Abstract
New mothers undergo dynamic neural changes that support positive adaptation to parenting and the development of mother–infant relationships. In this article, I review important psychological adaptations that mothers experience during pregnancy and the early postpartum period. I then review evidence of structural and functional plasticity in human mothers’ brains, and explore how such plasticity supports mothers’ psychological adaptation to parenting and sensitive maternal behaviors. Last, I discuss pregnancy and the early postpartum period as a window of vulnerabilities and opportunities when the human maternal brain is influenced by stress and psychopathology, but also receptive to interventions.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 47-58 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development |
Volume | 2016 |
Issue number | 153 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 2016 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.