I’m sure you’ve heard about it before … and if you haven’t … you heard it here first!! The question is … would you eat your placenta? And if you are going to … how would you do it??? What do you think about this controversial topic?? Do you agree with the health benefits?
Here’s my take … a few years ago, I heard a story of a friend of a friend who got her placenta picked up at the hospital, dehydrated and turned into pills. For some odd reason, I loved the idea. Maybe because it was different, radical, or something I had NEVER thought about doing before … but I remember thinking to myself “when I have a baby I’m going to do that” … not even knowing WHY someone would eat their own organs. Does that make me sound like some kind of sicko? Maybe haha … Anyway, when I did end up getting pregnant, I looked into it through friends and the trusty old internet. I found that while there was ‘no scientific evidence’ to prove the results, there were claims that eating your placenta after birth could …
- Increase milk supply
- Balance hormones
- Ward off postpartum depression
- Replenish depleted iron
- Increase energy level (I have TOTALLY noticed this!!)
- Assist uterus to return to pre-pregnancy state (I HOPE SO!!!)
- Reduce post-natal bleeding
- Speed up recovery time
- Prevent signs of aging
I was sold, I mean what did I have to lose? Other than being made fun of around the house … which didn’t last long once I threatened to sprinkle my placenta in the next meal!!! I don’t get grossed out easily and I love the idea of holistic medicine. I’m the girl who used to make avocado and raw egg hair masks & put molasses in my coffee for a year hoping it would reverse my grey hair.
It’s been a little over 14 days since we welcomed Leo into this world and you’re probably wondering ‘how do I feel’? Well … I think great!?!?! I mean I have nothing to base it off of, this is my first babe … but I feel good!!! If you’ve noticed on my Instagram and Snapchat, we’ve taken on A LOT in the last few weeks (looking back I’d probably agree with you … a bit too much) the adrenaline is a real thing!! We’ve had NON-stop company (something I did not expect) and while we are SO grateful for the love, I would say less company is something I could have handled quite nicely!!
Other than that we’ve gone out for dinners, lunches, we’ve gone camping and taken Leo out several times during the week. It’s not my energy that has surprised me (I’ve always been a bit of an energizer bunny) what has surprised me is …I feel ‘different’!!! I mean obviously so, I am a freakin’ mom and I have now realized that EVERYTHING in my life has just changed … but what is REALLY different is how I handle stress and emotion. I don’t know if it’s because of the placenta, or just because Leo completes me, but I’ve noticed I handle stress and emotion WAY differently than I used to. I haven’t talked much about this before but I used to deal with anxiety on a daily basis. Too many phone calls, emails or just too much stimulation and I lose myself. The last 2 weeks I’ve run into a few situations where I KNOW typically I would be breaking down or getting upset … but I find myself remaining calm or articulating my emotions WAY better than I used to. I feel ‘calmer’ and more rational than the pre-Leo Jill…
As for the above claims that we found when researching on the internet???
- Milk Supply: I’ve been feeding great and Leo’s latch while painful, has been awesome! Our milk came in on Day 3 and we were thrilled!!!
- Energy: Like I said I’ve always had that going for me, but for the most part my energy is great! Until about 7pm …
- Body: My tummy has gone down quite a bit, not sure if it’s from the breast feeding, how to keep synthetic urine warm or the placenta … or just genes …
- I still look old. lol…
So, would I do it again??? … absolutely!!!! In fact, I’m about half way done my little bottle and I’m already wishing I had more!
xo
Jilly
My husband and I are starting to try and your blogs/snaps/posts have been so helpful for me. Thank you for sharing your life in the realest way possible. (ps – the bathtub snap last night was hysterical)
Hi Jill,
I encapsulated my placenta for baby #1 because there is such a strong history of depression in my family. Since there are no risks or negative side effects, it was also a no brainer for me. I also only have one bub (but another one on the way) so I have nothing to compare it to. I will absolutely do it again! Nothing to lose and not even that expensive. It’s a little non-traditional but we are the only mammal that doesn’t eat our placenta…I have to ask why not?! I also threatened to sprinkle it in my family’s coffee. No PPD for me. I had great milk supply. Energy was good for me too. We will see how it goes with #2. So glad to hear your happy with yours.
Heidi
Good for you Jillian! I did it with both my boys placentas and never regretted it. I can’t compare with others but I felt great and my milk supply was awesome, I dropped weight quickly, I had tons of energy, and my emotions were in check (well most of the time lol I did cry a bit more than usual). Oh, and the nipple pain will go away I promise! Congrats again on the healthy arrival of baby Leo. He’s adorable. Enjoy every moment because (as I’m sure you’ve heard) it goes by fast! I feel like yesterday I gave birth to my oldest and now he’s 3 1/2!!!
Just had to say how much I appreciate you sharing this and everything else about your pregnancy. It’s so nice to hear about the real stuff! Love your honesty, Jill. & congrats on little Leo!
I know this has nothing to do with the placenta capsule, but I’m intrigued by the gray hair/molasses comment. Did it actually work? 🙂
Liquid colloidal minerals took my greys away… I was astounded. Hair (from a month long coma) was falling out in massive handfuls, that immediately also. I mean immediately.
Spellcheck… that *stopped* immediately also…
What brand did you take and how often? How long did it take to see results?
Is there a cost involved in having this done? Where is it done?
Yes, what was the cost? And what company did you use?
In Calgary it is around $200. I’m assuming it would be similar in other areas.
I know a lot of people benefitted from placenta but just putting it out there that it was terrible for me! My hormones were awful during pregnancy though and looking back I had some depression while pregnant. I also had morning sickness and no appetite most of the time! I felt great after I had my babe and then started to placenta and felt like I did while pregnant for the few weeks I took it. I decided to stop and all my symptoms went away and I went back to feeling great and oh so so SO happy!
Sounds like it worked awesome for you but wanted to share my experience for others. Your babe is so adorable and being a mama is the most amazing thing! My sweet babe is almost 6 months and I can’t believe how fast it went by. Enjoy every second!
I had my placenta encapsulated and loved it! When I started to run low on pills I talked to the doula and she said put the powder of 2-3 pills in a amber glass jar with a little syringe top and add 80 proof potato vodka and just shake well daily for about 2 weeks for it to dissolve and then you have plenty more to take that way!
Really trying to understand the logic here. Dilute placenta powder in vodka in order to…have more diluted placenta vodka? Can you explain the science behind this? So confused!
I did not get mine done, I wanted to but did some reading and asked my Dr and learned some surprising things….first it is not done in hospitals (in Alberta anyhow) and totally unregulated so the dehydrators probably are not getting completely disinfected in between, let alone sterilized so there is a chance of catching blood borne illnesses. I was also told jerky takes days to dehydrate, but the pills are done in no time so maybe the placenta isn’t totally dehydrated and could make you quite ill. Anyhow I opted not to but totally see the draw to try.
Yes my concern as a maternity RN is the regulation of the process of encapsulation. Do they use the same dehydrator for multiple placentas? Do they sterilize equipment between to a medical level? I think these are all valid questions to ask the person who you are giving your placenta too if you plan to dehydrate and make into pills.
Great post! Our documentary is all about this very topic so it’s wonderful to read someone’s first-hand, personal experience with the decision-making process as well as what it was like to go on to do it.
I know SO much more about this now and wish I had this knowledge when i had my babies 4 and 8 years ago. I’m convinced it would have helped me with post partum. You GO with that placenta eating, girl!
Love this Jillian! Something to think about when I have my first babe!! Ps. You do not look old.. you look amazing!! I’m almost 25 and probably have almost as much grey hairs as you do lol!! Love your little family! Xo
Hey Jillian! So I am not a mother but I am finishing up senior year of my undergrad then going on to med school! I was wondering where you got it encapsulated at? I have some obstetrics experience from shadowing and learned about eating placenta and can confirm that the results are unknown, but have heard some stories about the places that do make the pills. Just curious as to what company you used, for my own future knowledge!!
I was looking into this as well and personally came to a different decision and chose not to, also based on feedback from my midwife. I didn’t have any PPD or milk supply issues, and had really good energy levels postpartum, so each person is different.
To each their own, no judgment, but I did want to share this recent post by Dr. Jen Gunter that has some additional info about it for anyone else. It’s too bad there isn’t more research into many women’s health related supplements and methods.
https://www.nytimes.com/ask/answers/should-i-eat-my-placenta
Hi Jillain, I am from Kamloops BC which company/ who did you go through to get your placenta dehydrated and put into capsules?
Xo Congratulations on the birth of your new little bundle of joy she is so beautiful!!
Who do you go by to have his done??
Jillian you should also ask your midwife to make a tincture from your placenta. The temperature ask the same way as the pill but in a liquid form and will last you your lifetime. You would use the ticket sure at times of PMS or when you go through menopause. You were wishing you had more placenta pills, this will be the same
My daughter megan had her son Leo in July and he was born by c-section 8lbs 13 oz so absolutely beautiful apple of nanna s eye and papa of course and my daughter is such an awesome first time mommy although she had full intentions of doing the placenta encapsulation unfortunately Leo pooped inside of her uterus making the procedure not possible but he was born healthy no jaundice and such a great addition to our family congrats on Leo and now Annie