[Kontessa]

I think I am losing my dear mind. I am so worried about PPD and having the 3-4 day after birthing hormonal shift has had me in tears over breastfeeding issues, I did it. I had DH make me a placenta smoothie. Small piece frozen and then blended into a berry smoothie. Not so bad but I swear the after taste was steak....<br><br>
I feel like a freak. I keep telling myself mammals eat the placenta and for good reasons and what makes me think I am smarter than nature to not do so.<br><br>
Still.... raw.... and something I grew so linked to my baby seems weird. I try and remember it was her friend in the womb that helped her grow and now by eating it that it will keep helping her and me.<br><br>
For some reason though, I feel ashamed, like I can't tell most people I know about it. Being on medication would be more acceptable it seems.<br><br>
My DH feels oddly about it as well but fully supportive as he knows how bad PPD can be and knows how helpful this should be. Still weird though. He has asked me every day since the birth if I wanted one and really asked a lot today with how hard things have been on me. Amazing homebirth but breastfeeding.... the pain is amazing and I rather give birth every 2 hours then feel this. Trying to figure out what is wrong...<br><br>
Anyway, I was in hopes others here might be supportive of this and help me feel less like a freak.

 

[Sharlla]

i did mine smoothie style. i used protien shake mix and milk to cover up the taste.<br><span style="font-size:xx-small;"><i>Posted via Mobile Device</i></span>

 

[buckeye_bebe]

YOU ARE AWESOME!!!<br><br>
Did you save any to make an infusion? I did, and it is a wonderdrug. I even did an experiment to prove it to myself. I am so glad I did it this time around!<br><br>
Way to go! And congrats!

 

[mamaw/two]

Do you have any breastfeeding support groups or LLL's in your area? Maybe a lactation consultant could help with the bfing pain.<br>
As for the placenta smoothie, good for you!! You don't have to tell anyone that you did that, it is a very private issue and if it makes the ppd better (and I suspect it will), then it's totally worth it and much better for you and your baby than the drugs are.<br>
My sister had quite a bit of ppd after the birth of her first son, it did go away on it's own but she didn't want to repeat the experience. When her second was born she talked to her midwife and she gave her an estrogen patch, she said it helped some but the ppd was still there. I also had some with my first and it got worse with the second and MUCH, MUCH worse by my third. After I had my 3rd, my sister had her third and had research the placenta smoothies and decided to do it. I took her placenta and made her the smoothies and she said it worked great and she didn't have ANY ppd after that birth. I got pregnant with my 4th and knew that I couldn't handle it if the ppd was the same or worse after that child, so I made the decision to have the smoothie. My dh is very mainstream and I had never mentioned what my sister had done, I had told him that I had read about mom's eating the placenta and he had such a negative reaction that I decided not to tell him. My 4th baby was born in the hospital, I had a cooler with ice there and signed a waiver to get MY placenta. I told dh that I planned to plant it under an apple tree. My sister came and got it and made up about 1/2 of it into 5 different smoothies. I drank the first one about 12 hrs after he was born and over the next week had the other 4. He will be one yr old next week and I have had almost no ppd, it is much better than it was after my first child<img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/img/vbsmilies/smilies/joy.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="joy">. Last week I got my apple trees and under one of them we planted the unused 1/2 of the placenta! I have not told anyone about the smoothies, it's none of their business, it has been 100% worth it to not go through the monthes of ppd, and I don't feel guilty at all for taking good care of myself. If I am blessed with another child <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/img/vbsmilies/smilies/praying.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="praying">, I will do it again!<br>
I hope you can find a way to feel ok with it and maybe you can find more support on boards like these, instead of people irl. Maybe right now you could concentrate on getting the bfing going better, gl to you <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/hug.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="hug">s

 

[broodymama]

I had wicked PPD after DD1, it was horrible. I did 3 days of smoothies after DD2 was born (made and brought to me by a wonderful friend), and the rest was dried and encapsulated. It really helped me, and I plan on doing it again this time. DH will have to make the smoothies this time and he's a bit "ick" about it, but it's better than the PPD again!

 

[Kontessa]

Thank you mamas for the support.<br><br>
I was a bit emotional today and not myself so another smoothie tonight. I think this will be the way of things for a bit. I will drink them in hopes they help and keep reminding myself I am supposed to consume it.... and not doing so is the un-natural thing.

 

[katieroo]

are smoothies better then capsules? I am scared that when I am Finally able to have a child that I will have PPD witch is why Im lurking here, but i was planning on encapsulating the whole thing...is that not as helpful?

 

[lili-chan]

My husband cooked up my placenta for me the day after our daughter was born. He froze half of it (to preserve later) and cooked up the other half with onions and red wine. I thought it was really delicious. I ate small portions of it with rice every day for the first week after our daughter was born.<br><br>
We also bought "drops of life" from the local herbal apothecary.<br><br>
My intention in doing this was to preempt any post-partum depression, and I think it worked. I did have moments of overwhelm or fears that I can't do it all and in those moments I would take a dropper-full of "drops of life" and soon the intense difficult feelings would pass.

 

[lili-chan]

We considered encapsulation but decided not to because the cost was $200. One benefit of encapsulation is that the capsules will be available weeks or even months later when you want the support.

 

[MrsJez]

Don't feel weird! I had a placenta smoothie after the birth of my son. I had a hemorrhage. It helped with my hemoglobin. I have to say though, I haven't heard of it for postpartum emotions. Just remember that it's helping you. No need to second guess yourself!