Sara Reimold 434-531-8005
BEYOND BIRTH SUPPORT DOULA SERVICES
  • About Sara
  • Doula Services
    • Doula + Bengkung Belly Wrapping
    • Postpartum
    • Prenatal Doula
    • Bengkung Belly Wrapping
  • Testimonials
  • Charlottesville Doula Musings
  • Contact Me
  • About Sara
  • Doula Services
    • Doula + Bengkung Belly Wrapping
    • Postpartum
    • Prenatal Doula
    • Bengkung Belly Wrapping
  • Testimonials
  • Charlottesville Doula Musings
  • Contact Me

Charlottesville doula musings

Why I Didn't Eat My Placenta (or encapsulate it).

1/22/2015

12 Comments

 
Picture
A lovely placenta, no longer needed by the baby! Courtesy of Jackie

Placenta Encapsulation is becoming quite popular. Well, by "popular" I mean that many women have at least heard about it. And in some circles, if you've had a home birth, it's almost assumed that you also ingested the placenta in some way. Maybe you put it in a smoothie right after birth to stave off excessive blood loss, or you or a doula meticulously cleaned, steamed, and encapsulated it so that the nutrients still contained in the placenta could be of benefit in the postpartum period. 


Read More
12 Comments

Water Kefir Jello for Pregnancy and Beyond

1/12/2015

2 Comments

 
snack for pregnancy
This is the gelatin I use, but Vital Proteins also offers grass-fed gelatin
My Mom used to tell me about how she craved jello when she was pregnant with my sister and I (twins). In fact, she craved it so much that she would wait until my Dad went to work, then make a package the "quick-set" way, and then eat the whole thing herself. I could tell that this seemed really strange to her...almost like she was guilty about it! But the more I started learning about the nutritional needs of pregnant women, the more I understood how WISE her body was!

Building babies takes a LOT of nutrients, including proteins and fats (she was building two!) Personally, I craved eggs during my first pregnancy, which isn't surprising now considering that I ate a mostly vegetarian diet. My body knew that I needed more protein than I was getting, and it told me so. Now that I know more about how helpful probiotics are for a healthy immune system and pregnancy, I'm sharing a recipe that has quality protein and probiotics in a tasty package.



Water Kefir Jello

Picturemy water kefir
I've made this one with apple cinnamon flavored water kefir, but you can use any flavor. Water kefir is a mild, broad-spectrum probiotic beverage that can be flavored in myriads of ways. Probiotics help to populate and balance the microbiome, which strengthens the immune system of mother and baby. For directions on how to make water kefir, see here.
 
You will Need:
  • 3 cups water kefir
  • 1/2 cup filtered or mineral water (or anything other than treated water)
  • 3 tablespoons gelatin (grass-fed)
  • a few tablespoons lemon juice or any other flavor you would like to add

Method:
  • sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan
  • After gelatin is dissolved, turn on heat to medium and warm until gelatin is melted, just a few minutes
  • Let the water/gelatin mixture cool
  • Take out the dish you want the jello to be in and pour in the cooled mixture, plus the rest of your ingredients. Stir well, then chill until solid. 

That's All! Simple and protein-packed. My kids love this also. Some individuals don't like the taste of the gelatin, so you might substitute some of the water kefir for a stronger organic juice. Just play around with it, and enjoy!




2 Comments

How Do You Eat This Stuff, Anyway?!

12/29/2013

2 Comments

 
Picturesee bottom of post for ingredients..
This one is kind of a quickie. I'm going to get back to the "pregnancy interventions" series later this week, but I thought that it might be helpful to give some tips on HOW to include some "sacred foods" from these traditional cultures into your preconception or pregnancy diet. Not all of us are ready to jump into liver and onions; I know that I wasn't!!

It's okay to go slow, but including at least some of these foods can only be helpful to your body and to your baby. And don't forget Dad! Cultures that prized these foods also included the father in the preconception period; he was also expected to eat liberally of whatever food was prized in fertility for his particular area. I'm going to start with homemade bone broth. Broth is incredibly nutritious and healing, and may even be palatable if you are coping with morning sickness in your pregnancy. Please keep in mind that the quality of bones is important; healthy animals will produce a more nutrient-rich, tasty broth. Buy local or pastured as much as possible, especially if you will be using the bones.



Read More
2 Comments

    Author- Sara

    I look at birth from the perspective that our bodies are wonderfully made, and if we really believe that and work with the birth process and nourish our bodies properly, they will function optimally, most of the time!

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    November 2019
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    November 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    June 2013

    Categories

    All
    Birth
    Charlottesville
    Doula
    Health And Nutrition
    Homemade Broth
    Labor
    Natural Birth
    Pregnancy
    Pregnancy Nutrition
    Sacred Foods

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.