You're not losing your mind. It's just
‘Mommy Brain’
by Christy Lui
Jen Singer was exhausted. Her new baby, Nicholas, was colicky and woke every half hour to eat. When her husband asked her to bring home a jar of Parmesan cheese from the supermarket, she did. A few weeks later, forgetting she’d already bought Parmesna, she picked up another jar. By the time Nicholas was 3 months old, their cupboard had eight containers of Parmesan cheese.
Jen was suffering from “Mommy Brain.” It’s not a clinical term, but if you ask a mother of young children, she’ll probably know what you’re talking about.
Pregnancy can affect your ability to remember things, say experts and moms alike. But Mommy Brain is not all bad news. Researchers say having children might also fine-tune your brain, making you bolder, less susceptible to anxiety and more resistant to stress. Even better, these changes can last long after the confusion of sleep deprivation fades.
A study reported in the medical journal Psychoneuroendocrinology shows that up to 80 percent of women report memory problems in the third trimester — especially with tasks that require remembering lists of things. The research also suggests that high levels of pregnancy hormones, such as progesterone, can disrupt memory centers in the brain.
Shrinking Brain
In 1997, British anesthesiologist Anita Holdcroft reported findings that indicate pregnant women’s brains shrink three to five percent during late pregnancy. However, the study had nothing to do with memory — it was about how preeclampsia, a late pregnancy condition, can affect the brain. Brain “shrinking” could just be a symptom of dehydration. The study showed brain size returns to normal shortly after delivery.
It’s more likely that the lack of deep, REM sleep is what most effects pregnant women’s memory, says Dr. Ari Brown, author of Baby 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Baby’s First Year. “When you’re pregnant, there’s a lot going on, even beyond hormones,” says Dr. Brown.
“Pregnancy makes you tired, and the stress on your body makes you distracted, less focused — you’re up every few hours, changing positions — and when baby arrives it’s just the beginning,” says Dr. Brown. Sleep deprivation impairs memory and the ability to learn and acquire new data. You’re more distractible, have trouble paying attention and have decreased tolerance for activities.
The Good News
New research shows that having babies may actually be good for your mind. Dr. Craig Kinsley, a neuroscientist at the University of Richmond, Virginia, says having children can forge new connections in the brain, making it more complex and better able to accommodate a more demanding environment.
If your brain can recover from pregnancy-related memory loss hormones and sleep disturbances, why do so many moms of older kids still report trouble remembering things?
“Having children is the biggest voluntary distraction you can invite into your life,” says parenting columnist Christine Hohlbaum. “Motherhood stretches you, forces you to do what you don’t want, makes you more mature, and fine tunes your brain to be on the watch for danger no matter what,” says Hohlbaum. She thinks all these challenges sharpen the senses.
There’s no real cure for Mommy Brain. But even if having children scatters most moms’ brains, they may be able to manage more than they ever imagined. No real surprise — they are moms, after all.
Christy Lui is a freelance writer.