Mothers are choosing to let nature take its course and leave their baby’s placenta attached after birth.
Where? Well,
where else..?
According to midwives, the approach is becoming “relatively widespread” in the city, where the home birth rate is among the highest in the country.
It can take up to 10 days for the placenta to fall away – and mothers must carry around the matter with their infant while they wait for it to drop off.
Could be worse. Could be a LOT worse, as
David Thompson reminds us..!
Former yoga teacher Adele Allen, who had her son Ulysses (Ed: ...!!) by unassisted lotus birth at home, said it “just made sense” not to cut the cord.
*mystified*
She said: “The popular belief is that it’s bad for mum and baby – but it really isn't.
“After the placenta came out, we kept it in a bag next to the bed, still attached to Ulysses. We wrapped it in a cloth and we washed it every day.
“We didn't rub it with spices or anything though, so by the end it didn't smell too good. But after five days of lying in bed together it just came away naturally. It was lovely.”
If you say so...
Mrs Allen, 29, said the decision to go for a lotus birth two years ago had been “both spiritual and physical”.
She said: “It created a lot of negativity from family – but to me it just made sense.
“Our whole parental philosophy is about letting Ulysses let go only when he wants to. He still sleeps in our bed, for example. It’s a child-centred approach.
“It also keeps relatives from snatching the baby from you too soon, which I find intrusive.”
This kid's going to be a handful when he grows up.
If he ever does...
Husband Matt, 30, also a yoga teacher, said the couple had treated the placenta “almost like Ulysses’ twin”.
He said: “If you have a boy you are supposed to bury the placenta to the right side of the house to represent masculinity. If it’s a girl it should go to the left side of the house.
“Sadly we were living in a block of flats at the time so we just threw it off the end of the pier.”
Well,
of course you did. It's, errr, Nature's Way, right?
14 comments:
More 'VIZ' characters........
When did Brighton become Nutcase Central? It was always fairly louche and, certainly before WW2, genuinely edgy (cf "Brighton Rock"). However, something must have tipped it over the edge. After all, electing a Green MP and the Greens having most local councillors (if not a majority) indicates a serious detachment from reality.
Living proof that intelligent design is a crock...
And we're done with the sandwich....
Is spiritual the new term for fucknuts?
I thought the time-honoured earth-mother tradition was to eat the thing*, but presumably if this lot truly believe that "babies develop an emotional bond to the placenta", as the article claims, the result might be more than a little traumatic for all concerned.
*http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/101944.stm
(FWIW, I once taught a Ulysses; all I can say is that your concerns are, in my opinion, entirely justified...)
"I thought the time-honoured earth-mother tradition was to eat the thing..." ... but I suspect this lot of being vegetarians.
Bunny
From this we can take it that evolution isn't just about continuous improvement either.
It could have been worse.
In Adele Allen's case, I think her mother threw the child away and kept the afterbirth.
Always wondered what happened to that couple from the 'Joy of Sex' illustrations.
Always wondered what happened to that couple from the 'Joy of Sex' illustrations.
Was it the hairy armpits that gave it away?
how do all the other mammals manage?
"More 'VIZ' characters......"
Heh! Indeed...
"When did Brighton become Nutcase Central?"
And more to the point, WHY Brighton?
"And we're done with the sandwich...."
Yeah, I maybe shouldn't have cued that oner up for lunchtime... ;)
"I thought the time-honoured earth-mother tradition was to eat the thing..."
That was the old 'spiritual', this is the new hotness!
"In Adele Allen's case, I think her mother threw the child away and kept the afterbirth."
SNORK!
"Was it the hairy armpits that gave it away?"
Heh! Those are probably collectors items now.
"how do all the other mammals manage?"
Probably with fewer windchimes, dreamcatchers and scented candles....
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