Okay, maybe not love, but I have definitely developed an intense appreciation for her. My 1/2 hour appointment today extended an extra hour as she talked to me about my depression, made me a homeopathic remedy, gave me really long list of supplements to start taking and basically took a lot of time to make sure I was taken care of. That’s pretty excellent for a health professional don’t you think? I’ll let you know what they are if I notice them working and then maybe other people who are in the middle of this will get some help too. (If they start working my husband may also fall in love with our midwife, because he misses me and isn’t all that fond of the totally other person I become under the influence of pregnancy hormones.)
My favorite part is that starting the last month of my pregnancy they come to visit me every week, and after the baby they come to my house until 4 weeks after to do their follow-up care. There’s nothing like lying in your own bed and having them come to you while you get to rest and bond with your baby. (Did I mention I’m planning a home birth again? I was in the hospital the first time, and it is misery by comparison to having your baby at home.)
And then she talked to me about eating my placenta. And I said okay.
Okay, I’m totally laughing to myself picturing the collective reaction to those two sentences. The thing is the placenta holds many minerals and hormones that just happen to be the exact things that woman with Post Partum Depression don’t have enough of and desperately need. All other mammals, including non-carnivores eat their own placenta immediately after giving birth. Research has shown that there is a biological reason for this. Humans used to make a practice of eating the placenta; we just haven’t for the last few centuries, maybe even less. Anyway, I have a history of PPD and I already knew all of this because I learned it in the first month I ever took of Doula training many years ago. So I agreed to try it.
Of course, I intend to dry it and put it in capsules, and disguised in yogurt smoothies, because I don’t think it’s all that appetizing on it’s own, call me crazy, oh wait, you probably already did.
Hey, I’ve reached the point that I’ll try anything if it promises to keep me from feeling like shit all the time. Wouldn’t you?
6 thoughts on “I Love my Midwife!”
My mom gave birth to my 3 youngest siblings at home and we planted the placenta under new rose bushes in the back yard. And then ate the roses. (No, kidding…)
That is awesome you have such a good midwife!!
Mary, mom to many
kidding about eating the roses, that is…
I was blessed to only have home births, two of them. I met a midwife before I was ever pregnant (before we adopted, in fact) and that changed my fate. I loved all of my midwives, so I know how you feel!
I also had both of my kids at home with the same midwife for both and I too loved her. She made everything perfect and safe and lovely. Congratulations on finding a good one.
Hmmmm maybe I should crack open one of the ones that I have in my freezer. Do you think that freezer burn kills the effectiveness? What did your midwife tell you to take? I want to know I want to know.
I became the Official Crazy Woman when I asked to bring my placenta home so I could plant it….mind you it sat in the freezer for three years until last week when I finally put it in the garden. Glad to see I’m not actually crazy, and other people do the saem thing!
Comments are closed.