Brain shrinkage during pregnancy

by The Flamingo

The Fox and The Flamingo are both proud moms of young boys. We had different pregnancies from each other, every woman with her particularities. But it seems that “brain shrinkage” was a common symptom for both of us, again manifesting itself differently. It depends of course on the type of job we have and leaving work earlier in pregnancy as opposed to working right up to the due date. All these factors contribute to the early or late development of the “brain shrinkage”. Because keeping busy helps those hormones stay in balance instead of running all over the place.

Here is how this “disease” manifested itself in our case:

• The overwhelming feeling that you are always forgetting something and most of the time you are
• The power of concentration becomes less of a power… rather non existing to be exact
• The compulsive need to read easy books with no literary value whatsoever, romance books to be specific, called also “books for pregnant women or for housewives with many children”
• The constant need for love and nearness exasperated our husbands
• Everything has to have a happy ending (the news, the books, the stories our friends told and of course the stories involving other babies or other pregnant women) … or else…
• The tendency to space out a lot, even in the middle of a conversation
• Logical facts become non logical and the ability to understand a simple issue disappears (for example 1+1=0, and there’s nobody telling you otherwise)
• Every little problem becomes monstrous with no chance of resolving

Your brain becomes the size of a pea and it doesn’t turn back to normal for a long time. For example, breastfeeding prolongs the fog in which your brain is swimming. If you are concerned by your stupidity, the key is to surround yourself with loving and understanding people, who will guide you in a non patronizing way to the light. It is said that the brain eventually returns to normal…this is a fact that remains to be seen. It’s getting better and better, that’s for sure, although the constant state of tiredness doesn’t help a lot with the recovery.

The Fox and The Flamingo, being the best friends that they are, console each other constantly, saying that the brain develops in other areas, concerning reflexes that keep your child safe. But about the newly found strengths in the brain of a mother, we’ll talk about in another article.

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