If you're thinking about, do it! I did it and I feel like it probably made a huge difference. I only have one birth so far so can't say how I would have felt without, but everyone I've talked to who did it with one birth and not with another said the capsules made a massive difference. I have a history of serious mental illness in my family and though I've never had any problems myself, that family history means I'm at high risk of PND. I had a raw placenta smoothie a few hours after birth (wasn't gross at all, just looked and tasted like a fruit smoothie). I was amemic after birth (but not before) and I think that helped a lot to start to bring my iron levels up because placenta is really rich in iron. And then I started the capsules on about day 4 or so. I did start to feel really anxious and depressed, which is typical of the baby blues that start about day 3. But it felt like a bit more than just ordinary sadness or exhaustion. This was around day 3 or 4. By the end of that week, I felt fine again after a couple days on the placenta capsules. Who knows what would have happened without them, maybe I would have still felt fine. But I'm glad I didn't have to find out. I also had lots more energy and didn't seem to feel tired like my friends who had babies around the time I did. I definitely think the placenta capsules made that possible. Oh, and I had SPD, and that went away completely after birth. There is some relaxin in the placenta, but it's not massive amounts and I've never heard of anyone who had SPD after birth that was related to eating their placenta. SPD can last for years after birth for some people, but it's usually because they have an underlying misalignment that doesn't get fixed (btw, chiropractic or osteopathy helped my SPD a lot).
I was so happy with it that I've now trained as a placenta specialist, so I can do encapsulation and other natural remedies for other mums. And I'll do it again next time I give birth.
It's not for everyone, but realistically placenta is used in a lot of pharmaceuticals and high end cosmetics so it's quite possible you've already ingested or rubbed someone else's on your face. That to me seems kinda gross. People freak out about placenta encapsulation or other remedies, but that freaks me out a little! Actually if you dispose of your placenta at the hospital because you don't want to encapsulate it or take it home with you, likely it will be sold or 'donated' for a reciprocal 'donation' from a pharmaceutical firm, and used to make stem cell injections used to treat spinal injuries or wrinkle cream or whatever. It's one of those weird things that most people don't know. So even if you don't want to eat it and like I said, it isn't for everyone, maybe at least consider taking it home and planting it in your garden under some flowers or a tree for your baby. It seems kinda creepy that it might just get sold to some company when it's nourished your baby for 9 months.
To the OP, since you're in the US, check out: https://placentabenefits.info/
PBi is the main organization that's popularized placenta encapsulation in the U.S. You should be able to do a search and find someone near you who can do it for you.
