Hello and welcome to my site! Let me start by introducing myself. My name is Tami Reynolds, I am a full-time mother of two, a student at Canada College in Redwood City, and the College of San Mateo where I am completing my prerequisites in order to transfer to UCSF nursing program. -- Did I forget to mention I am a baby junkie! My immediate goal is to obtain a BS in nursing, and then further my education by completing a Masters program in Nursing and Women's Health. The culmination of my studies should blossom in the form of Nurse Practitioner/Midwife -- Here is where I feel I will be able to best fulfill the needs of women's health and wellness.
The choice to make a career change at this point in my life wasn't a hard one. While Corporate America paid the bills, it was seriously lacking the human connection that I craved. I found it increasingly difficult to achieve intellectual, and meaningful interpersonal relationships in the computerized world we live in. Moreover, I felt a need to make a positive difference in peoples lives. 
Since this epiphany fell on the heels of my sons birth in 2003, it only seemed natural to follow my instincts onto a new path and I decided to become a Nurse Practitioner/Midwife. I have always been fascinated with the birthing process and the transformation of women's bodies as they develop during pregnancy. In 2005 I was honored to attend the birth of my third nephew, Dalton, as a doula for my sister and her husband. -- The event solidified my goal for me, and finally at age thirty-one I could say, "I know what I want to be when I grow up."
In 2006 I enrolled in a (DONA) approved Doula Certification class in order to increase my knowledge of labor & deliver and to gain as much exposure to the field of women's health as possible. For me, becoming a certified doula seemed like a logical next step on my journey of becoming a Nurse Practitioner/Midwife. It offers me an opportunity to work at a personal level with pregnant women and their family members, and provides me with a natural segue into maternal neonatal and women's health. I enjoy the flexibility it offers me -- allowing me to continue going to school and having time for my family. Each experience is rewarding to me in the lessons learned, and I am in awe every time I see parents greet their new baby into their hearts. No two births are alike, and for me, watching women tune into their bodies birth rhythms, then watching their partners join in the dance is truly a magical experience. Although I had been a labor coach for several people in the past, I never knew there was a title for it and I never fathomed the importance and need for what a doula does.
I have spent a great deal of time during the past four years studying, researching, and learning about women's health and wellness, and the specific needs each aspect of it brings to the table. The further I get into researching the subject, I have come to realize that the medical side of caring for a woman's health is only a small piece of a much bigger picture. During my recent education I have had the privilege of studying midwives and doula throughout the centuries with a fantastic Anthropologist and Professor here in the Bay Area. I have always been interested in the science of medicine, but when I discovered the anthropology side to it I was truly fascinated.
I myself have been blessed with two beautiful children -- my daughter Jaqulynn who is twelve, and my son Ashton who is three. Both of their deliveries were very different and both reaped rewards beyond my wildest expectations. I feel I had great labors and deliveries, but I still wish I knew then what I know now. You can read more about my birth experiences under LABOR & DELIVERY STORIES as well as other birth stories from other moms and dads.
