Uses of Placenta

I know how things like this can get forgotten in the busy-ness of the early months and years with a new baby! At this stage, 17 months after birth, there are things that you can and probably can't do with your baby's placenta.

You need to consider that your baby's placenta is essentially a piece of flesh, similar in texture and keeping qualities to animal liver. I would not advise anyone to eat animal liver that had been kept for this long in the freezer, so I don't think that ingesting your baby's placenta at this stage, in any form, would be a good idea.

However, there are some other nice options that you could choose, to honor your baby's placenta. Many people bury their child's placenta in a significant place, and plant a tree that becomes special to the child. You may wish to have a small ceremony as you do this. Your daughter may even be interested in the fate of her placenta, and you can thaw it and show it to her before you bury it—and maybe to yourself as well.

Depending on how 'fresh' the placenta was when you froze it, you may be able to make a placenta print, using the blood from your baby that will also thaw with it. (Wipe it a little to ensure there isn't too much blood) Press the thawed placenta to a large sheet of good-quality acid-free paper—you may want to have a practice first—and allow it to dry naturally. Alternatively, you can completely dry the placenta and cover it with ink to make your print. A placenta print, which highlights the placenta's branching vessels, reminds us why it is sometimes called the 'tree of life'. See resources for more information.

Another option, even with a frozen placenta, is to cut off a piece of the cord and let it dry straight and naturally in the air over days to weeks. In some cultures (including Native American) a piece of this is given to the child in a small container, or sewn into a pouch, and worn as an amulet around the neck.

For more information read my articles The Amazing Placenta and Placenta Rituals and Folklore from around the World.

More about placenta prints:
Pregnancy and Childbirth Art Placenta Imprint Kit

For an in-depth look at the placenta, from placental psychology to lotus birth (non-severance of the cord), see the book Lotus Birth available at www.sarahjbuckley.com/shop.