Is it stupid...?

[Astraia]

To not have herbs for placenta expulsion/ hemorrhage on hand?

I've done the research, I know what I want/need to buy, but I think I might be out of time. I'm 37 w 4 d today. I'm anticipating baby will come pretty close to his due date (though that might come back to bite me later!)

I fully intended to order them online in November/December.. then DH's work hours were cut, I decided I'd wait a bit for our finances to steady out. Then Christmas, New Years, lots of trouble with registration on the site I wanted to order from, and now DH's work hours have been cut even FURTHER....

I can buy them locally, for about 3 times the price. With money tight it seems really stupid to A. buy them online and have them get here too late anyway and/or never need them or B. buy them locally and end up not needing them.

My first birth the placenta was out in less than 10 minutes, bleeding was in the low to normal range, everything went fine.

But is it stupid to plan a UC with no "just in case" herbs? Retained placenta probably isn't that big a deal (I honestly, despite my research, cannot find any information on what is "too long" when it comes to placentas- but I can always transfer to hospital if need be) but hemorrhage is probably a different story.

Opinions, please?

[RolliePollie]

I don't have any herbs either. I'm about a mile from a hospital and plan to eat a chunk of my placenta to prevent/control hemorrhage.

[Astraia]

Originally Posted by RolliePollie

I don't have any herbs either. I'm about a mile from a hospital and plan to eat a chunk of my placenta to prevent/control hemorrhage.

I'm about 30 min from the hospital (worst-case scenario, it's closer if there's no traffic) but I do plan on eating some placenta- regardless of hemorrhage.

I'd forgotten about the whole placenta thing for hemorrhage, though. Good point!

[Ottbabies]

I plan on having herbs/tinctures on hand but I did read that the best is to cut a piece of placenta and place it in your cheek. cant seem to remember the link......

[ann_of_loxley]

I don't think its stupid. If that is something you feel comfortable with (and we all know what its like when money is tight!) - then go with what you feel is right!

[Happiestever]

I don't think it's stupid at all. As long as your placenta comes out everything should be okay because then you can just put a chunk in your mouth. I have herbs but I plan on doing this before I take the Shepherd's purse.

And BTW I am so excited to have another mama due around the same time as me also planning a UC. I wonder who will have their baby first? You are expecting baby to arrive on time, I OTOH am expecting a late arrival. Makes for some cheap entertainment. Haha

[Astraia]

ann - my gut feeling is that it's stupid to buy them because everything will go perfectly. But maybe it's wishful thinking, sometimes it's hard to tell! Even months ago when I was researching what I wanted, my mind kept going back to how unnecessary it all was. We'll see, hopefully I'm right.

happiest- yay! Glad for the company! It's a race - who will be born first?!

And yeah, I don't like tinctures... think they taste pretty gross... so I was going to do everything I could first and the herbs would be a last resort. If I planned to take them regardless it'd be a different story, but it's not part of my plan.

[redmach03]

I don't think its stupid at all, whatever makes you comfortable with then go for it! Nothing wrong with being prepared!

I plan on eating a chunk of my placenta too and hopefully this time encapsulating it... My DH isn't so taken with the idea but then he isn't the one who has to eat it!

[zoebird]

i didn't have any on hand, so no, i don't think it's stupid to not have any on hand.

unless you truly believe that you'll need it, in which case you should get it, and if you don't, i think/feel that you're "taking your chances".

might be stupid then. ;D

[thefreckledmama]

I don't think it's stupid. I think as long as you know what to watch for, and what does and does not fall into the range of acceptable when it comes to blood loss and such, then you're fine-especially if you're planning on eating some of the placenta.

[ScarletBegonias]

another "i don't think it's stupid" here too. i think that instincts have a lot to do with birth, and if you are listening, they usually don't steer you wrong. my instincts were telling me with my up/us with ds that i didn't need them, based on dd's birth, and i was right. i don't feel like i need them this time either, but if i start to feel like i do, i will get something homeopathic probably.

[Jane]

First line for bleeding after placenta is out is rubbing the uterus firmly, so you've already got that "on hand" as it were. And, if baby is willing to nurse that soon, you'v got that, too. I honestly haven't seen herbs work any more quickly than the body does itself, but that's my bias on herbs. I don't think it's foolhardy to avoid the herbs.

[Astraia]

Thank you all for your input. I've been feeling like it was unnecessary, but I didn't want to do something that was foolhardy (even though I know the UP/UC community encompasses a range of comfort levels).

I'm pretty sure that whole sentence made no sense, but... thanks. I'm feeling more at peace with myself, and that's always important!

[MyBoysBlue]

I UC'd without herbs and didn't use the placenta either. Just nursed DS, didn't need anything else.

[PreggieUBA2C]

With my first UC (ds3), I began to bleed too much a few hours after the birth, so I went to my spice cupboard and put powdered cayenne into a few gelatine capsules, took them with water and when they opened up in my stomach, the bleeding stopped within a minute. I mean it stopped completely- for a day or two (ugh, pg brain, can't remember), then resumed at very little.

Some mamas here have said that cayenne can cause bleeding, but my understanding is that if it were used as a supplement, it has that effect over time, but if taken in large quantity suddenly, it stops it. It also starts a stopped heart if taken under the tongue, I've read. I think it's supposed to be a tincture for that though.

Anyway, I've not had herbs before and likely won't this time either, but it's early, so I won't decide until I need to. If cayenne or other hot pepper- I think scotch bonnet is recommended for tincture over cayenne- might be an option for you, they can be pretty cheap relative to herbs.

ETA: no bleeding troubles at all with ds4 and I didn't take placenta either time. When I may have needed it with ds3, I didn't because it was stained a deep green and grossed me out...

[Kidzaplenty]

With all my HBs/UCs I have thought about getting some herbs to keep, JIC. But in the end, I have never had any on hand.

[amberskyfire]

Not stupid at all! I didn't have any on hand. I figured there was really no point since taking a bite of the placenta works better than any herb anyway and it also works much faster.

My baby was wrapped tightly in her cord when she was born and my body was expelling her so forcefully, that the placenta pulled of quite a bit. I started to hemorrhage but didn't realize it. Once the placenta came fully out, there was a lot of blood and I lost my hearing. I took a bite of the placenta and held it under my tongue before swallowing it and literally a few seconds after I did this, the bleeding stopped almost completely. I had extremely light lochia, almost none at all.

Next time, I don't plan on having any herbs on hand either. The placenta is all I need

[Astraia]

Originally Posted by amberskyfire

Not stupid at all! I didn't have any on hand. I figured there was really no point since taking a bite of the placenta works better than any herb anyway and it also works much faster.

My baby was wrapped tightly in her cord when she was born and my body was expelling her so forcefully, that the placenta pulled of quite a bit. I started to hemorrhage but didn't realize it. Once the placenta came fully out, there was a lot of blood and I lost my hearing. I took a bite of the placenta and held it under my tongue before swallowing it and literally a few seconds after I did this, the bleeding stopped almost completely. I had extremely light lochia, almost none at all.

Next time, I don't plan on having any herbs on hand either. The placenta is all I need

That's awesome! Thank you for that story. It's amazing how our bodies work together like that, isn't it?

[gabeyho]

eh, I haven't gotten around to it, either. I did manage to get some Angelica when I ordered some Rescue Remedy a few weeks ago, but just couldn't bring myself to spend the money on anything else and now it's too late for me, too! I also figured I could just take some placenta if I have to.

[PreggieUBA2C]

My placenta took two hours last time. I wasn't bleeding then/yet, but if I were and seriously, and had only planned to eat placenta, I'd be in trouble.

I posted earlier, though, and I haven't had an emergency pack ready before either.