About

Jessica Christen, CPM, LM, began her path to midwifery in 2006. Growing up she was always a nurturer of sorts, using her hands and heart to help friends, family, strangers and even the occasional animal. Always an artist she chose to become a graphic designer, but after 7 years in the advertising field her best friend had a home birth, opening her eyes to the world of midwifery and holistic care for the first time. After completing Heart & Hands midwifery intensives in 2007, she attended the birth of a dear friend in the hospital. While being entirely honored to support them, it only further confirmed that the world needed more home birth midwives. 

As a student of the National Midwifery Institute she began apprenticing with two home birth midwives, learning from them and the amazing families they worked with. In the following years she apprenticed at Sage Femme Midwifery, a free-standing birth center in San Francisco. Wanting to increase her skill set further, she spent a summer at a high-volume birth center in Utah, attending births at the center and at families homes with three different midwives. Always hoping to return to home birth, she was thrilled to work with Wombservice Midwifery while finishing midwifery school. 

After graduating from the National Midwifery Institute, Jessica received her midwifery license from the California Medical Board in May of 2012. At the same time she also became a Certified Professional Midwife, receiving this national credential from the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM). Her license and certificate authorize her to attend cases of normal childbirth and to provide prenatal, intra-partum, and postpartum care, including family-planning care, for the mother, and immediate care for the newborn. She is a member of the California Association of Midwives (CAM) and the Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA). 

Over the years she has assisted various Bay Area midwives while caring for her own clients, supporting them from prenatal care through birth and the postpartum period. She recently completed a lactation education program through UC San Diego, as well as her Lactation Education Counselor Certification and is on track to becoming an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant by spring of 2023. She looks forward to supporting families and babies beyond their first 6 weeks.