Taylor Matakis
CPM, LM
About Me
Name: Taylor Matakis
Favorite Books: Anything Jane Austen, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, The Circle Series by Ted Dekker, North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell, Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth, Walking the Bible by Bruce Feiler, The Help by Kathryn Stockett, I tend to like most classic literature and is my go to when looking for a new book to read.
Favorite TV Shows: Psych, Doctor Who, Call the Midwife, Heartland, and any kind of cooking show
Hobbies: Spending time with the family, Knitting, Crocheting, Sewing, Hiking, Kayaking, Gardening, Tennis, Soccer
Favorite Foods: Venezuelan food, homemade Spanikopita, Falafel, and Fresh food from the garden.
Places I’ve Been: I have been to quite a few states, but have not yet been outside of the US. I have dreams of visiting Greece and Israel if I have the opportunity!
Background
My name is Taylor Matakis and I am a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM), having passed the North American Registry of Midwives board exam in 2019. I am also a Licensed Midwife in Minnesota. I hold current certification in CPR and Neonatal Resuscitation.
Growing up, I always knew I wanted to go into healthcare and had a big dream of becoming a doctor and didn’t even think about midwifery at that time. I was homeschooled through high school and was able to really cater towards my dream of being in healthcare- beginning college at 15 as a dual credit student, taking advanced science courses, and learning Latin so I could understand the medical terminology better. Throughout high school, my family became more naturally minded and looking towards natural remedies like essential oils, tincures, and homeopathy. My outlook started to shift so I started to pursue nursing once I graduated high school thinking that this might cater more to being able to take care of people in a way I would like. My mom then told me that I was going to have another sibling and that she would be using a midwife. I was pretty curious and went with her to her appointments and later to witness the birth of my little brother. I watched as the midwives calmly and confidently reassured my mom through labor and helped her navigate some of the complications she had during her delivery. I was really impressed by the way they moved from treating things naturally and then having the ability to use medicine when it was indicated. We all felt so peaceful and just a few days after the birth, I told my mom my plans to become a midwife.
New Birth Midwifery
Once I made the decision that I was going to be a midwife, I got to sit down with the midwives that delivered my brother and they pointed me in the direction of a midwifery school to attend and then told me to return to them to do an apprenticeship when I was ready. In July 2015, I started a direct-entry program called Association of Texas Midwives. It took me about four years to finish my academic portion and two and half years to finish my apprenticeship at Central Texas Birth Center where I attended close to 200 births as a student. I graduated in May 2019 and took the North American Registry of Midwives board exam in June 2019. I moved to Minnesota shortly after in July and started a solo homebirth practice a year later in July 2020. I gained lots of great experience learning about midwifery in Minnesota (it definitely has its differences), meeting other local midwives, and attending those families that allowed me to be a part of their births.
I met New Birth as a client first with my second baby and fell in love with the ladies that worked there. I saw their passion for training students and the way that they cared for the families that they served. When I was given the opportunity to join their team, I said it would be a great opportunity and a good fit for our family!
“I saw their passion for training students and the way that they cared for the families that they served.”
Personal Life
I grew up in Texas and moved to Minnesota after I married my husband, Matthew, in July 2019. We have been married for three years and have two little ones. Ephraim is two and half and Elisheva will be a year old in November. We are looking forward to making lots of new memories and hopefully growing our family in the future!