Mommy Brain Revisited

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited, I talk with Dr Darby Saxbe, Professor of Psychology at USC Dornslife.

We talk about her recent work on how brain changes in fathers may reflect parenting engagement and mental health risk. Fascinating!

For more about Dr Saxbe see https://dornsife.usc.edu/nestlab/current-members/

Her book ‘Dad Brain’ will be out in 2026! Can't wait!

Paper we talk about: Saxbe D, Martínez-García M. Cortical volume reductions in men transitioning to first-time fatherhood reflect both parenting engagement and mental health risk. Cereb Cortex. 2024 Apr 1;34(4):bhae126. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhae126. PMID: 38615244.

For more about Jodi Pawluski see www.jodipawluski.com.

music: All In My Head - Luna Wave via Soundstripe

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr Susana Carmona, Research Scientist at the Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón in Madrid, Spain.

We talk about her recent research on how a mother’s brain changes from late pregnancy to the early postpartum published in Nature Neuroscience early this year.

Fascinating research and the first of its kind!

For more about Dr Carmona see: https://neuromaternal.es/

Her book is available in Spanish and titled: Neuromaternal: ¿Qué le pasa a mi cerebro

For our episode together on Matrescence and Adolescence see episode 6 here.

Paper we talk about: Paternina-Die, M., Martínez-García, M., Martín de Blas, D. et al. Women’s neuroplasticity during gestation, childbirth and postpartum. Nat Neurosci 27, 319–327 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01513-2⁠ Link to paper⁠

Music: Luna Wave via Soundstripe

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr Nicolas Renier, the Team Leader of the Laboratory of Structural Plasticity at the Paris Brain Institute.

We talk about his work on the neural mechanisms modulating nest building in mice during pregnancy. A fascinating study with amazing neuroscience techniques.

We also talk about the value of using pregnancy as a model to understand neurophysiological processes, the important role of pregnancy in remodeling certain parts of the brain, what progesterone can do to neurons and more. Fascinating!

For more about Dr Renier see: www.renier-lab.com

Link to paper

Paper citation:

Music: Luna Wave via Soundstripe

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr Danielle Stolzenberg, an Associate Professor at UC Davis, about the nonhormonal basis of parenting, modelling perinatal mental illness, and the 51 Foundation which she started.

We also talk about the need to understand current treatments for perinatal mental illness (particularly SSRIs) and the importance of funding research in females. Yes!

For more information on Dr Stolzenberg see https://psychology.ucdavis.edu/people/dstolzen

Here is a link to the paper that we talk about: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34674243/

Paper citation: Rosinger ZJ, Mayer HS, Geyfen JI, Orser MK, Stolzenberg DS. Ethologically relevant repeated acute social stress induces maternal neglect in the lactating female mouse. Dev Psychobiol. 2021 Nov;63(7):e22173. doi: 10.1002/dev.22173. PMID: 34674243; PMCID: PMC10631567.

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr Maria Muzik and Dr. Katherine Rosenblum about Mom Power, a parenting intervention they developed, and how it impacts parents and the parental brain. Both are Professors in the Departments Psychiatry and Obstetrics & Gynecology, as well as Co-Directors of Zero To Thrive & Women and Infant Mental Health Program at the University of Michigan.

We talk about the development of Mom Power, it’s core components and the research supporting the importance of this group intervention. We also talk about attachment, the importance of nature, and building ‘strong roots’.

It was an honor to speak with these two inspiring clinician-scientists. If you work with parents, this episode is a must.

For more information on Mom Power and Zero to Thrive, including research and training opportunities see: https://zerotothrive.org/

Here is a link to the paper on the parental brain that we talk about: https://zerotothrive.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Frontiers-Mom-Power.pdf

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr Jonny Kohl, Group Leader, State-Dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK.

We talk about his new research on how the hormones of pregnancy affect specific neurons in the MPOA that essential for parenting. It’s a fascinating new finding and provides valuable insight into the neuroendocrine factors governing parental care.

We also talk about whether or not we should be using reproductively experienced females more in general neuroscience research because of the long-term impact of pregnancy on the brain, the importance of state in general and practical considerations for doing these types of studies.

It’s a good one. You won’t want to miss it.

For more information on Dr Kohl and his group: https://www.crick.ac.uk/research/find-a-researcher/jonny-kohl

Here is a link to the paper we talk about: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adi0576

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr. Pascal Vrticka, Associate Professor and Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Essex. We talk about all thing’s attachment and neural synchrony in mother-child and father-child dyads.

We also talk about attachment parenting and how our beliefs about parenting can impact how our brain functions. Fascinating!

Don’t miss this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited. It will

For more information on Dr Vrticka’s work: https://pvrticka.com/

For a free pdf of the book we talk about see: https://babygro.org/babygro-book

Follow Dr Vrticka on Instagram @pascalvrticka where you at ask him about attachment in his Q&A!

In this episode of Mommy Brain Revisited I talk with Dr. Kristina

We talk about her research on the development of neurosteroid treatments for postpartum depression.

In particular we talk about her work on the new FDA approved oral medication for postpartum depression – Zuranolone as well as some practical information on Zuranolone, itself.

Don’t miss this episode on Mommy Brain Revisited. It’s an important one for understanding the current treatment options and challenges for perinatal mental illness.

For more information on Dr Deligiannidis’ work and her contact information see:

https://feinstein.northwell.edu/institutes-researchers/our-researchers/kristina-m-deligiannidis-md

Download one of the publications that we talk about here: https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ajp.20220785