Loam [ lohm ] noun : a rich, fertile, and nourishing soil.

Loam represents everything I hope to offer up to families during pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum.

I knew that my clients would be coming to me in the most fertile forms of their being and what an honor it is to hold them as they bring new life into this world!

Welcome!

My name is Anastasia; a hand-me-down from my great-grandmother.

Once a complete stranger to birth, I stumbled upon midwifery and doula support in my late 20’s after spending 11 years working as an Arabic linguist.

I attended my first birth in 2021 as a midwife’s assistant in the homebirth setting. I left that birth with a renewed reverence for women and a deep knowing that I had discovered one of my life’s purposes.

I’m married to a wonderful man named Andrew, an woodworker, problem solver, and my biggest supporter. We have been married for nearly 4 years, currently practicing conscious conception, and looking forward to becoming parents ourselves!

Our life is fairly nomadic and although we anticipate moving every couple of years as Andrew’s career demands, but we’re leaning into the chaos and deeply appreciate each community that we have happened upon in every location thus far!!

For the moment, we are living in Geneva, Illinois and will be around through the Winter of 2024.

Thank you for being here!

All my love,
Anastasia

My First Steps in Birthwork

I began my journey in birth as an assistant to a lovely midwife in Augusta, Georgia for just over a year before immersing myself in doula work.

I started out as many doulas do, seeking “certification” for skills that I was born with. I completed the DONA training and came away uninspired. I chose not to finish my certification and instead sought out mentorship from other birthworkers, soaking up the wisdom that filled the spaces I was in.

I served many families in the hospital setting when I first became a doula because I felt, and in some ways still do, that the hospital was where my support was the most needed, but my heart was heavy with the stress of hospital birth and I knew it wasn’t sustainable. I have since chosen to focus my energy on supporting homebirths and, on occasion, select birth centers and hospitals where necessary.

I deeply enjoyed spending my time “with women” and felt called to pursue homebirth midwifery. I enrolled in midwifery school in 2022 at the Midwives College of Utah and look forward to practicing as a Certified Professional Midwife in the not-so-distant future.

My Birth Beliefs

I believe that birth is a normal, albeit deeply profound, physiological event.

I believe that women are wholly capable and unmistakably deserving of the right to decide when, where, and how they birth their babies.

I believe in birth, client led-care, true informed decision making, and intuitive as well as evidence based education.

I believe that being invited to a birth is a divine privilege and that a deep reverence for the space is absolutely non-negotiable.

I believe that birth often works best when it is undisturbed.

I believe every family deserves access to doula support regardless of financial circumstances. A price tag cannot be placed on your birth experience.

Outside of the Portal

I am a passionate creative. A maiden still, my creativity is born out in other forms.

I enjoy making small batch pottery to celebrate pregnancy, birth, and womanhood.

I love to flow, dance, and connect with my body in ways that involve movement.

I strive to fill my family’s belly with nourishing and delicious foods.