Placenta Encapsulation: My Personal Experiment and Experience (Part 1)

P is for Placenta Encapsulation: My Personal Experiment and Experience (Part 1).

Yes, you read the title right - Placenta Encapsulation.  No, this isn't some new type of workout program.    Yes, it does have to do with eating, or in this instance, encapsulating the placenta.

Why Placenta Encapsulation?

After the birth of my two daughters (who are now 17 and 4 years old), I experienced a lot of the typical after birth issues that many other moms experience, such as moodiness and being overly tired. However, it wasn't until my 4 year old was born that I experienced Postpartum Depression (PPD), which not only was in part of the lack of sleep, but the anxiety and demand (which I placed on myself) of not having a good milk supply.  The PPD and low milk supply, which both could have possibly been attributed to my hypothyroidism, was not a good combination for me.

With my recent pregnancy, I started to hear more and more about women choosing to eat their own placenta to help with PPD, milk supply, and energy levels.  Needless to say, I was intrigued, but was in no way too thrilled with the thought of eating my own placenta.  

How to Ingest Your Placenta?

There are two options if you are wanting to ingest your placenta:  kept in the refrigerator/freezer and cut up and mixed with smoothies or by dehydrating and encapsulating.  I am choosing encapsulation just because the idea of eating raw meat/organ - especially placenta - is something that I personally just cannot do and may not be able to keep down.  As a former vegan, it is still hard for me to eat meat on certain days, so eating anything raw that isn't a fruit or vegetable is out of the question.

Since I was choosing to dehydrate my placenta and consume it that way, it would only mean that I would need one important piece of equipment - a dehydrator.  It would also mean that I would have to actually look, touch and even smell my placenta.  Now, I will be the first to admit that I am a very squeamish person and the idea of even looking at an organ that came out of my body is something that would result in some not-so-good consequences.  

 

Luckily, my Midwife was able to give me the names a Doualasthat actually offers placenta encapsulation as one of her services.  Not only that, but she was close to where I live and will actually come to the hospital to pick up my placenta, encapsulate it and deliver it to my house for an affordable price.  

Benefits of Consuming the Placenta.

The main thing that you may be asking right now is why would you want to eat your own placenta? Trust me, I asked the very same thing before I started doing research.  Also, let it be known that this is something that is routinely done by many women in China so this isn't something that new mothers recently started doing - it has been around for thousands of years.

Some of the benefits of ingesting the placenta are:

• More energy 
• Replenishes iron levels
• Lessens post-natal bleeding
• Helps the uterus return to pre-pregnancy size
• Increased milk production
• Helps postpartum depression 

Downside of Ingesting the Placenta.

Just as there are reasons that a new mother should/could eat their own placenta, there may be reasons that not every new mom can ingest their own placenta.  I have read numerous studies and asked many new mothers in various groups that I am a part of as to the benefits of eating their own placenta and most, if not 95%, have been positive.  However, there are some women who had the exact opposite of some of those reported benefits:  increased moodiness, more post-natal bleeding, anxiety, and even too much milk production.  

An Experiment in the Making.

Now that the research has been done, a Douala who will encapsulate my placenta (and a husband who is happy he doesn't have to touch, see or even smell the placenta), all I have to do now is wait on the birth of our new little one - which hopefully should be within the next week.  I expect that within 3 days after giving birth that I will begin ingesting my encapsulated placenta starting at a low dose (1 tablet 2 to 3 times per day) and go from there to see how my body reacts.  My hope is that it will react in a positive manner, but that is still to be determined.  

What about You?

I am curious to know if you, or anyone you know, has eaten their own placenta or is considering doing so after the birth of their child?  If so, how did it make you feel?  

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Resources:

http://placentabenefits.info/articles.asp