Ronnie Falcao, LM MS CHT, Licensed Midwife
Holistic Midwifery Care for Mother and Baby
Over 20 years experience

The word midwife means "with woman". A midwife is trained to work with you to help you have the best possible pregnancy, birth and postpartum experience, and to assist you in your transition to breastfeeding and motherhood.

Q: I'm already seeing an OB.  Why would I want to see a midwife, too?

A: Your OB does not have the time and training to address all your needs.
Comprehensive supplemental midwifery care fills in all the gaps of mainstream OB care.


Preparation for Induction at 39 Weeks

C-Section Prevention

Natural Induction

VBAC Support

Addressing Discomforts

Holistic Prenatal Care

Emotional Support



Preparation for Induction at 39 Weeks

The idea of routine induction at 39 weeks is controversial, but some women are enthusiastic
about the idea and are comforted by the promise that this will actually reduce their
chance of ending up with a c-section. Others feel pressured to go along
with their provider's recommendation.

What you should know is that the studies that show a reduced c-section rate from
routine induction at 39 weeks followed protocols that are not likely to be matched in our area.
For example, I would be shocked if a doctor sent you home after a day of pitocin with no
change in the cervix. I would also be surprised if they allowed multiple days to
pass during an induction if there is slow but steady progress. (Although our population
has grown, we do not have any new hospitals in this area, and many Labor and Delivery
departments are quite full and need to move patients through quickly.) It will be some
years before we have the data to show whether this approach really does reduce
c-sections in our area, but it bothers me to see local mamas used as guinea pigs.

As with all areas of midwifery, I rely on my engineering background to identify potential
problems from routine induction at 39 weeks and to remove these obstacles beforehand.
Some of these issues come into play starting at 26 weeks, so I recommend starting
supplemental prenatal care at 26 weeks in order to avoid a failed induction at 39 weeks.

I pay attention to all the key areas needed for the success of an induction at 39 weeks:
cervical ripeness, uterine tone and hormonal receptivity, and baby position.
I work with you to identify the approach that is most harmonious with your values:
I can provide herbal preparations (non alcoholic) or other forms of preparation
that feel right for you.

And for women who really want to avoid an induction but want baby to come by 39 weeks,
I also offer an in-home natural induction.



C-Section Prevention

Obstetrics is a surgical specialty, so OBs have a lot more training in performing c-sections than in preventing them.
If you need a c-section, then it's great that you have a well-trained surgeon.
The c-section rates in this area are about 35-45%, depending on the OB, the hospital, and your age.

Midwives specialize in normal birth, so they have special training in how to prevent c-sections during labor and birth.
If you're trying to avoid a c-section, then it makes sense to seek additional support in this area.
I have made it a personal specialty to apply my engineering background to the problem of high
c-section rates.  In my own midwifery practice, the c-section rate for the last 100 births has
been 1%.

It is a pleasure for me to share my expertise to help birthing women who prefer to avoid a c-section.
Some c-sections are planned in advance as the safest way to give birth.  However, for most women who
have c-sections, they are not expecting it.  Even if your OB is excellent about doing what they can
during labor and birth to avoid a c-section, they probably do not provide much prenatal guidance
as to how to set yourself up for success during labor and birth.

I have extensive experience in unmedicated childbirth and can help you achieve that goal if you wish.
There are many factors that support unmedicated childbirth.  These are best addressed
throughout pregnancy, but benefits are still available at 28 weeks or even 36 weeks.
I can also guide you to the optimal use of an epidural or other pain medication if you like.


Natural Induction

Sometimes it's in the best interests of mother and baby for the birth to happen by a certain point in pregnancy.
For example, many doctors recommend induction by 39 or 40 weeks for women with gestational diabetes
or for women planning a VBAC.  Without special preparation, these inductions have a higher risk of
ending in c-section. Contractions induced with pharmaceuticals are also more painful and often
result in the use of pain medications too early in the labor.

It is also possible to induce labor at home using a variety of natural techniques.
As with any form of induction, it's important to monitor the baby's well-being;
I do this with a portable continuous electronic fetal monitor.

Ideally, women who are expecting an early induction would see me for special preparation starting
at 28 weeks.  Even starting at 36 weeks gives you a much better chance of success.

For women who weren't expecting an early induction, there is still much good that can be
done with 5 days' lead time.  Even with one day's lead time, we can do some good.



VBAC Support

Finding an obstetrician who is supportive of VBAC is just the first step.
It's also important to address the reasons for the first c-section and to make
special preparations so that everything goes as smoothly as possible.
I have a special web page about VBAC Preparation.


Addressing Discomforts

As a surgical specialty, obstetrics doesn't address "minor discomforts".  Midwifery has a long history of
supporting women to help pregnancy be as healthy and comfortable as possible.




Holistic Prenatal Care

Many women in this area prefer to avoid pharmaceuticals, whether prescription or over the counter.
I've developed a large repertoire of holistic remedies that support overall health while eliminating
pregnancy discomforts and annoyances.  (These holistic remedies are included in the cost of care
for many clients; this helps me to avoid a a conflict of interest in selling supplements.)

GBS - Group B Strep - GBS - If it's important to you to avoid IV antibiotics during labor and birth,
I can provide early testing and alternative treatments to support your goal.



Emotional Support

Even the most sympathetic OB rarely spends more than 15 minutes with you at each appointment.
Sadly, the most sympathetic OBs are the busiest and so least able to provide the emotional
support that a pregnant woman needs.  My appointments are at least an hour long, and they
can be as long as needed, up to several hours.



My home office is in downtown Mountain View, CA.  I provide in-home care throughout the Peninsula and the South Bay area as well as the southern part of the East Bay.  My range includes Santa Clara and San Mateo County, and some of Alameda County: Atherton, Belmont, Burlingame, Campbell, Colma, Cupertino, Daly City, East Palo Alto, Foster City, Hillsborough, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Menlo Park, Millbrae, Milpitas, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Jose, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Saratoga, Sunnyvale, Woodside, I do not go up to the Skyline area.

Apple, Samsung and Adobe insurance plans cover my services very well, whether for homebirth care, supplementary prenatal care, in-home postpartum care for the mom and baby, or in-home lactation consulting. Many other insurance plans do, too.  The Google Anthem plan covers my services very well for supplementary prenatal care, in-home postpartum care for the mom and baby, or in-home lactation consulting, but not for homebirth

This . . . is about the profoundly important and sacred opportunity we have in bringing children into the world.
Research is now showing us that our society is a product of how we welcome and raise our children.  With love and connection, babies develop minds that are coherent and flexible, ready in turn to make compassionate and empathic connections with others as they grow.  As we learn how early relationships shape the structure and function of the brain, we are also learning to have a new appreciation of the wisdom of ancient cultures who knew to welcome the infant, even during early pregnancy."
   - “What Babies Want” video

I routinely provide care in homes within about 15 miles of Mountain View, California and will drive further by special arrangement.

My e-mail username is ronnie, and my domain is gentlebirth.org.  Of course, you need to put an @ sign between those two to make it work.  I'm making this somewhat cryptic because I've discovered that having my e-mail address on the web has made me the target for hundreds of spam messages a day.  So, I also have multiple layers of spam filtering built into my e-mail system. So if you send email and don't hear back from me within a day or two, please leave a voicemail message, too, at 650-961-9728.  Thank you.

Here's my contact information for anything besides my midwifery services.

My home office is in Mountain View, California, and I serve birthing families throughout San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties and parts of Alameda County.

Supplemental Prenatal Care

VBAC Preparation

Holistic Postpartum Midwifery Care for Mother and Baby

In-Home European-Style Postpartum Midwifery Care for Mother and Baby

You can learn more about many, many aspects of pregnancy, birth, postpartum, breastfeeding and newborns in The Midwife Archives - As a way of organizing my notes about information and wisdom shared on the various birth-related distribution lists, I created the Midwife Archives. Please visit those pages for answers to many practical questions and for an interesting perspective on the mystical side of birth.

Ronnie Falcao, LM MS is also doing business as Birthing Visions and Eternity in Bloom.