Sacred Placenta

Placenta Prana

Written by Master Mother Roaster Sara Harkness

The placenta is an amazing organ! Your placenta was with you to nourish you and grow you from the very beginning. In many cultures it is viewed as the baby’s twin. This is because not only does it share the sacred womb space with baby but it matches the genetic make up of the baby in a beautiful

perfect way.

What is the Placenta?

The placenta begins to slowly take form in early pregnancy. At around day five the trophoblast cells begin to form the placenta. At approximately Day 6 the cells begin to attach to the uterine wall. Soon after implantation the amniotic sac begins to develop (which will have 2 layers, the amnion and chorion). 

Eventually the placenta and the mother begin to make circulation exchanges, yet the mothers blood does not pass or mix with the blood in the placenta. The placenta and baby maintain a completely separate blood stream. The placenta is wise and works as a filter for the baby, picking elements from the mothers blood and using what is needed to pass to baby. Thus begins the beautiful connection of mother and child through the placenta. Intertwined from the beginning, communicating nutrients and love while remaining also separate and other.

A normal umbilical chord is made up of one vein and two arteries. The Vein carries nutrient and oxygen rich blood to the baby from the placenta. The arteries carry the depleted blood from the baby back to the mother. Chord length can vary for each baby.

The Placenta of Traditions

Throughout human history there are many different views of the placenta. The placenta has been depicted as many different animals. It has been thought to be the twin of the baby, an angel, a dragon and the tree of life.

Native American Navajo traditions would have the placenta and umbilical chord buried by the grandmother in a special place that might represent her dreams for the child. Returning the placenta to the womb of the mother earth. Similar traditions can be found across South America.

Hawaii has a sacred ground near the ocean where fathers would bring the placenta and place it in a carved space in the rock near the ocean so that it could be blessed and returned to the mother ocean.

In Bali, the placenta is believed to be the physical form the each child’s guardian angel. After the placenta has been birthed, they wait to cut the cord until the pulsing has stopped, displaying early wisdom of delayed cord clamping. After the cord has stopped pulsing the father will bury the placenta near the family door with inscriptions of blessings and stone grave marker resting on top.

"It is an important and Sacred act to honor the mother and all of her offerings. To honor the placenta is to honor the source and nourishment of life." ~Anni Daulter

Placenta Services

We believe in the power of the placenta, and as such offer a few different services to honor this power aspect of the birth story.

Benefits of Placenta Capsules

The placenta has amazing abilities during the postpartum period. It can heal, sustain and strengthen the new mother.

Traditionally Placenta Capsules are used to:

• balance your hormones
• enhance milk supply
• increase your energy

They have also been reported to help:

• You to recover more quickly postpartum
• to bring the body back into balance
• to prevent ‘baby blues’
• shorten postpartum bleeding
• assist the uterus to return to size
• increase postpartum iron levels
• may be used for PMS
• May be stored and used during menopause
• *Please note that while there have been studies done on the effects of placentolgoy it has not yet been approved by the FDA.

How it is done:
I use the Traditional Chinese Method (TCM) where the placenta is steamed in herbs, dehydrated, ground up and encapsulated.

I can encapsulate in your own home or in mine. I have a 24hour turn around time and can have the capsules ready 24hrs after pickup. You may then begin taking the placenta right away for maximum postpartum benefit. I will leave you instructions on dosage of placenta capsules.

I offer this service as a part of my Mother Healing package, or as a stand-alone service for $150.00

Placenta Blessing

For those who do not wish do the the encapsulation, I offer a placenta blessing service where I can create a Tree of Life print for you and then at a later time together we will do an honoring ceremony.

This is included in the encapsulation service.