About

Every birth is sacred.

No other event in a woman’s life encompasses such pain, joy, strength, vulnerability, and satisfaction. The work to bring another human into the world is imprinted in the hearts and minds of families and will be shared for a lifetime. Sadly, many women have traumatic birth experiences because of what was done to them, rather than the empowerment of what they did.

We believe midwifery can change that.

Beginning to Serve

A Sacred Nest was founded by Colleen Shulenberger in 2013. In the beginning, Colleen offered doula services with a mission to serve families all across East Texas with non-biased, evidenced-based support. Many of her clients birthed in a hospital setting all with their own unique birthing goals.

Colleen grew in her passion to serve her community and wanted to do more. In 2016, after an in-depth training with Marjie Hathaway, she began teaching birth education classes based on The Bradley Method. In 2017, she trained with Dr. Jimi Francis and The Foundation for MILK at the University of Texas at Tyler and became a Certified Lactation Educator. In August of the same year, she took an apprenticeship with Labor of Love Birth Center and began training to become a Licensed, Certified Professional Midwife through the National Association of Registered Midwives.

In October of 2019, Colleen met Rosetta Schwartz at a Mercy In Action intensive training hosted by The Birth House in Wylie, Texas. Rosetta was the Clinical Director at Edenway Birth Center and shared the same heart for women and families. Colleen felt called to start her own midwifery practice and called Rosetta a month later to ask if she would work with her in East Texas.

Growing into the Future

After much prayer, round table discussion, and cups of coffee, Rosetta joined A Sacred Nest as a partner in January of 2020. The little doula practice was all grown up. A Sacred Nest Midwifery & Wellness officially opened March 8, 2020 and supported its first Sacred Birth on April 2, 2020.

We believe that having a baby is a healthy, normal event that can greatly impact a woman, her family, and her community for years to come. That's why we're committed to providing evidenced-based, holistic midwifery care to East Texas. We focus on education, informed consent, and individualized care. We give the birthing woman back her role as the central decision maker for her health and the health of her baby. We know that when a mother is empowered, her family can thrive.

We are honored to serve the families of East Texas and look forward to meeting you!