Your Brain on Pregnancy: Rewired for Motherhood

Learn how pregnancy changes the brain, including reduced gray matter and increased white matter, to prepare moms for motherhood. From postpartum mental health to brain plasticity.

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You’ve heard of "pregnancy brain," but it’s more than just misplaced keys—it’s your brain rewiring to get you ready for motherhood! Today, we're sharing the cool science behind these brain changes, and how they might just be your new superpower.

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Your Brain on Pregnancy: Rewired for Motherhood

How pregnancy reshapes your brain to help you adapt


Pregnancy doesn’t just change your body—it rewires your brain! New research shows that during pregnancy, the brain undergoes major structural shifts. Most notably, gray matter volume decreases while white matter—the part responsible for communication between brain regions—temporarily increases. These changes help prepare the brain for motherhood and might explain why many new moms feel hyper-focused on their baby after birth.

Why It Counts: Understanding these changes could help address challenges like postpartum depression, which affects 1 in 5 women. By better understanding the neurological shifts of pregnancy, researchers hope to develop earlier and more effective interventions for mental health issues linked to pregnancy and motherhood.

Zoom Out: This study isn’t just about pregnancy—it sheds light on the brain’s remarkable plasticity. The brain adapts to massive hormonal changes, much like it does during adolescence. This could have implications for understanding brain health as we age.

Our Take: Pregnancy is like a brain boot camp, strengthening some areas while shedding others to meet the demands of motherhood. While we often talk about “pregnancy brain” as forgetfulness, it turns out that these shifts are designed to help moms multitask, bond with their babies, and adapt to their new roles.

The Truth: Pregnancy brain isn’t a myth, but it’s also not a problem! It’s your brain fine-tuning itself for motherhood. So, the next time you forget your keys, remember—it’s just your brain making space for bigger, more important things.

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DIY Baby Nursery Mobile

A lovely addition to your nursery is a DIY mobile. It not only decorates your nursery, but babies love the colorful dangling parts of the mobile. Just hang it above the crib or changing table out of the baby's reach and enjoy the handmade touch it gives to the space. If you don't have your own nursery to decorate with a mobile, these make wonderful gifts.

Most of these DIY mobiles are beginner projects. Some require some specialized skills like sewing or paper crafting but all of these can be handled by the confident beginner.

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