In other words, once a mother, always a mother. Some of these enhanced brain functions are gifts we can keep for life, affecting the way we relate to the world and its inhabitants forever more. The increased capacity for empathy and the ability to hold onto many details, for example, are still detectable in scans of a mother’s brain decades later, affecting how she might interact with possible grandchildren. Other brain changes, however, seem to be there to stay. But these particular shifts are transitory. It can be fraught with narrow paths and perilous peaks before we find even ground again. Although extreme for some and mild for others, the road to motherhood is often rocky. They are most pronounced for the first few months after the birth, but fade over time. For example, extreme concern over baby’s welfare, a sense of hyper-vigilance that prevents the mom from resting, feelings of helplessness and vulnerability in the face of this new responsibility… Many of these strong emotions and reactions, common to some degree amongst most mothers, are sparked by the hormones targeting specific areas of the brain. Some of these brain changes peak during the months immediately following the birth, which might inform certain aspects of the postpartum experience, including postpartum anxiety. In the newborn months, a mother’s interaction with her infant serves as further stimulus to link her brain quite tangibly to her baby’s. Affected brain regions include those that enable a mother to multitask to meet her baby’s needs, help her to empathize with her infant’s pain and emotions, and regulate how she responds to positive stimuli (such as baby’s coo) or to perceived threats. Women experience a flood of hormones during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding that primes the brain for dramatic change in regions thought to make up the maternal circuit. In other words, parts of the brain that might enhance or contribute to our role as mothers. We may be foggy for a while, but the net result is one of brain enhancement. Brain scans of women before and after they had children reveal significant growth in certain areas: circuitry related to mental sharpness, multi-tasking, memory for details, empathy, and emotional connectivity. The brain changes that are endemic to motherhood are not, in a manner of speaking, all in your head. Pregnancy may have a dumbing down effect, but it is merely the passageway towards significant brain development. The temporary confusion in the brain is a symptom of a rewiring process, fueled by hormones, that ultimately leads to major neurological growth. Although pregnancy is commonly associated with a mental state that’s muddled, distracted, forgetful, and emotional, these qualities are equally applicable to other developmental phases that involve major brain re-wiring, such as toddler-hood and adolescence.
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