Rituals and Medicine

By Alison Bastien

feb 2004

The root “medi” in the word “medicine, means middle, or mediator. The Placenta is a mediator between the life flow of mother and baby.

Native Americans called it “ the grandmother”. Other cultures have called it “baby’s cake”, “babys home”. The Ibo of Nigeria think of it as a “ dead twin”, deserving a decent burial. The Hmong of SE Asia call it “the jacket”. Others have called it “the tree of life”: If you look at a placenta, you can see thedelicate tracings of veins like branches in a tree, and the umbilical cord,winding serpentine, has even been speculated as the origens of the biblicalstory of the Serpent who lived  by the Tree of Life in Eden. Origionally, theserpent symbolized wisdom, not evil, and the umbillical cord´s coursing oflife-blood to and from the mother and baby represented  the transmission ofspirit knowledge on how to inhabit the physical body.

Throughout time andspace, people have performed ceremonies honoring the life-giving functionsof the placenta.They have buried placentas in gardens , under trees, in specialspots anchoring  or “ grounding” a new soul to the earth. In modern delivery rooms I have seen the delivery table outfitted with whatlooks like a plastic slide that goes directly from the end of the deliverytable into a trash can !

Previous issues of MT have run articles on making art prints from

The placenta, as well as the concept of lotus birth, ( letting the cord fall fromthe placenta naturally, in its own several-day long time.) Here I would like tomention the Chinesse custom of making medicine. Actually, the Chinese useplacenta as one of many ingredients in various formulations. The one Id liketo share here is only the placenta itself, made into capsules known as “Zi heChe”. For nearly 5,000 years, the Chinese have considered the placenta to bea substance that tonifies the liver and kidney meridians, raises Essence,nourishes the blood, and aids lactation. For those in the West this translatesamong other things, to mean it is helpfull for strength, anemia, to regulate theperiods, speed recovery after childbirth, provide immune support, and help

regulate the autonomic nervous system.

The placenta is rich in nutrients,hormones, immune builders ( stem cells too !) indeed, it helped build a body.In my “modern”practice, I use it like this.

After the birth, I will either make the Zi he che while Im still there post-

partum, or take it home and stick it in the fridge or freezer, until I am morerested and have the time. Although some women make a stew or smoothie or some recipie to eat the placenta “ fresh” after birth, this Chinese recipie callsfor the placenta to be dried, and is taken in small doses over time—ie: in gelitan capsules .. Heres the basic recipie:

Wash excess blood off the placenta, remove cord and membranes. Thinly Slice into 1/8th inch strips, as thin as you can get, and place on a cookie sheet. ( I have come to put foil on the sheet first, as sometimes excess blood is tough to get off the sheet). Place in the oven at the lowest possible setting. “Cook” for several hours, until crispy dry. It smells sort of like liver as it cooks. Then, grind to a fine powder in a morter and pestle, blender, or coffee grinder. Place this powder in size “0” gelitan capsules, available by mail, over the internet, at many local health food stores, etc. Bottle, or place in a clean zip-lock bag, and

Label clearly with the name of the woman whose placenta it is, date birthed, date made into medicine, and any other data you wish. Standard dosage is 2 capsules 2 to 3 times a day for two weeks postpartum to help milk flow andregain strength.

It is nice to save some aside, for the baby , if he or she becomes ill. It is

also good medicine for anxiety or unease around maternal separation times, such as when the child first goes to school, or is weaning, or mother must go away. You can open the gelitan caps. and sprinkle the contents in thier food,cereal, beans, soup, whatever. In these cases, the contents of one capsule twice a day for a week or so is fine.

When you cut off the cord, you can also return it to the parents to plant it in the ground, under a tree, or to dry it in the sun and place in a medicine pouch to be presented to the child at adolescence, as part of the childs spirit

Medicine.

In Mexico, where I live, and where the roots of traditional medicine share much from the Chinese, midwives also make placenta medicine. They will take the fresh blood from the placenta, and chop up some of the flesh, and make a tincture by filling a clean glass jar half way with the blood/placenta, and halfway with 90 proof vodka, filled to the top. This is stored for 6 weeks, Shaken daily, then strained and bottled. It is given for similar uses mentioned already, but also prized as a tonic for women going through menopausal difficulties, 10 to 40 drops in water, two or three times a day.

In these cases, They advise one to use only the placenta of a “first time mother” who has been in excellent health during her pregnancy.

For those concerned about this being a blood product, and thus potentiallytransmitting infectious diseases, do not use it!. The Zi he che pills, on theother hand, are only given to the woman and child themselves, and fur-thermore, is cooked to a dry and crispy state, so I have no concerns. I wouldbe extra carefull in the manufacture of the menopausal tincture, however. If you freeze the placenta, to make the medicine later with the woman herself, be sure to thaw it completely before begining the preparation.

Many women would like to see or participate, but are too busy in the emmediate postpartum. This is why its fun to invite the mother who had her baby most recently before this mother to come help make her Zi he che, and then this mother, later, when she has more time and focus, comes over to help make the next new mothers medicine. It is a very bonding experience.

For people not interested in ingesting the placenta, I also offer to keep it in their freezer or mine until they are ready to bury it. This can be a party, a ceremony, or a very private act. Some women would rather not deal with it at all. Sometimes I am gifted anonymous placentas from the local clinic to use when I teach midwifery classes.

This is where the midwives garden comes in. I have a spot in my garden

where I plant the placentas nobody wants, or when a couple has no permanenthome or garden , but wishes to bury it. I plant each one with my ownlittle private prayers, then plant some flower seeds, so it changes from year toyear. I know of another midwife who plants a tree over each, and now has a beautiful orchard! Or you could plant a rose bush over each, and create a rose garden.

These things are small ways to affirm our lives. That women´s lives matter. That birth matters. You dont have to do these things constantly, or make a big show of it. Share the ideas, do what feels right when it does.

One last thought: A few years ago, I was with a woman who wished to both eat her placenta and make capsules. She had made a special minestrone-like broth in advance. After the birth, I cut about a third of the placenta into chunks and stir-fried it, then added it to her broth. When served the soup, she encouraged her mother, husband, and two beloved dogs to all have a spoonfull. They were a bit reticent ( except the dogs) but agreed. To my jaded, vegetarian eye this at first seemed sort of wierd,  and I was hoping she wouldnt ask me to join in. It was 2 or 3 in the morning, in the magical  half light between dusk and dawn, and as they each took thier spoonfulls, smiling into each others eyes, in thier

home filled with the miracle and mystery of new life in thier midst, I

suddenly had a deeper appreciation of the concept of Holy Communion—

As they each took the “ flesh of my flesh, and drunk of the blood” , of the new Mother and baby, each family member became literally and figuratively a part of one another, and made the new life a part of thiers, a part of the Holiness of Spirit meeting matter and transforming.