birth of our child was absolutely incredible, the way they work is seamless attending to every need without you really noticing but at the same time feeling like you are surrounded by family. We plan on having many children and will use them for every birth! The only two bad reviews on here are laughable after working with them and clearly these people are confused, because nothing they wrote could be further from the truth. Using this service has been the best decision my wife and I could have made for our birth and for our family!

Do not hire Debbie!!! She made us sign a contract and prepay her services fee upfront. Then when I…read morewas at the hospital (2 days before she was supposed to come over) she called to tell me she could not be our doula because of a medical issue she has. Unfortunately, she has not refunded the payment as she has promised. She told us she would mail the check last Friday and we still have not received it. She is not answering our phone calls or texts (how convenient). We are now taking legal actions to resolve. What a disaster.

From the owner: Birth doula, postpartum care, infant baby nurse, childbirth education, infant sleep training and…read morechildcare

This review is long overdue my baby is almost 2... but not a week goes by that I don't think fondly…read moreof and appreciate the care I received from Birthstream! My husband was very hesitant to have a home birth but Leslie and Rachel took time to understand his concerns and were mindful of us as individuals through the process. I really appreciate the at home visits, I have another child and for her to experience listening to the heartbeat etc was an experience that I am so grateful to have - the care you receive from the midwives through your pregnancy and during birth and after birth is SO valuable! I can't say enough positive things about my experience and I would recommend the Birthstream team to any of my friends and family in the Sacramento area. To highlight, my favorite parts about their care, in home visits usually lasting an hour, holistic knowledge and care, truly making sure you have informed decision making, and the after birth visits were the best and so wonderful. THANK YOU Birthstream for being a part of our families story, I am so grateful for the wonderful experience we had throughout pregnancy, birth and beyond. I really believe that the care we received set my baby and I up for great success!

If you're on the fence about homebirth I cannot recommend it enough. Birth can be the most…read moreempowering, safe experience when you are truly supported and cared for. Rachel and Lesley are incredibly experienced and knowledgeable midwives. They are kind and communicate well. I'm getting emotional just thinking of our journey together to get me my sweet baby. Get the consultation, you won't regret it. Instead of spending hours waiting on the phone or in doctors offices talking to someone who does not know you, you will be seen and heard by midwives whose priority is you. You are where you're most comfortable in your home for hour long visits focused on the health of you and your baby.

Update I thought I would update my review since it's been 3…read moreyears. Since then we have been blessed to have Charlee as our midwife two more times. In total she has been our midwife for three of our births! Which is honestly amazing! As you can imagine I cannot speak more highly of Charlee! She is the best at what she does! Every birth I have had her in she has been so wonderful and so supportive! My pregnancies are always something I look forward to and one of the big reasons is because of her care. I always look forward to my kids being included into our appointments. They get so excited every time she comes over she is practically family at this point! charlee is so patient with my kids and includes them into the experience, allowing them to help with hearing the baby's heart and checking my blood pressure. It truly has made my pregnancies all the more sweet getting to experience it in this intimate way with my kids and having all these memories with them. I have had hospital care before and to me this is totally different! In the best possible way! It's so individual and includes my family into the process. The appointments are longer allowing ample time to ask questions and go over any concerns. She gets to see how the pregnancy is progressing. I love the fact that she lets me make true informed decisions for me and my baby. She always goes over everything and if I understand the risks and benefits of any decision that I make. I always feel heard and seen. During my labors I've always felt so taken care of. I rely so much on her experience and knowledge and trust she is looking out for my best interest as well as the baby. There have been so many times she has seen things that I hadn't really thought of. Whether that be taking things and doing things to ease pregnancy symptoms to things to do during birth. Postpartum care is just top notch! The fact that she comes to check on me and the baby. I don't have to get out of my bed or leave the comfort of my home. I get to just snuggle my baby and be in newborn bliss while she checks us over. I'm just so thankful for her loving care! If I am blessed to get pregnant again no doubt I will again ask her to be my midwife. No one I trust more and couldn't imagine doing it without her!

I chose to hire Charlee as my midwife for my first pregnancy because when I spoke with her she said…read moreshe had over 10 years of experience and has done 200 births. As a first-time mom, those credentials gave me confidence that I was putting myself and my baby in experienced hands. During one of our visits, she was prepping me for delivery day. She not to reach out to her in the middle of the night unless my contractions were at a 3-1-1 pattern because she wanted to be rested for me during the day. The day came for baby to arrive. Around 9pm on a Saturday I started having contractions. At 2am on Sunday, my contractions became very intense contractions. They were coming every 2-3 minutes and lasting 6-8 minutes long, my husband and I were tracking them with a contraction app. The contractions felt pretty intense. We sent Charlee screenshots of the contraction patterns and reached out for guidance, but a she told us I was not ready yet because I was not at a "3-1-1" pattern, but that if I think the baby is coming, to let her know. How do I know if the baby is coming in not? I've never had a baby before. As a first-time mom, I had no way of knowing whether my labor was progressing normally and it was going to get more intense than what it was, or whether my baby was coming. That's exactly why I hired an experienced midwife to help me make those decisions. I was alone in my living room for hours, my water broke and gushing out (it definitely was not a trickle like they say it would be), feeling like I was on a rollercoaster. By around 6:30 that morning, my doula arrived, saw the amount of pain I was in, looked at my contraction pattern, and immediately called Charlee, telling her "you need to get here now". Charlee arrived about an hour later. By then, my contractions had already slowed down considerably. During the day Charlee commented that she wondered why my contractions had slowed down, which surprised me because I expected someone with her level of experience to have insight into what was happening. While I was laboring in the birthing pool, I also overheard Charlee talking with my doula about wanting to pivot careers into being a motivational coach instead of continuing to attend births. Whether or not she ultimately chooses another career is her decision, but hearing that conversation while I was in active labor made me worry because in my field of business, that is what people say when they aren't getting much business. This was not something I expected or wanted to hear during one of the most vulnerable moments of my life. Unfortunately, this was only the beginning of an experience that ultimately left me feeling unsupported and questioning the care I received. The baby was stuck in my canal the whole day. We could feel her head. At 6:30pm, I got transfer to the hospital. We ultimately had to do an emergency vacuum delivery. My body was not contracting, and it was not ready for a baby to come out. I ended up with a permanent spine injury, along with other injuries post delivery that were still having trouble diagnosing. I had to go back to the ER by ambulance 2 days after come home from the hospital. I was in a wheelchair for 2-3 weeks, graduated to a walker, then cain, and now I have on going treatment 9 months post delivery. Which all could have been prevented, if my baby came out when I my body was contracting at 2am in the morning. Charlee charges you $9,500 for her services, but split it up in four sections. She said because I delivered at the hospital, she would not submit me for reimbursement for the delivery costs, since I did not deliver at home. If Charlee could not do her job and deliver my baby, then why can't I get refunded for her not doing her job? I don't know how you can take someone's money like that and sleep at night. I do not recommend Charlee as a good choice for a midwife, do not trust this person with your life!

Heather was wonderful from start to finish. She was so thoroughly prepared, and her preparation…read moresessions left us feeling confident, informed, and prepared for birth and postpartum. I referenced her materials often through the end of my pregnancy and in preparation for labor and delivery. When I went into early labor Heather was extremely available and had great instincts about when to call the hospital and when to go in. During labor itself Heather was indispensable. She did everything from setting the vibe of the room, to providing hip pressure and coaching my partner during contractions, to talking us through how to push. She was so prepared as well- she had everything in her magic bag that made labor so much more comfortable and manageable. I cannot recommend Heather enough- she is experienced, calm, knowledgeable, incredibly prepared, and made our entire birth experience so so much better!

My husband and I are so thankful Heather was our doula as we welcomed our first baby in late 2025…read more I felt comfortable with Heather from the initial Zoom meeting - she is warm, friendly, open, compassionate, and a wealth of knowledge. The three sessions prior to labor/delivery were extremely helpful in getting us prepared mentally, physically and emotionally. While we took also online classes with Kaiser, nothing compares to a 1:1 class where you can really ask questions and get personalized recommendations. Our baby was breech and we ended up needing an ECV and, ultimately, a scheduled C-section. Heather was so supportive through it all and made me feel much better about having a birth that didn't look like the one I initially pictured. Her presence was also so helpful at the hospital. And, reimbursement via Kaiser was a breeze! Thank you so much, Heather!

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.

Hiring Marlene and Kaleem was the best decision I could have made when I found out I was pregnant…read more They gave us the most incredible and loving care before, during and after our homebirth. They are insanely knowledgeable, calm, reassuring, experienced, loving....I could go on and on! I had an amazing and uncomplicated pregnancy, a powerful birth experience and a happy healthy baby girl and I know I have them to thank for that! Even my husband was thoroughly impressed with their care and he is very hard to impress!! These two wonderful midwives truly offer the best care a woman (and the whole family) could receive and they are worth so much more than what they charge. I could have had my entire birth paid for if I had seen a Dr and delivered at the hospital, but these two are worth every penny. We always felt special and never rushed at our appointments. They always made sure to tell us about all the options and helped us weigh the pros and cons of all the testing and procedures that come along with pregnancy. They always had perfect answers to my questions and their suggestions were always spot on. Everything they ever suggested that I do worked like a charm and you can really see how much they love what they do and how much they love each and every new baby! Please consider these one of a kind ladies to help you along your pregnancy journey!! You will not be disappointed

I LOVE these ladies! Before meeting Marlene and Kaleem I had never thought my dream of birthing at…read morehome would really come true. I was a little nervous at first but they were very reassuring that my body was meant to do this and as long as I had a normal pregnancy there should be no reason I could not delivery my child at home safely. Every visit with them was great and they always made us feel like we were one of their own children. They were always both very positive and uplifting. The day my daughter was born I don't know how I would have made it without my husband and the midwives help. The after care they provided was exceptional and I couldn't have imagined anything better!! I had some troubles with nursing right after my baby was born and it didn't matter what time of day it was; they were ready to come to me or would make time for me to see them no matter what. I would highly recommend One Heart for any woman who is even considering a home birth. To those of you who think we are all granolas and this would never be something for you, think again. It's one of the most amazing experiences you will ever have. Yes, of course there may be pain, but it's a pain that will end and you will never feel the high of seeing your baby born and knowing that YOU were the one who delivered him/her at any other point in your life. I once thought people like who I have become were crazy nuts, but actually being informed and choosing a safe drug free birth shows strength and courage to make that decision.