Let's talk placenta's

[KindRedSpirit]

What are your plans for your placenta?(be it in your womb still,or in your freezer now...)

I've got a dear friend lined up to make me some "strawcenta" smoothies for the first 72 hrs post partum to minimize bleeding and hormonal rollercoaster rides....I got the recipie from the UC recipies sticky,if anyone is interested.

My last one my mom and I dried and ground into powder and capules,but I've still got most of it, as taking it returned the prenatal insomnia I had in that pregnancy.

We've planted a bit of the last one too.But the tree died in the drought last summer


On a different note,does anyone measure or weigh the cord and placenta?Why is this not a normal practice?We have pictures of both dd's placenta's and dd2's was almost twice the size of dd1's!Interesting......

What about your plans?

[ecoteat]

We just took Phoebe's placenta out of the freezer and planted it under an apple tree this afternoon. OK, my husband did it because we wanted to get it in the ground while it was about to rain and I was too tired to forfeit my nap when Phoebe went to sleep. I had thought we would be more ceremonial about the whole thing, but I guess when it comes right down to it, sleep is so precious right now that other things seem less important.

We planted a whole orchard just before the birth (THAT was a hoot! Between a nine-month pregnant lady and her husband who threw out his back, it's amazing they are still standing!) and I'm looking forward to picking those apples someday with Phoebe (if the trees live long enough to bear fruit! Pesky deer!). One of those trees is her special tree, but the whole orchard will always be special because its life started the same time as Phoebe's.

[birthdancedoula]

We're having another Lotus birth for this babe but once its detached it'll live in the freezer for a year and then be planted under the baby's special tree.

[guestmama9906]

Eating a piece as soon as I have baby, freezing the rest for smoothies.

[KindRedSpirit]

birthdancedoula-I'm glad you mentioned lotus birth.Do you have any advice/techniques to make it easier to keep placenta attatched?I kept the last one on for a few hours,(which is why we dried it into capsules,rather than other options)and it was very inconvenient and even stressfull.(Of course,I was tandem nursing,and the climbing toddler was a bit of an issue.)I had a hard time feeling comfortable about where to put the placenta,how to arrange it conveniently and comfortably,etc....any advice?

[alexisyael]

I ate a piece of mine (warm and raw) right after the birth and it is now in the freezer awaiting planting at our new house (we move in late June).

[birthdancedoula]

Originally Posted by KindRedSpirit

birthdancedoula-I'm glad you mentioned lotus birth.Do you have any advice/techniques to make it easier to keep placenta attatched?I kept the last one on for a few hours,(which is why we dried it into capsules,rather than other options)and it was very inconvenient and even stressfull.(Of course,I was tandem nursing,and the climbing toddler was a bit of an issue.)I had a hard time feeling comfortable about where to put the placenta,how to arrange it conveniently and comfortably,etc....any advice?

After rinsing the Wharton's jelly out (dh does this w/ the help of our mw), the first night we wrap it in a dry dipe and swaddle it right along w/ the baby. After rinsing and salting the next day I put it in the placenta bag I made, again wrapped in a dipe. By the third day its usually ready to fall off so we keep it pretty loosely wrapped but still in close to the baby to avoid pulling at the umbillicus. With each Lotus birth I've had a giddy toddler eager to hold his baby brother...swaddling the placenta "package" w/ the baby helps makes for one bundle so there's no worry about toting around the placenta.

What I just described has worked really well for our last two Lotus births but this time I'm going to try using a Cozy Cocoon for swaddling and see how that does.

[beansavi]

We froze it initially, then... On the 40th day after birth, we planted it in the yard with a hydrangea bush over it. That bush is LUSH!

[luckylady]

I had mine dried into capsules, which I am taking. No PPD as of yet!

My placenta was HUGE and there was also a blood clot in mine the size of a grapefruit - aparently I had a placental abruption we didn't know about. Scary. My midwife said, "Well, all's well that ends well." uh, yeah.

The lady who made my capsules dried the cord into a heart shape, which really grosses out DH.

[Peppamint]

I have two in the freezer and intend to plant them someday, but haven't yet.

I'm pretty sure ds' placenta was a lot bigger than dd2's placenta, but I'm not for sure. It would have been cool to weigh and compare them! I have no idea what dd1's placenta looked like, they took it away right away I guess.

[mamacatsbaby]

Mine is in the freezer, awaiting plantage.

[Brinda]

Mine was donated to dh's search and rescue team to help train cadaver dogs.

[Peppamint]

Originally Posted by Brinda

Mine was donated to dh's search and rescue team to help train cadaver dogs.

Wow, that's gotta be the most interesting placenta story I've heard yet!

[dharmama]

Originally Posted by mamacatsbaby

Mine is in the freezer, awaiting plantage.

:

We'll plant in the fall following a dedication ceremony at our church. Last time my whole extended family came and everyone tossed a ceremonial shovel-full of dirt into the placenta hole. My grandfather, who is in his late 80's shook his head and declared that his family has gotten weirder and weirder with each generation while people were shoveling. But he still shoveled when his turn came!

Haven't decided what kind of tree we'll plant yet. Anyone else who hasn't planted yet know what they are going to plant?

[JayGee]

Mine is still in the freezer too. We're going to plant it in a large container with a special bush or tree. That way we can take it with us when me move (which we'll most likely be doing next summer).

[flowmom]

After the birth I had small pieces of the placenta blended in cold V-8 juice (tomato-vegetable juice). I couldn't taste anything at all.

[guestmama9906]

I had a piece raw after the birth and made a smoothie out of a big frozen chunk this am.

[momonthebeach]

Mine is planted with a naval orange tree in the front yard.
Katie

[purpleheather79]

On a different note,does anyone measure or weigh the cord and placenta?Why is this not a normal practice?We have pictures of both dd's placenta's and dd2's was almost twice the size of dd1's!Interesting......

What about your plans?[/QUOTE]

My placenta is still in the freezer. We did weigh it (3 lbs!!!) and I took pictures. We may end up having it examined to determine if the twins are identical. Ultimately I plan to plant it in our backyard under the dogwood tree.