When Mary Rowlings was pregnant, she looked forward to the day when her baby would be born. She imagined how much fun it would be to look into her child’s eyes, make him laugh and smile, and couldn’t wait for the big day when he’d reach for her and say, “Mommy!”
Her labor and delivery wasn’t unusual. The process went pretty smoothly and she proudly walked out of the hospital with the baby and her husband.
Postpartum Depression is Common
But what happened next was a nightmare. Mary fell into postpartum depression – and it lasted for over a year. During that time, she wasn’t able to share the joy about having a baby with her own baby, or her family.
The doctor’s prescriptions couldn’t pull her out of it and only when she began using Chinese herbs did they seem to make a difference. And life went on for Mary.
When Mary announced that she was pregnant again to her husband, he didn’t talk to her for a week. He couldn’t bear the thought of going through the postpartum depression once again with his wife.
Animals Knew the Truth Long Ago
Mary got busy and began searching the internet for ways to make this pregnancy different. She came across a practice that had been used by Traditional Oriental Medicine doctors – and cultures since the beginning of time: consumption of the placenta.
The placenta feeds and nourishes the developing child in the womb. The umbilical cord is attached to the placenta and remains the conduit of life for the embryo.
Placentophagy is actually common; animals have been doing it since the beginning of time. Farm animals do it, and dogs and cats would also do it (if you let them).
It’s no wonder why: the placenta is high in iron and protein, is a good source of progesterone, and contains substances that stimulate the healing and return of the uterus to normal size after birth. The placenta is also a great source of stem cells, which become any cell the human body needs.
Stem cells are touted as the latest emerging frontier for medicine because of their regenerative and restorative properties. In an adult, stem cells are cells that reside in the bone marrow which turn into other cells that then become cells destined for the immune system or other organs and tissues.
Scientists believe that stem cells could create new pancreas tissue for diabetics, new spinal cords for paraplegics, new livers or kidneys for those in need of transplants, and even contribute to reversal of the ageing process.
How to Prepare a Placenta
Mary’s research uncovered that the placenta could be steamed in a pot with fresh ginger as the Chinese recommend in traditional Chinese medicine. After steaming the placenta, it’s sliced in thin layers and dehydrated, and then pulverized and encapsulated. This is the safest way to consume it, because any viruses or bacteria are killed during the process.
Another method of consuming the placenta includes making placenta soup after birth and sharing the soup with the entire family. The placenta is treated as any other meat such as chicken or beef when making the soup. The placenta is diced after the membrane is removed, and thrown into the soup pot along with some vegetables. The problem with this method is that the benefits of the placenta aren’t experienced for more than a day or two – until the soup is gone.
Why Placenta Consumption Works
Mary discovered that her body undergoes major hormonal changes after the baby is delivered. Once a mom’s body detects that the extra hormones are not being synthesized from the placenta, it has to go into overdrive to try to create hormonal balance. With the stresses of pregnancy on nutrient stores, it can be too overwhelming, and the body goes into postpartum depression.
Taking placenta pills after pregnancy is thought to be one of the best ways to prevent postpartum depression and moodiness that result from the lack of hormonal balance.
Mary’s second pregnancy went well and this time she had no postpartum depression. She enjoyed her baby’s every oooh and ahhh.
And if you ask other women who have gone through the process, you’ll find out that their results were so good that they would do it again and again after their next babies.
You don’t have to prepare the placenta yourself, either. You can simply call a certified Placenta Encapsulation Specialist and have them do it for you. The best way to find one is to go to . You’ll find out a lot more about the placenta on this site and find it fascinating!
