Holistic and expert midwifery care for every body.
Birth Center Care
DTLA BIRTH CENTER
Located in the heart of Los Angeles, our beautiful, comfortable and serene space is the perfect place to welcome your baby under the gentle and skilled care of your Licensed Midwife Team.
Discover our DTLA Birthing Center
Homebirth Care
Hour-long prenatal visits including opportunities for client questions, counseling and education by midwife and clinical assessment
24-Hour On-Call access to midwife (Text/Call, After-Hr appointments)
Detailed client handbook
Diet and supplement counseling
Exercise program
Lab work done in office
Monitoring of your vitals
Monitoring of baby’s heart rate, growth pattern and position
Emotional support
Options, advise and resources
Childbirth classes included
Home visit at about 35 weeks for planned homebirthing clients
Perineal preparation guidance
Gentle, understanding, confidential care at all times
Prenatal
Gentle presence, care and support
Supporting partner as coach
Massage
Position suggestions
Water birth pool
Birth stool
Emotional and physical support
Monitoring contraction pattern
Monitoring baby’s heart rate and position
Skilled handling of the birth to prevent tears and unnecessary trauma or pain
Either parent helping to catch baby
Newborn exam, weight and measure
Breast/Bodyfeeding assistance
Quiet and unobtrusive monitoring in the hours immediately following birth
Promoting family bonding
Emergency medical equipment and care present and available if needed including newborn suction, resuscitation equipment for you and baby, medications for hemorrhage, and IV fluids
Labour & Birth
Home visit at 2 days postpartum
Office postpartum visits up to 6 wks postpartum
Paperwork for filing birth certificate
Physical and emotional support
Breast feeding support and counseling
Return to fertility awareness
Exercise counseling
PAP and Well-Person care options
Postpartum
Your midwife and assistants are trained in CPR and Neonatal Resuscitation and are prepared for emergency situations.
At any point during care – whether prenatally, during labor and birth, or postpartum, if circumstances arise requiring medical attention, you will be given options and support to facilitate medical consultation or transfer of care, depending on which is needed.
In the event that care must be transferred, your midwife will facilitate transfer of care, and be available for counsel, support and a comforting presence. Full postpartum follow up care is still completed with midwife.
Emergency Care
Homebirth Care
BORN TO BE LOVED
An Empowering Experience with an involved, skilled Provider who tailors care to your needs, your body and your preferences, monitoring the health and well-being of you and your baby physically, mentally and emotionally.
Learn more about homebirth care
Find the service that is best for you
Waterbirth
If you are birthing at the Birth Center, our large bath is perfect for water labor and water birth.
If you choose homebirth, our portable waterbirth pool will be brought to your birth when the midwife arrives for your labor.
Our birth tubs and pools are deep, allowing clients to assume many positions for labor or birth, including hands and knees, semi-reclining, forward leaning, and more. They are also spacious enough to allow partners to join if so desired.
Waterbirth
Called by many, “The Natural Epidural,” water is an excellent option for labor, especially for first time or VBAC labors since they are often longer on average. But even for fast births, having the pool option available is wonderful, as quick labors can prove to be incredibly intense.
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VBAC
Studies show that over 95% of those who TOLAC will labor without scar problems, and will VBAC safely and successfully despite having factors that diminish their odds, including those with:
- more than one prior cesarean
- prior cesarean for labor dystocia
- macrosomic baby (weighing 4000g or more)
- advance maternal age
- high body mass index (BMI)
- longer pregnancy duration
- single-layer uterine closure at the prior cesarean
- thin scar
- prior preterm cesarean
- short interpregnancy/interdelivery interval
Rates of scar rupture depend heavily on labor management. Studies point towards scar ruptures often being caused by:
- induction with an unripe cervix
- induction using prostaglandin E2 (PGE2)
- induction with misoprostol (now contraindicated)
- high oxytocin dose
- duration at high oxytocin dose
- any other artificial augmentation of labor
- Studies show that in the absence of labor-altering drugs, a uterine scar that has remained intact during pregnancy is very likely to remain intact through the birth
Did you know?
Uterine rupture rate is shown to be between 0.0%-3.8%, depending on the study cited, with the majority of studies showing rupture rates of 0.06%-0.7%, even with:
- multiple cesareans
- all forms of previous incisions
- artificial induction
- artificial augmentation of labor
VBAC decreases maternal mortality by 9 per 100,000 births over ERCD
With full informed consent, a healthy, responsible person can be given the choice to VBAC at home after multiple cesareans
Reference:
What is VBAC?
Vaginal Birth After Cesarean
Home Birth After Cesarean
VBAC
HBAC
Trial Of Labor After Cesarean
TOLAC
Faith Freeman has a heart for providing VBAC births to those who have delivered by cesarean.
She delivers multiple VBACs yearly, and is willing to discuss options with people that have complicated cesarean histories to see if they qualify for VBAC.
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Collaborative Care
Prenatal care
Labor + Delivery Support
postpartum care
Regular hour-long prenatal sessions:
~ client questions
~ birth options + counseling
~ birth preparation education
~ nutrition and supplement support
~ options, advice, resources
~ lab + ultrasound testing and review
~ ideal baby positioning
~ body health + movement
Detailed client handbook
24-Hour On-Call access (Text/Call)
Emotional support
Childbirth classes included
Gentle, understanding, confidential care at all times
Virtual support and input as desired and needed throughout birthing experience with your hospital provider.
3-4 visits over 6 weeks postpartum, including:
~ breastfeeding support
~ emotional processing + mental health support
~ healing your body + regaining mobility
~ herbal support
~ family planning options + education
~ parenting support + community
Collaborative Care
Collaborate Care is for clients who know they want or need to birth at a hospital with their physician, but they also wish to have more education and support around their pregnancy.
This care includes detailed prenatal and postpartum care focusing on nutrition, herbal medicine, lab values and informed consent to help clients learn their choices and be fully prepared for their pregnancy, birth and postpartum experience.
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Prenatal Preparation
Our initial visit is a detailed medical and personal history and check, lab work and initial guidance and recommendations, including below:
Menstrual history review
Supplement and Nutrition initial review and recommendations
Lab tests drawn
Full/partial physical as desired/recommended
Approximately 2-4 weeks after our initial visit, you come for your follow up visit to review your lab work and cover our individualized care plan that we have prepared for you, including below:
Detailed supplement and nutrition recommendations
Possible additional holistic support services recommendations
Education, support and informed choice
01. Initial Visit
02. Care Plan Review Visit
03. Follow Up Visit
04. Contact as Needed
05. Additional Visits
Our follow up visit is approximately 2-3 months later and includes a follow up physical and symptom evaluation, follow up lab work and review. This informs how the initial care plan is working for you and if any updates or additions should be made.
Clients receive a portal login and are able to reach out to midwife as needed with updates and questions in the times between visits.
To be scheduled as recommended by midwife or desired by client.
Prenatal Preparation
CARE PLAN FOR PRENATAL PREPARATION
Have you ever wondered how to make sure you're as healthy as you can be be before you give birth?
Whether this is your first baby, or you've had previous pregnancy - especially if that pregnancy was more complicated - taking time and implementing health and wellness support BEFORE you become pregnant again can make all the difference in the world.
This care is also ideal for clients who have a history of pregnancy loss/miscarriage.
IUI & Fertility
Planning session(s) to discuss:
~ options
~ preparation
~ timing
~ preferences
Supplement support
Lab tests
Emotional support
Gentle, understanding, confidential care at all times
Before the Procedure
Procedure Care
After Procedure
Available for follow-up questions as needed
Lab testing for possible needed blood work
Supplement and nutrition suggestions
On call for client for whenever LH surge is detected
In-home placement options
Gentle presence, care and support
Supporting partner involvement/placement as desired
Involving you in procedure (placing your own speculum if desired)
Respecting body autonomy and preferences at all times
IUI & Fertility Services
IntraUterine Insemination ~ caring, informative and in-home care for families pursuing pregnancy.
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Well Person Care
options for care
Physical Exam
Specific exams for concerns or questions
Lab work including:
Hormone, STI, Self-Guided PAP testing + More
Fertility and birth control education
Involving you in any procedures (placing your own speculum if desired)
Respecting body autonomy and preferences at all times
We believe that compassionate, respectful birthing care is for every body.
Explore care investment options
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