Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexa Hanson-Wagner.
Hi Alexa, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
We grow up watching births in movies and media where the mother is screaming and yelling at her partner “You did this to me!” Everything is rushed, painful, traumatic, scary, etc., and that was just not how my moms birth story was. My mother chose to have me at home with a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) and there was certainly pain, but it was calm and beautiful. I remember growing up and feeling like my moms birth experience was unique and it always touched me. It wasn’t until I started college that I realized I wanted to make a career out of that feeling. I had taken an intro course on human life and development, and I was absolutely fascinated by the entire pregnancy, fetal development, birth and infancy portion of the class. I remembered my moms birth story and connected that feeling to the fascination. I contacted a local Utah CPM and spoke to her about her career, what she loved, what she hated, etc., and it just clicked. From there, I applied to the Midwives College of Utah and got accepted! I am now about 2.5 years into my education at MCU, pursuing my Bachelors of Science in Midwifery, and certification to practice as a Certified Professional Midwife. I have also been a practicing birth doula for 2 years! I feel so fortunate that every day of my career is one of the most important days of someone else’s life. Also birth is just so cool. It is incredible what our bodies are capable of!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, in fact the COVID pandemic put a huge halt to my dream. I had planned to apply to MCU soon after I graduated with my first degree, but once COVID happened, I was, like so many others, swiftly unemployed and unable to support myself through school. Applying to MCU had to wait a little while longer. In addition, had I been attending school at that time, I am unsure as to how I would have been succesful in terms of practicing. During COVID, being a midwife and doula was hard for many as this industry requires working with people in close quarters.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
There are often confusions as to the differences between a Certified Nurse Midwife, Certified Professional Midwife, and a doula. While they are all considered birth workers, they are also very different. Both CPMs and CNMs are the primary care provider that delivers the baby and handles immediate postpartum care. However, a Nurse Midwife is someone that is closely related to a Doctor. They go through Nursing school and work in a hospital setting. They have both the education and tools to handle any birth, whether low risk or high risk. Being a Nurse Midwife is also incredibly fast paced! I can absolutely recognize the importance of a Nurse Midwife, but working in a hospital setting with many patients per day was just not my calling. I wanted to do something more calm and slow paced, where instead of working with 6 patients per day, I am instead working with maybe 6 clients per month. It’s more intimate and personal in my experience, and I like that about what CPMs do. Some would also say that CPMs and CNMs are different in their medical approach, and that CPMs are more holistic. I would absolutely say that is true. But CPMs also have a great understanding as to the risks involved with birth, which is why CPMs only work with low-risk clients in birth center and home settings. CPMs are also made very aware as to when a client “risks out” of their care and must be transferred to hospital care. This means that something as happened at any point in the pregnancy that categorizes the mother as a high-risk patient, and for her and the baby’s safety, she must continue care with a CNM or Doctor. This is a huge part of my education is learning and understanding the differences between the two, and knowing what is within my scope of practice as a future CPM.
A birth doula, my current profession, specifically takes on the role of emotional and physical support for the mother during both birth and labor. They don’t perform any medical tasks such as administering IVs or medication. Essentially my job as a birth doula is to say “You’re doing great!” and to hold a leg or apply counterpressure to help the mother get through her birth. It is the goal of most of my clients to get through their labor and birth unmedicated, which means without pain medication. I know many will ask “why would you ever want to go through an incredibly painful experience when pain medication is an option?!” The truth is, while there are many benefits to receiving pain medication, there are also many benefits to enduring and outlasting the pain as there are other sensations that are important. During birth, these sensations allow the mother to stay more in control. They tell her when to push, when something is wrong, and when something is right! I won’t go into too much detail, but essentially, recognizing these sensations helps prevent other damage during birth and labor. Some clients also want to go unmedicated just for the accomplishment! While I believe getting through labor and birth in any capacity is absolutely an accomplish, going through birth unmedicated communicates to some of my clients that they are strong, and I am all for supporting my clients in recognizing how incredible they are.
I believe what makes me unique in my profession was my entry and my approach to the field. Most midwives and doulas enter the profession because they have had babies of their own! They either had an incredible experience and want to help others achieve what they did, or they had an incredibly traumatic experience, learned afterwards what birth can be, and it is now their goal to help others avoid the experience(s) they had. I have never had children of my own. It is absolutely a goal of mine one day, but for now, my profession is led by awe! I just find pregnancy and birth so cool! Every birth I am a part of only furthers that fascination because I am constantly learning something new. I think because of this, I am very attentive with my clients and am often working to increase awareness in my clients. I find that when they realize just how amazing they are, they become more motivated and present in their experience, which actually physically encourages labor. I want my clients to be able to look back on their story and be able to say “I’m proud of myself.”
Lastly, I am very aware as to how vulnerable my clients have to be with me, both emotionally and physically. That takes a lot of bravery to be so vulnerable with someone who wasn’t so long ago a complete stranger. To help my clients feel more comfortable being vulnerable with me, I am also vulnerable with them. I allow my clients to get to know me and to see my emotions, so that we can bond and actually in a sense be friends! Because who wants to tell someone they barely know about their deepest fears and insecurities? I certainly don’t. This also helps my clients trust me more! So if something happens and it seems REALLY scary or worrisome, I can reassure them that what they are experiencing is normal and that they WILL get through it, and they might actually believe me. While I believe birth is beautiful, it can, at the same time, be very hard. But when you know that the person at your side both cares about you deeply and also has a knowledge of the new space you’ve entered, you are able to care less about the fear and hardship, and focus more on the excitement around bringing a new life into this world.
Pricing:
- $1200 for my Birth Doula Package. This includes 2 prenatal visits where we get to know each other and create a birth plan A, B, and C, your labor and birth, and 1 postpartum visit in which you get 3 hours of my time to help you get settled into your new family life (i.e. meal planning/prepping, organization, laundry, babysitting, etc.)
- $50 for a 2.5 hour “Basics of Birth” childbirth education class. I am a certified childbirth educator and offer this class to those who may need more information to help them prepare for what is to come.
- $150 for additional Postpartum Visits
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.peakbirthing.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peak.birthing.services/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564210725918
