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TANJA BOLLE; LM, CPM Since my licensing in 1996, my experience is furthered each year by attending between ten and 30 families throughout the childbearing cycle. First and foremost I identify myself as a midwife. It is not just a career, but a way of life. Midwifery encompasses the paths of life I wish to follow: empowerment, self-care, education, involvement in community, responsibility for my choices and actions, spirituality, and honor for the cycles of life. As a midwife I guide women and their families, as well as myself, through the childbearing years and encourage and support them through the incredible rite of passage. Not only is it an incredible honor and thrill to be with these birthing families, but also an amazing opportunity for growth and change within myself. Prior to being licensed, I apprenticed with midwives in Chicago, Mexico City and primarily studied at the National College of Midwifery's training program in Taos, New Mexico. These consolodated my love for midwifery. My interest in midwifery began while completing my anthropology degree at the University of Kansas where I focused on women's health advocacy. I learned about overcoming barriers to women's health choices and women empowering themselves through their birth experiences and passing that power onto their children, their families and their communities.
I focused and finished my training and then began a small homebirth practice in New Mexico. The intent and ideal of my practice is to of keep it small and intimate, being able to really know the families I work with, make the commitments of guiding them in their needs and finish knowing they have the confidence to go on their own. It has been such a joy to be able to watch the children grow up and become their own selves and in some instances attend the births of their little brothers and sisters. As part of my commitment to advancing the sisterhood of midwifery, I also have taken on apprentices, taught classes and exam preparation for aspiring midwives and assisted in providing continuing education options for licensed midwives in the area. I volunteer for local women's health and family developing organizations, and remain an active member of the New Mexico Midwives Association (Co-chair for five years), as well as Midwives Alliance of North America and Citizens for Midwifery.
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I,
After
graduating I moved back home to Chicago and began working as a doula
assisting women in the immediate postpartum period, educating them,
supporting them and helping them become independent and confident
in their parenting. Shortly after, a group of midwives welcomed me
into their community and it was then I realized that becoming a midwife
was my calling in life.
I
currently live in Santa Fe with my sweetie/partner/boyfriend Whitney
in the home we built together. In November 2005 we were blessed by the birth of our son Kadin. And in early 2009 we await the birth of our second child. I can truely say that my own birth story has solidified the beauty and power I see in women, the importance of faith in birth and intuition, and trust in community and family. My pregnancies have been joyous, the births amazing, and parenting fullfilling as well as life changing. When not practicing midwifery I love to be in
the outdoors gardening or traveling, cooking and spending time with friends,
exploring something new.