Meet The Midwives

MICHELLE HERNANDEZ
Michelle Hernandez, CPM is a certified direct entry Senior Midwife. A direct entry midwife is trained by an apprenticeship with an experienced Senior Midwife, to attend low risk mothers who are expected to have a normal pregnancy, labor, birth and postpartum period.

Michelle became interested in midwifery after the birth of her daughter in 1986. She served as labor support for a few years before beginning her training as a midwife. Michelle received her training in Las Vegas, NV., apprenticing with several Senior Midwives in the Nevada Midwives Association. She has enjoyed an ever growing practice in the metro area since 1993. Michelle opened Community Midwifery Service in 1996 to provide homebirth services as well as provide a birthing cottage for those who wished to have a natural, midwife-attended birth but did not want to stay at home.

She was the OMA president from 1998-2001 and is currently the Educational Director for the Oklahoma Midwives Alliance Midwifery Study Course. Michelle holds the belief that birth is an instinctual gift that all women possess and hopes to help her clients find their untapped strength through the birth process. She strives to assist her clients in having the best birth possible by providing them with midwifery care or helping them to transition to a provider that best serves their individual needs.

Her special interests include water birth, nutritional counsel, aroma therapy, homeopathy and herbal medicine.

GAIL BROWN
Gail Brown, ND, CPM began her interest in midwifery in 1983. Her children were born in the hospital. Her experience was less than satisfying as she was very naive and the managed births were complicated. Those unfortunate experiences, however sad for her, make her more determined to prepare and provide good counsel for other mothers.

In 1984, Gail completed a midwifery apprenticeship in Arkansas, and the Association of Texas Certification program. Gail was a co-founder of the Oklahoma Midwives alliance in 1985 and served as President for three terms. She is a Senior Certified Midwife with the OMA.

In 1996 she merited the National Certification of Certified Professional Midwife. In 1998, she received the Naturopath Certificate with the Trinity School of Natural health. In 2011, Gail received certification for Craniosacral Therapy, which is a form of therapy created by an osteopath to gently work with the spine and the skull and its cranial sutures. Craniosacral Therapy can be used to resolve issues in labor, postpartum, and breastfeeding.

Gail believes that birth is a natural life occurrence and that women can birth their babies. She sees her role as a caregiver to the woman, to guard and educate, focusing on providing sound advice and good nutrition as the road to a safe birth and a healthy baby. Birth is the first step in the journey to map the distance between ourselves and parenting. It is the act of creating and living that bring memories and impressions that last a life time. Each family deserves the right to choose their birthplace and care giver. Midwifery and a home birth is a safe choice for low risk women. Midwife means “with woman,” and Gail loves being with you.

YVONNE SILBERNAGEL

Yvonne Silbernagel, CM joined the CMS family in 2005. She began her journey toward midwifery after the birth of her daughter. She was able to accomplish her goal of natural childbirth due to her knowledge and ability to advocate for herself even in a medical environment. Sadly, Yvonne saw that many of her friends were unable to do the same for themselves. She took her first step toward woman-centered care by becoming a Doula and advocating for women in a hospital setting. After finding out about the Monitrice program from a close friend, she decided to advance her studies to that level. She was then able to provide support to women in a homebirth setting as well as serving as an assistant to the midwife in the prenatal, birth and postpartum settings. Yvonne then progressed to the next stage and became a Senior Midwife, certified by The Oklahoma Midwives Alliance. She is currently working to achieve her CPM on the national level. Yvonne believes that every woman should have the opportunity to have the best birth possible in an environment where she feels empowered and secure. We feel fortunate to have Yvonne as a part of our care giving team. She has extensive knowledge of homeopathy, Bach Flower remedies and cell salts.

*Michelle and Gail’s photos by L. Lenae Photography
*Yvonne’s photo by Kristen Riley