Today we’d like to introduce you to Cara Grigsby.
Cara, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Ever since I was a child I have been absolutely facinated with pregnancy and birth. I have a degree in Medical Sociology with an emphasis on birth and death, and while I’ve had many jobs since college, the dream of working as a midwife was always at the top of my list. I gave birth to all of my daughters with licensed midwives in Oregon, and shortly after the birth of my first child started planning how I would and when I could start midwifery school. At the time, I lived very rurally and finding a clinical placement or traveling for school was not possible. I noticed that in almost all of the school application information they listed doula experience being helpful. Although I didn’t have a doula myself, I jumped head first into that training. I was able to support many families through their pregnancies and births in Central Oregon. We moved back to Knoxville, TN in the winter of 2017 and my doula practice took off. I loved it so much, and at the same time continued to feel the itch to be the one providing clinical care too. At the end of 2020, my youngest started pre-K at the same time as I was invited to assist a local home birth midwife. I was thrilled, but also anxious to see if I would actually enjoy the shift in roles. I LOOOOVED it. In the Spring of 2021 I started midwifery school and moved into the role of student midwife that fall with the midwives I was assisting. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, going to school, attending 4-10 births per month, being on call 24/7, and a mom of young children. At the beginning of August 2023 I attended my last birth as a student, having completed more than double the required number of prentalas, postpartums, and births. I am so thankful for my preceptors and the midwives that came before me who were willing to pass on their knowledge and skills. In October of that same year I launched my own practice, Yonder Midwifery. It has been the greatest honor to be chosen and trusted by so many families to walk them safely through the most tender and vulnerable times in their lives. It was a priveldge to grow my own practice and keep my client volume low, but the intensity of never being off call and doing it all alone is not sustainable. For years, my best friend, Kyndall Proffitt, who is also a phenomenal midwife, have dreamed of working together. In June of 2025 we made that dream come true. We both took the big scary step to step away from our own practices and joined together to create Solace Midwifery. We sometimes laugh, wondering why it took us so long, because all of our clients were always choosing between the two of us anyway! So many families have expressed that it felt like a dream come true to not have to choose between their two favorite midwives anymore! We now have a sweet and homey office in West Knoxville that also offers two birthing suite for folks who want to birth outside of the hospital, but who cannot or would prefer not to deliver at home. Having a two-midwife practice allows clients to really get to know both of their providers, because relationships are so important in midwifery care, and it also allows Kyndall and I to have a sense of work life balance. It feels so good to have a little time off call each month where I can make plans with my children, partner, or friends without having to say “unless someone is having a baby.” It makes me feel like I can do this deeply important work for years and years to come.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I became a single parent while going through midwifery training. While I am lucky to have a wonderful co-parenting relationship, it was a huge challenge as a student midwife. My apprenticeship was unpaid, and due to the rigorous nature of this work I was on call 24/7. This means that it is nearly impossible to have another job while training. I took on a couple of doula clients each month, assisted the practice with admin work, and drove for door dash to make ends meet. It was HARD. By the time I was able to pay myself for the first time as a licensed midwife, I had $37 in my bank account. I was hugely blessed by friend, family, previous clients, and even strangers who donated to a GoFundMe to help purchase the equipment needed to start my practice. We were able to raise over $2000 in just over a week.
Not only was it a financial challenge, but a logistical one, too. I have three daughters of my own (and now a 4th with my step-daughter!) Because people can have babies any time day or night, I needed 24/7 on call child care. Keep in mind that I was making just enough to house and feed us. I am so thankful for my girls’ wonderful dad who they are with every other week. On the weeks they are with me, my parents, friends, neighbors, and this particularly incredible duo of college girls (shout out to Eli and Alyssa!!) would be on call to come at the drop of a hat to be with my girls and keep their lives running smoothly. It is so hard for me to ask for help, and missing any time with my kids is excruciating. I am so thankful for the people who have stepped up to help and for my daughters who have such generous spirits. Its hard to learn how to accept your mom having such a demanding and inconsistent work schedule, but they have been the absolute best. I now have the support of my fiance, Stephen, who is the best mid-husband on the planet Earth. He is an incredible father and makes all of our lives better. The consistency he brings to our lives means that I have a partner at home that doesn’t bat an eye when I need to run out the door to a birth. He keeps our lives running smoothly and cheers me on every step of the way.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Solace Midwifery?
We provide holistic, comprehensive, evidence-based midwifery care for low-risk, healthy parents and babies. This includes fertility counseling, at home IUI, prenatal care, lab work, attending births, and both well-baby and postpartum care for the first six weeks. The midwifery model of care means that we take our time getting to know you and your family, appointments are not rushed, and informed consent is at the cornerstone of everything we do.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
Did you know that only 1% of births in the US are planned home births? We are the only industrialized country where midwifery care is not intricately woven into standard reproductive health care. Countless studies show that countries where midwifery is the main form of maternity care, maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality are the lowest. In the US, we have some of the worst statistics when it comes to health outcomes for pregnant people and babies, ranking alongside many developing countries. Those poor outcomes are more than 3x higher for black women and babies. In fact, we are in a maternity care crisis. We are the only high-income country with no federally mandated paid maternity leave, do not have universal healthcare (nearly 8 million women of childbearing age are currently uninsured), high cost of childcare, and have medical deserts all throughout each state. We desperately need more midwives, insurance to cover out-of-hospital midwifery care, and for midwives to be recognized at safe, necessary, primary providers for low-risk pregnancies. (a good pleace to start for some of this information is: https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2024/jun/insights-us-maternal-mortality-crisis-international-comparison)
As for something surprising about me? I’ve had so many kinds of jobs before landing in midwifery: crisis counselor, book store manager, and artist are some of my favorites!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.solacemidwifery.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/solacemidwifery/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61576977713827
