Placenta Encapsulation- To do or not to do?

    So to start, I have to say that I love the medical world. I'm fascinated by all the amazing things that can be done with the human body, and how much progress is made in that field every year. In my personal life, I've had LOTS of interactions with the medical world. Emphasis on the word LOTS.

    Now, many of my friends are very into the natural medicine world. I don't judge or disagree, it's just generally a different approach than what I take. I personally seem to get better results with modern medicine than I do with natural medicine.

    With it getting closer and closer to my due date, I've spent a lot of time thinking about what will happen once he's arrived. How things will change, what we should prepare for, etc. One of the thoughts that haunts me is if I will experience postpartum depression, and to what extent. On both sides of my extended family, almost every single woman has experienced post-part depression to some degree or another. Both my mom and sister have not only experience postpartum depression, they've also experienced postpartum psychosis. Talk about terrifying! So I've got genetics working against me I think, which is no good. On top of that, I've experienced bouts of depression a few times in my life that needed medication to treat, so that's probably working against me too. SO.....all of that got me thinking. And talking. And researching. And I kept coming back to one thing:

Placenta Encapsulation

   So you may see that and wonder "what the heck?!? Is that what I think it is?!?!?". And my answer to you would be, well if you think I'm talking about getting my placenta turned into pills and taking them, then yes. Yes it IS what you are thinking. Now, some of you make shake your head in disgust. Others may have a look of terror on their face. But maybe a few of you are thinking that's great! Haha. At least I can hope, right?

    Now before those of you who have the look of disgust on your face get too carried away and want to vomit, at least I'm not talking about frying my placenta in a pan and eating it. Or tossing it in a blender and making a placenta smoothie. Yeah, those would probably make me have a similar look of disgust. But let me tell you about placenta encapsulation and why I think it may be a good thing for me.

    Here is a blurb from one of the many websites I've been looking at:

Did you know there is a supplement you can take after birth that:

• Is completely safe for your nursing baby?
• Can significantly decrease postpartum bleeding?
• Helps your uterus return to it’s pre-pregnancy size within a couple of weeks?
• Enriches your milk and ensures an abundant supply?
• Smooths out the postpartum hormonal “crash”?
• Can prevent or reduce postpartum depression, naturally and safely?
• Can be taken for PMS, Menopause, or other hormonal imbalances?
• Was made by your body, and is therefore able to specifically address your hormonal and physical needs after giving birth?
• It’s Your Placenta!

    I underlined and bolded the line about postpartum, since that is really the issue at hand for me. 

Here's another little blurb that caught my attention.

"Use the placenta to help with your postpartum recovery. Your own placenta, made into capsules, is incredibly nutritious and beneficial to you. Women who take their placenta capsules tend to have better postpartum experiences, avoid the baby blues, have an increase in energy, and an increase in milk production. Traditional Chinese Medicine has used placenta for centuries to treat issues such as fatigue and insufficient lactation, and scientific studies have bolstered the use of placenta for these conditions. Using the placenta for your postpartum recovery is a very easy and natural way to help you feel better after the birth."

    Doesn't sound too bad of a deal does it? If something helps, why not use it? Even if it does seem strange and "witch doctor-y" as one of my friends put it. Basically we would save the placenta after I deliver, and Ryan would take it to the "Placenta Lady", who would do all the magical things to it to transform it into pills. We would them pick up the pills and I would start taking them. It isn't much different than an herbal supplement, right? I'm pretty sure that as long as I don't google images of how it's turned from placenta (bloody, squishy, scary blob thing) into non-scary normal looking pills, I think I can handle it. I know it's not conventional per se, and not something that is publicly known about or approved of by the standard population. But I'm thinking that if it does in fact help me with postpartum, then it would be worth it. And if it does all the other stuff for me too, that's just an added bonus! 

   Have any of YOU had any experience with placenta encapsulation? Positive? Negative? I'd love to hear it!