Does Pregnancy Brain Have An Effect on College Students?
The phrase pregnancy brain refers to the feeling experienced by pregnant women noted by factors such as forgetfulness, poor concentration. Most people tend to disagree with the pregnancy brain, but the reality is that women are subjected to a decline in cognitive activity. Women undergo significant adaptations in their bodies to provide the fetus with a chance to develop. It starts immediately embryo is implanted in the womb with notable slew changes common to the mother to be. Pregnancy seems to interfere with brain changes for a long time due to symptoms such as fatigue, morning sickness, and growing belly. The study by ( ) argues that signs such as absent-mindedness, poor concentration, reduced cognitive function. Scholars are trying to establish the relationship between pregnancy and memory to reveal its benefits to women’s brains. However, most of the changes in the brain might be positive but only in terms of nurturing one to be a suitable parent. The effects of pregnancy brain can either be position as women experience moods and physical transition. The pregnancy brain has an immense impact on college students as a result of cognitive changes causing long term adaptations in brain configuration.
Research Method
The research will apply various literature approaches to determine the effects of pregnancy brain to the college students. The first approach is analyzing how pregnancy brain causes changes in the human mind and the cognitive functioning of the woman. Secondly, there is evaluating how changes caused by pregnancy brain could prepare them for responsible motherhood. The third is verifying how pregnancy brain makes women decline in memory and learning.
Discussion
The pregnancy brain is real in pregnant college girls, where they face depression throughout the period. MRI pictures from pregnant women compared to those that have already given birth demonstrate the pregnancy brain shrinks the gray matter found in the human brain. It interferes with the functioning of the pinkish-gray tissues that comprise of cell bodies and nerve cells with changes persisting at least for two years. In most cases, the interference of the gray is always detrimental though some cases might not be the case. The loss of the volume does not imply something negative such as loss of function. The flood of hormones causes the shaping of synapses in the teenage brain that link the nerves. The changes mostly interfere with the parts of the brain whose role rotates around social cognition. That’s the reason why mothers are activated when they see the image of their kids. It results in the enhanced social perception that enables a woman to internalize the infant coos, cries, and ability to understand behavior fast. All the energy is favored towards caring for the baby, thus causing memory loss to yield mixed results. The changes in the human brain structure and function are enabled by crucial hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, etc. Hormones are likely to possess a substantial influence on the functioning of the brain cells (Hoekzema, Barba, Pozzobon & Ballestros, 2017). These hormones activities increase during pregnancy as it is the period that their production increases. The changes witnessed during the pregnancy are lethal based on how the body responds to hormones production.
The brain scans demonstrate that the production rate of the gray matter in women’s brains significantly declined during pregnancy. Mostly the changes turn the woman to be more motherly by creating an attachment that would enable the mother to understand the needs of the kid. The changes in the brain appear intimidating, but they may cause revolutionary changes that benefit the mother in her new roles. The areas that show a massive decline in the grey matter are those that are associated with brain network functions (Brunton & Russell, 2010). The changes in the grey matter are the ones that result in the rate of attachment between the mother and the child. Also, brain zones that showed a significant decline in the grey matter marched the areas the reacted to the images of the baby. It implies that the changes in the brain are beneficial to the woman by helping him take care of the kid better. However, the decline in the grey matter does not imply the brain losing its cells; instead, it is cells reorganizing the cells. It is a matter of changing the existing connection to strengthen them. The modifications witnessed is as a result of biological processes with some of the environmental changes coming into play. Women are expected to be strong in changes in their brain structure as a way of adapting to new evolutionary pressures.
The pregnancy events are deemed beneficial to later cognition activities in life, such as executive roles. Women that start early reproduction make their ovaries produce more hormones making the changes start manifesting fast. Teenagers reach optimal levels fasts making brain structures not affected by hormones to develop (Kim, Leckman, Mayes, Fieldman & Swain, 2010). For those using oral contraceptives, the development of creative and verbal memory, though, takes a more extended period after even after birth. Women that gave birth to more children demonstrate better cognitive ability, verbal memory than those with one or not children (Jager & Ramsey, 2008). It extends the effects during the pregnancy period, but the psycho-social stressors can have a long term implication to the emotional abilities. The rush of the hormones due to pregnancy impact during plastic elasticity and reward system kick in.
There is increased production of Dopamine that activates postpartum that accelerates the rate of brain neural systems (Buss, Entringer, Swanson & Wadhwa, 2012). The hormone turns the reward system of the brain more efficient, enabling the mother to conform to the needs of the baby. It sets new mothers exposed to depression anxiety and an inspired level of obsession. However, it might be influenced by environmental factors that interfere with the psychology of the pregnant woman. The rate of declining cognitive activity was less in pregnant women in a distraction-free environment. The conditions are frequent and severe in women that have to deal with competing demands. However, women that showed the effects of pregnancy brain due to competing demands showed better cognitive ability later compared to those living stress-free life (Glynn, 2010). the consensus is that women that face competing demands produce more of hormones that accelerate the rate of cognitive development manifested through creative skills. The brain is also exposed to enduring unfriendly conditions that have hormone flood, especially at their peaks due to possible external factors. It is normal to view pregnancy brain as unpleasant conditions but can turn beneficial to the woman later life.
Findings
Research finds the brain process and changes that take place during the pregnancy period as the brain reorganizes its cells. During pregnancy, the function of some brain parts changes, which have to adjust to adapt to changing climatic conditions. For pregnant college students, the functioning of their brain is interfered with by new changes. Hormones are produced at a high rate that influences the level of cognitive activity. The grey matter of the brain drops, thus making the brain shrink, thus reducing their cognitive ability. College students in these conditions find it hard to adhere to their regular schedule, such as in academics. The connection with the Foetus turns stronger in such a way that it interferes with the average concentration. A large percentage of their minds are occupied by the present situation turning one hardly to remember other essential activities such as academics. The pregnancy brain increases the attachment between mother and baby, especially during the brain reward system that makes a woman lose interest. However, the rate of the character might depend on the individual price of hormone production. The hormone’s objective is to enable the mother to adjust swiftly to motherhood (Buss, Davis, Muftuler, Head & Sandman, 2010). The pregnancy brain causes college students to drop their performance due to depression caused by a slowed cognitive process.
Pregnancy brain causes large makes college students more motherly and sensitive to emotions. It creates a different reaction to women but might interfere with one social behavior changing the relationship with close people. Less attention is given to people around their circles in favor of the baby, given more focus. College students in such states find themselves at logger’s heads with those in the immediate environment such as lecturers, parents, and friends. One is vulnerable to swinging moods and strange behavior such as hot tempers. It makes them hard to live normally with other people interfering with different peaceful nature. For instance, hormones might cause depression or anxiety that makes one lose interest. It eventually interferes with performance level and interaction capabilities (Seckl, 2004). people will start witnessing behavior such as failure to attend classes, conflicts with colleagues, and naïve. The depression level makes the student see negativity in everything with a suspicious attitude on others (Miller, Huppi & Mallard, 2016). She tends to look at herself as indifferent from others, which could hold negative implications on her mindset. Such a college student requires a lot of care and counseling, which might be inadequate in the facilities. Instead of trying to seek the attention of health experts, they lose their self-esteem.
However, the pregnancy brain holds long term benefits to the well being of the woman for the rest of her life. The earlier a woman is exposed to cognitive changes, then the higher level of emotional abilities. It implies that since college students are usually young, the level of hormones, especially Dopamine, is at a higher rate. Hormones boost the speed of cognitive development, thus increasing creativity skills among college students. College students usually spend most of their times in distractive environments such that their brain is trained on how to adapt to all pressures. In a situation where women are exposed to a distractive climate, they adjust best since, in the period hormones are produced at an increased rate (Mastorci, Vicentini, Viltart, Manghim, Quaini & Sgoifo, 2009). It equips college students with skills to navigate through life despite consuming more time. Their overall performance in life is boosted as they possess added advantage in terms of creative thinking. However, it comes with a price that is normal activities being disrupted, such as academics.
Conclusion
The pregnancy brain is a critical condition that interferes with the life of college students. During pregnancy, significant changes are experienced in the brain structure interfering with a healthy life, such as poor remembering skills. It is caused by the reduced decline in the grey matter, a crucial component of the brain making the brain to shrink. It makes one show less interest in activities around to concentrate on the new condition. It is evident by poor performance in academics and poor interaction skills. The pregnancy brain attracts more women to have a stronger attachment with the baby during the brain reward system. It explains why college students ignore existing social activity due to depression. It changes their perception of self due to swinging moods that continuously keep them at loggerheads with those in the immediate environment. However, the effects of pregnancy brain might be of long term benefits as it enables fast cognitive activity. Women that are exposed to these rapid cognitive changes earlier have increased cognitive abilities in life. The rate at which hormones are produced in large numbers makes one adjust to competing demands, which expands their brain. For college students, their early exposure to these optimal changes boosts their cognitive abilities later in life. They become more intelligent in life with an increased rate of thinking that happens to help them critically than in life. However, more study is done on the relevance of age and level of cognitive development. The literature fails to come clear on whether the young generation can effectively handle immediate pressures or just succumb to environmental factors. The research ought to specify the long term negative implications of pregnancy brain.
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