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Places to Give Birth: At Home with Birth Roots Midwifery!
Corinne Westing attending a home birth in Chicago A series in which I share my own experience of birth places around the Chicagoland area plus the data that we have available. There is no one right place to give birth. The right place for you is the place where you feel safest. In this article I'm going to share my doula review of Birth Roots Midwifery. Part 1: Birth Center of Chicago - reopened Dec 2025 Part 2: Illinois Masonic Part 3: Northwestern Prentice Part 4: Evansto
Mel Haley
Apr 135 min read
Reiki for Birth
I am a big fan of anything doulas can do that has absolutely no risk of harm: the gentle ways we can support people that might do good or at the very least might do nothing. Then I attended a birth for a reiki practitioner who said, "You have very healing hands. Your touch is really comforting. You might want to look into reiki." Which is how I found myself at a reiki training. What is Reiki? Reiki is a traditionally Japanese practice in which a practitioner channels energy t
Mel Haley
Mar 305 min read
Reflection: What a Japanese Hiking Guide Taught Me About Being a Doula
Last month I went to Japan to visit a college friend living in Tokyo, and she decided that we ought to take a 10 hour hike to see a 3,000 year old tree. Turns out, our hiking guide Nobu-san had a lot to teach me. Princess Mononoke Moss Forest We traveled to Yakushima, a small island off the Southern coast of Japan, known for its intense rainfall, turtle hatching site, and the forest that inspired Princess Mononoke. There are unique conditions that allow cedar trees to grow sl
Mel Haley
Mar 106 min read
Liang’s Birth Story
Liang was surprised to find herself pregnant after accepting that she would never have a child of her own. Yet she embraced the opportunity to be a mom and join the “largest secret society in the world,” as she put it. Liang knew from the beginning she wanted an unmedicated birth and was drawn to the Birth Center of Chicago. A few days after her due date, she started having contractions. She labored at home for a day before her water broke, but once she was in active labor, t
Orlena Fella
Feb 213 min read
Places to Give Birth: Swedish Hospital
A series in which I share my own experience of birth places around the Chicagoland area plus the data that we have available. There is no one right place to give birth. The right place for you is the place where you feel safest. In this article I'm going to share about my doula review of Swedish Hospital in Chicago. Part 1: Birth Center of Chicago - reopened December 2025 Part 2: Illinois Masonic Part 3: Northwestern Prentice Part 4: Evanston Hospital Part 5: OMG Midwives
Mel Haley
Jan 234 min read
Nurturing the Sacred Passage
How Evidence-Based Chiropractic and Acupuncture Care Honor You and Your Body from Fertility, through Pregnancy to Birth and Postpartum. Hi folks! My name is Dr. Sebastian Bergeron, a chiropractic physician, acupuncturist, and owner of Nord Ro Clinic . After getting to know Mel, I had some thoughts that I felt should be shared with this beautiful community. Read all the way through for a free offer for clients of Mel. In the quiet spaces between heartbeats, something stirs. A
Sebastian Bergeron
Nov 17, 20255 min read
Recipe: Italian Brodo
This stock pot is not big enough... Brodo is the Italian word for broth, and it is known for its magical healing powers. My Italian...
Mel Haley
Oct 20, 20252 min read
You Had an Unplanned Cesarean, Now What?
There are many ways to feel about surgical birth, none of them right or wrong. When you imagine a low intervention birth, sometimes your...
Mel Haley
Oct 6, 20258 min read
Places to Give Birth: Burr Ridge Birth Center - PERMANENTLY CLOSED
A series in which I share my own experience of birth places around the Chicagoland area plus the data that we have available. There is no one right place to give birth, and the right place for you is the place where you feel safest. This article is now an archive of experiences with the midwives at Burr Ridge Birth Center. Part 1: Birth Center of Chicago - reopened December 2025 Part 2: Illinois Masonic Part 3: Northwestern Prentice Part 4: Evanston Hospital Part 5: OMG M
Mel Haley
Sep 22, 20258 min read
Don't get it twisted babes, none of the info on this blog is medical advice.
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