“Mommy brain” is real, but it’s not the whole story.
Pregnancy does kick-start structural changes in the brain, including a loss of gray matter. But the loss isn’tDuring the transition to motherhood, the brain reorganizes its connections, strengthening those that are useful and letting go of those that aren’t, Pawluski says. This reorganization prepares the brain “to learn rapidly to keep a baby alive,” she says.
In a 2016 study, for example, researchers reported brain changes, including reductions, that appear to . Other work by this team found pregnancy-triggered decreases in the volume of the ventral striatum, a region involved in motivation and reward. Those reductions in mothers’ brains wereStill, many pregnant and postpartum women do report memory loss. Studies haven’t found large differences when testing memory for new moms compared with nonmothers, Pawluski says, but more research is needed to understand the mental load of parenthood — the impact of endless tasks and distractions.
A possible explanation for “momnesia” or “mommy brain” is that new mothers turn their attention toward baby and away from other things. Indeed, pregnant women, in contrast to never-pregnant women, demonstratedin 2022. Pregnant women also fared better with recalling relationships between objects and locations.
The changes in the maternal brain are akin to those seen during adolescence. A study of first-time mothers and female adolescents found that the reductions in volume in thein 2019. “We accept adolescence as being a time of transition and a lot of neuroplasticity,” or the brain’s ability to change, Pawluski says. The shift to motherhood is just as impactful on the brain, she says.
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