About Alana

I’m Alana Joy. I’m a Mama of two and a Midwife. Since becoming a Licensed Midwife in 2009, I have attended more than 600 births in homes and birth centers. I bring to my midwifery a blend of clinical nerdiness and intuitive practice.

I was blessed to start my midwifery journey as an apprentice at a birth center in Chiapas, Mexico; it is there that I received my ‘blueprint’ of what birth is truly made of. I was able to witness the vast spectrum of birth, which created a deep, intrinsic trust in the process and in the resilience of birthing families. My apprenticeship, combined with my earlier training as a Registered Nurse at UCSF, synthesized my love of evidence-based science with a profound trust in undisturbed birth. After my apprenticeship in Mexico I completed licensure at Maternidad La Luz, a high volume birth center on the border of El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

As a Midwife (or keeper of birth) I see how many ‘shoulds’ there are in the world of pregnancy, birth and parenting. This work has taught me that the more clients can connect with who they are authentically, the more clear and true their experience will be when the moment arrives. I hold a warm, non-judgemental space to encourage folks to bring their whole self while working together: the worried self, the confident self, the bad ass, the guilt ridden, the perfectionist, the renounced….there’s space for all of it! The stuff of becoming parents is transformative, sacred and transcendent, annnd a hefty dose of light hearted laughter for this messy human experience is often the medicine that’s needed. My intention is to act as a guide for families to find deeper ways of holding themselves, including the messy, the raw, the unabridged.

Above all, I am a family midwife. Pregnancy is a family experience where the entire fabric of the family stretches and grows so it can hold new life. In addition to being devoted to the pregnant parent, I am dedicated to connecting with and supporting partners and I love being part of the team to prepare kiddos to welcome their younger siblings.

I experienced the birth of my brother at a very young age. This had a very lasting impression on me. Today, as a Midwife, this experience still influences my work.

At the end of my mom’s pregnancy, her water bag opened before contractions started. As the hours passed, her Midwife started to feel nervous. My brother wasn’t here yet. The ‘24hr clock’ at the local hospitals (standard at the time) was making the Midwife concerned. My mom asked questions about the baby’s well-being and her own well-being. She wanted to stay home unless there was something imminently concerning. My mom and her Midwife planned how much more time they would wait at home for labor to begin. In an act of intuition, my mom started jumping on her mini trampoline with the hunch that this may bring on contractions. To the midwife’s amazement, I would be holding my brother a few hours later just a couple feet from where my mom birthed him in our living room.

When I think about this story, I have deep respect and admiration for both people: for my Mom voicing what was true for her and claiming her right to make her own informed decision and also for the Midwife, a woman who was under supported and working in a hostile environment, who continued to show up for her families, stating her concerns while also listening to the inner knowing of her clients.