​Inspired by some feedback from a recent client, I wanted to write up my thoughts on placenta capsules as "magic" or as something that will always prevent postpartum depression and anxiety.

This client asked us to fill her capsules only half full because she is sensitive to medications, herbs, etc. Here is what she had to say a couple months after her baby was born:

"As a follow-up, if you remember you filled my capsules 1/2 way and I wanted to fill you in on my experience. I took one capsule a day post birth for about 3 or so weeks and we (hubby and I) could certainly tell the days when I took them vs the days when I forgot to take them. I am no longer taking them now, however I can tell you HUGE improvement with PP vs my first time around with first child. It was pure hell with PP. This time, hands down, way better. I still have PP and PP anxiety, however NOTHING compared to my previous experience. That said, THANK YOU, this changed my entire experience of being a mom and being able to remember what actually happened vs it being a blur and sadness."

Placenta Encapsulation has grown a lot in popularity in the last few years. Six years ago when I gave birth to my second son it was an idea I heard about from my home birth midwives, but it wasn't a widely offered professional service. Now I estimate there are over 50 providers of this service in the Twin Cities alone! 

Over the 4.5 years that I've been providing this service professionally, I've heard a lot of scary stories about the ways people are handling this process. I've compiled this list of tips for encapsulators to try to educate everyone a bit more on how to do this process safely. 

Over the years I've tweaked and updated my own process as I've learned more and my certification with APPA (www.placentaassociation.com) earlier this year really reinforced that my procedures were sound and that this is a topic that deserves attention because this is a human organ we are talking about!

Here are my tips!

– Sanitizing all equipment is critical. Bleach is the best thing to use. Equipment should be soaked in a 10% bleach solution for 10 minutes. That means, if your sink holds 50 cups of liquid, you should put 45 cups of water in with 5 cups of bleach. 5 cups!!
– There really are no natural products that can be used as a substitute for bleach. Any other chemicals used for this purpose need to be on this approved list. They need to be effective against all blood borne pathogens, hep B, C, HIV, etc. There are wipes (like they use in hospitals) that can be used for wiping counters before and after the process.
– Counter space should be covered with a chux pad.