New Look!

Diva/Mama has a new look! I switched hosts to WordPress after researching various blog options. I hope I didn’t lose anyone in the migration! This is just a basic look right now, but it will evolve to greatness (as soon as I find the time to make it so).

There has been action behind the scenes – I just haven’t had a chance yet to sit and write it all down.

I am leaving today for the gorgeous Willamette National Forest in Oregon, where I will be immersed in Nature and emerge rejuvenated. I will work on some writing while I am gone, so look for updates here starting June 4th.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend, and may your days be blessed.

Jodi Selander

Placenta Benefits Seminar

I will be giving a free seminar on the spiritual connection to placenta, and the benefits of placentophagy for women during postpartum and menopause. Open discussion following brief presentation will allow ample time for questions. Interesting conversation with free goodies – join me for a fun, thought-provoking evening.

Placenta Benefits Seminar
Thursday, May 24
7PM
4634 S Maryland Pkwy, Suite 101
Las Vegas, NV 89119

See you there!

Anne Swanson to go on nationally-syndicated radio show

Anne Swanson will be interviewed on the Mancow Show at 6:45AM tomorrow morning, May 17. From my understanding, this is a “shock jock” type talk show (main demographic is male age 18-36). If you would like to call in support of Anne, the number is 888-2-MANCOW. Let’s bring this case to the attention of the nation!

Thanks, Anne, for putting yourself out there. Men need to know that it benefits them to have the mothers of their children take placenta capsules! I have had lots of dads say they call the placenta capsules “happy pills”, and gently remind their wives to take another dose since they can tell when she doesn’t take them.

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Update:

Anne went on the show, and I think it was a success! She was able to make the point that she didn’t want to EAT her placenta, but wanted to take it in capsule form for the health benefits. She pointed out that many of her hypnobirthing clients had remarkably positive stories after having their placentas encapsulated, so she wanted to experience the effects for herself.

Listen to the show! The segment of interest comes on about 2.5 hours into the show (at 2:34:50, give or take a second or two).

Injunction filed, and fund set up

Anne Swanson, owner of Hypnobirthing Las Vegas, filed an injunction today to stop Sunrise Hospital from destroying her baby’s placenta against her wishes.

The mother who was rudely denied access to her baby’s placenta (yet promptly billed for the cost of delivering at North Vista Hospital) has decided not to file an injunction, as her placenta has also been ruined for encapsulation by careless staff. She explicity requested that the placenta be placed in the freezer until she was able to proceed with the court order as they demanded. When she called today to verify that they had indeed saved the placenta, she was told that it was still in the refrigerator. Since her baby will be a week old tomorrow, the placenta has now been rendered nearly useless, since the beneficial hormones she planned to utilize via the capsules dissipate over time. She cannot justify the fees to file an injunction to save it when she can not use it for its intended purpose anyway. She is holding open her option for a lawsuit in the future, and said she will definitely join our cause and add her name to the growing list of women fighting for change.

Anne would like to make sure that we proceed with her case in a way that will be best for women overall. Allowing Sunrise Hospital to destroy her baby’s placenta at this point would render all future legal action moot. Therefore, she needed to go ahead and file an injunction, effectively buying us more time to explore the legal options open to us.

The cost to file an injunction is nearly $200, even with a team of lawyers donating their time, efforts and energy for free. As a result, I have created a fund to help Anne with these legal costs. If we raise an excess of money beyond what is needed for Anne’s case, the remaining funds will be used to help offset legal fees for women who are forced down the same path as Anne in the future, and to fuel efforts for legislative relief from this issue.

If you would like to help our cause, please send your donation via PayPal to LegalizePlacenta -at- PlacentaBenefits -dot- info, or click on the Make a Donation button.

If you believe that a woman has a right to take home what she created and birthed, which sustained the life of her child in her womb, and which would naturally be born still attached to that child…

If you believe that it is wrong for a hospital to claim possession and complete ownership of a woman’s placenta once it is born and the umbilical cord severed…

If you believe that, then please get involved in this fight.

Spread awareness by emailing your friends a link to this blog, write letters to the editor at the Las Vegas Review-Journal or the Las Vegas Sun newspapers, write to our local legislators, write to hospital administrators, call media outlets to tell them you want to hear more about this situation, educate people as to the natural use of placenta starting at PlacentaBenefits.info – do whatever is within your power to do, but please do something. Outrage without action is useless.

If you are a pregnant woman in Nevada, call the Unit Manager (sometimes referred to as the House Supervisor) who is over the Labor & Delivery floor at your hospital of choice and notify them immediately of your desire to take your placenta home after its birth. If they say they will release it to you , get that in writing before you walk in to deliver your baby. If they say they need to hold it for a certain number of days, ask if they will place it in the freezer for the duration of the holding period, then get that in writing.

If they tell you they will not release your own baby’s placenta to you after the birth of your child, get that in writing, and then contact me. After you get their denial in writing, and you really do want to take your baby’s placenta home, tell them you will be going to another hospital that will respect your wishes. YOU PAY THEM for their services – you are a customer and deserve to have your wishes respected. You would not go back to a restaurant where the staff openly mocked your requests or acted like you were a silly, foolish woman for asking a question; charged you full price for the experience of being within the walls of their facility; and then honestly felt that you had no right to complain after they denied your request because it’s their “restaurant policy” to do so. I would expect you would choose another restaurant, even if it is a few extra miles down the road.

We’re talking about the birth of our children, mamas. You have a choice, but you need to make that choice before you go into labor. Unfortunately, once you are within the walls of a hospital, it has been proven time and again that your opinion and desires for your birth experience do not matter as much as you would think.

Another Mama is denied her placenta!

Another Las Vegas hospital has decided to align itself with Sunrise Hospital against mothers. North Vista Hospital today denied a mother’s request for her placenta, citing health concerns. She told them she would be willing to sign whatever forms they wanted her to sign that would absolve them of liability should they release it to her. She offered to subject herself to HIV and Hepatitis tests to prove that she, and thereby her placenta, does not pose an infectious disease risk to anyone. They refused, and instead responded that they would not release her placenta without a court order. They then gave her until May 15, less than one week, to do so.

Interestingly enough, this is the exact same date that Sunrise Hospital gave Anne Swanson to respond with a lawsuit bofore threatening to destroy her placenta.

I’m curious -  Are hospitals not businesses, dependent upon their paying customers for their survival? Are pregnant women not a considerable source of income for these hospitals?  Do they feel that intimidation, bullying and threats are going to make them seem welcoming and supportive of women and families? Perhaps a boycott is in order… let them feel the ramifications of their actions in their wallets. They need to realize that women have a choice as to where to birth their babies, and we women have a strong desire,  NEED, to birth our babies where we feel safe and confident that our needs will be met. There are many hospitals to choose from in Las Vegas. Even better – there are many competent midwives here who will provide the personal care and birth experience that women deserve.

A hospital that attempts to bully women into submission and has the arrogance to think that they control  the contents of her womb should realize that women will not just lay down and take the abuse for the pleasure of  subjecting their bodies to a hospital’s policies.

As a side note, I just searched Sunrise’s website with the term "maternity".  It came back with a list of helpful links for pregnant women. I’ll list a few of the gems here:

Longer Lasting and More Severe Maternal Depression Increases Risk of Child’s Depression
Anxiety During Pregnancy May Increase Child’s Risk of ADHD
Depression Negatively Affects Mothers’ Interactions With Their Infants

For Pete’s sake, give these women their placentas!

 

Online Petitions Created

I have created two new online petitions for you to sign, so you can add your voice to the growing roar of opposition over hospitals having the  final (and only!)  say in what is a woman’s property.

Release Placentas to Mothers
We would love to have a strong showing of national and global support for this issue, and your name counts!

Create NV State Law
This petition is for the Nevada legislature, and should only be signed by residents of Nevada. We would like to use this one to create a state law giving mothers the right to take their placenta from the hospital. If you are in NV, sign both!

 These petitions do not count the 30+ signatures gathered in person at the rally Monday.

Thank you for your support!

Blessings,
Jodi Selander
Diva/Mama 

Rally is ON!

We are on, folks! Please come down to Maryland Pkwy, between Sahara and Desert Inn this morning at 10AM. We will meet in the Office Depot parking lot, across the street from Sunrise hospital. I just got off the phone with the Metro Police Dept, and he said we didn’t need a permit for our rally as long as we’re not blocking traffic or the sidewalk. So let the pedestrians pass, protesters! He also mentioned he’d seen the article in the newspaper, and wished us luck! Thank you Lt. Dennis, sir! We are pleased to have your support!

Show your support for a woman’s right to ALL of her products of childbirth! Sunrise hospital responded, and cited numerous errors in the facts of the situation, so they are incredibly misinformed (ie. ignorant, obstinant, arrogant… ok, I’ll stop now).

See you there!!

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Update on Monday, May 7, 2007 at 09:53PM

The rally was a wonderful success! I’m sending a HUGE blast of gratitude to everyone who took time out of their busy schedules to come stand with Anne and myself today. I loved seeing all of the mamas, dads and kids gather together for our cause, which we estimate to have been 30-50 total. I feel very blessed to be part of a community of forward-thinking, positive people who believe that we can make a difference in our world when we stand up against injustice, in whatever mode it presents itself. Thank you for putting your energy toward positive change – and that applies to all of you who could not be there physically, but were united with us in heart and spirit. It was felt and appreciated.

I’ve uploaded some pictures from the rally to the photo gallery. Channel 13 news was there, and ran segments at 4:00, 5:00 and 6:30. I’m going to see if they broadcast it again at 11, and will post links when they become available online. The Review-Journal reporter, Annette Wells, came out to follow up with us again as well. I am very grateful for all of the promotion this has received, and it will hopefully spread the word about hospital policy in regards to a woman’s right to the property of her own body. I am also hoping that more women will discover and utilize the amazing benefits of their placenta(s).

Women do not give birth to trash; we create beautiful human beings that enter our world accompanied by a powerful means to heal and nourish our bodies through the amazing transition to motherhood. When we are fully ourselves again, we can then save the remainder for our next major change of life transition that occurs at menopause.  Something this powerful must be worth saving. We live in a sanitized society enamored by all things clean and pretty, but we really need to give the placenta another look in a whole new light and learn to see it as the beautiful, powerful, magical path to wellness that it is.

I am obviously still buzzing from all the positive energy we generated! Sending blessings and gratitude for a wonderful day. Thank you for your part in making it so.
Jodi Selander
Diva/Mama

Update on Tuesday, May 8, 2007 at 10:17AM

In the news:

The RJ printed a followup piece on Anne’s story.

There’s a link to some video footage on Channel 13’s website under Top Videos: Women Protest Sunrise Hospital over placenta.

Review-Journal article

The article on the situation regarding Anne’s placenta came out in the Review-Journal today, in the Sunday paper. I am so grateful to see that Ms. Annette Wells portrayed us as normal folks with a valid issue. I’m not too keen on a placenta being called a "nutrient-filled sac", but you can’t have everything. Give it a read!

 Making pills from placentas

 

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Rally Signage

We want to have some fun, clever signs to display at the rally Monday. If you are interested, I’m hosting a sign-making party tomorrow morning over coffee, tea and muffins.

Sunday, May 6
10 AM – noonish
Jodi’s house 

Email or call 947.0879 to RSVP and get directions.

I’ve created a Google group (link to the right) that I will use for emailing notices. Please sign up if you would like to be kept apprised of the situation as it develops. I have no experience with Google groups, so do bear with me as I work out the kinks.

Bring whatever supplies you think you will need, but I will be here with some basic supplies and doing my best to churn out creative promotional materials. If you would like to make your own, we have the following suggestions (printable PDFs to follow ASAP).

My Baby, My Placenta

Placentas are not trash!

Placenta = Health, not Hazard

Prenatal care: $3000
Hospital Birth: $8000
Baby & PLACENTA: PRICELESS

TAKEN:  One PLACENTA
REWARD for its return:
HAPPY and HEALTHY MOTHER

PLACENTA and BABY are connected for a REASON:
They BOTH belong with their MOTHER

Severence Pay:
Cut the Umbilical Cord -
Mother and Baby Pay

Custody Dispute:
Baby belongs to the parents,
Placenta belongs to the hospital????

Is my baby INFECTIOUS WASTE, too?

A mother births her BABY
A mother births her PLACENTA
BOTH ARE HERS!

BABIES and PLACENTAS
Belong TOGETHER
With the MOTHER

HELP! My Placenta has been held hostage!

 

Rally postponed!

We need a permit to demonstrate on the streets of Clark County, and we won’t get one in time to meet at 2pm today. So we are going to gather Monday, May 7 at 10AM. We will be on the sidewalks along Maryland Parkway and Desert Inn, not on Sunrise Hospital’s property.

This will give us more time to get organized, and hear the hospital’s response to Anne’s request to save her placenta.

Thank you for your enthusiasm! We need everyone to come out in support of our cause!

Blessings, and Peace.

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Update on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 02:41PM

Our sincerest apologies to anyone who showed up at Sunrise Hospital this afternoon for the rally. Anne wanted me to share that she appreciates your show of support for this issue, but she asked me to let everyone know that she would be unable to participate in any function that could potentially be viewed as outside the bounds of the law. Her husband has been waiting for a decade to get into a police department position, and he will be testing for a position with them next week. It would be devastating to her family if her actions were to be called into question.

Therefore, we have to wait until we have a signed permit before we can peacefully gather on Clark County’s sidewalks. I’ve been working on it since first thing this morning, and have just now gotten in touch with the man in charge of Special Event permits.  He assures me that it should not be a problem to get a permit signed in time for Monday morning, even though typically they require 30 days’ notice. (!) As always, I will keep this blog updated with the latest. I am hoping to have permit in hand by close of business today. Keep the positive energy flowing toward that end!

Update on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 11:26PM

No permit by end of business Friday. Apparently the application has to go to Metro first, then they approve it and pass it on to the Dept. of Public Works. Metro had our fax by early afternoon today, and they open again Monday morning starting at 7am. I will be calling them immediately to make sure that our permit is the first one they look at. Mr. Herbert Arnold is the man at Public Works who has the final say, and he has said it should happen in time for our rally Monday morning, if Metro gets him the application right away. Anybody have a friend at Metro?? Specifically, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Dept, Special Events Section?