Another thing for moms to worry about....

When you become a mother you take on an enormous responsibility.  All of  your child's ills will most likely be traced back to you at some point in time.  I have a friend who jokes that she keeps a notebook to record all the bad things she has done as a mother so that her kids will not have to remember them later in therapy--they can just look them up. For a long time we have known that prenatal development is important in many ways and maternal conditions while pregnant can influence a child's physical, emotional, and intellectual development for the rest of their lives.

Read an article today about stress during pregnancy.  While pregnant with my second son I was under a fair amount of stress. A couple months after finding out I was pregnant I found out I would be out of a job. I had been turned down for tenure at Penn State and would need to find a new position.  Stressful.  I found a new job quickly, fortunately, but then had to pack up and move. Stressful.  Seven months pregnant I had to find a new doctor, start a new job, settle into a new house, find care for my young son. Stressful.

Today I read this opening paragraph...During gestation, the fetal brain develops dramatically as structures and connections form, providing the foundation for all future development. The fetal environment plays a critical role in these early neural processes, for better or for worse. Scientists now know that exposure to maternal stress can sometimes have deleterious effects on the fetus, depending on the cause, timing, duration, and intensity of stress. Great. I've ruined my second child's chances in life....Then there was this hopeful next sentence....Fortunately, postnatal interventions, such as a secure parent-infant bond and an enriched environment, can buffer the potential negative consequences.


The article discusses some interesting time periods in the development of the fetal brain, such as when synapses are formed (3rd trimester), myelination (last few months continuing for 9 months after birth)...

But, in the end there was a little reassurance that maybe stress wasn't so bad afterall:
Exposure to psychosocial stressors, on the other hand, has more nuanced effects on the developing brain. Overgeneralized assertions, such as “Stress is bad for you and your baby,” may inadvertently contribute to anxiety and worry among pregnant women. In fact, some researchers reported a beneficial effect of moderate psychosocial stress during pregnancy on certain child neurodevelopmental outcomes, noting that such stress may have different consequences depending on factors including its duration, intensity, context, as well as the social support systems available to the mother. This is consistent with the stress-inoculation theory, which posits that early-life stressors may provide a challenge that, when successfully overcome, can induce advantageous adaptations.

Maybe I just innoculated my son reallly well.....
The study, by Claudia Buss, et al,  is reported in Cerebrum:
http://dana.org/news/cerebrum/detail.aspx?id=37188

Some of the joys of teaching...

Every now and then I have a day when I really like my job.  Overall, I love my job. I like the mixture of activities, the fact that each day is different.  I like the opportunity to work with students. I like doing my own research. I like working with my colleagues.  I even, sometimes, like doing administrative work.

I have the privilege this semester of teaching our senior thesis class. This is an optional elective that students can take in their last semester. The course requires them to develop their own research idea, collect data, analyze their results and then make a presentation.  The students who choose the option are usually the better students, but certainly they are the more motivated students. It is a small class, 12 students, all women, this year. Working with a group of smart, motivated, interesting students is a treat.  They are really excited about their topics, they want to do a good job, they are fun and funny.

But, today was special.   They are at the stage where they are beginning their analyses. I was working with three students as they began making tables and graphs, interpreting their results.  They needed some help with the practical matters of data management and using the statistical software, but once they got started they were able to really take off.  At one point, one of them said, "This is fun!"  What a pleasure to hear.  Isn't that we all long for as teachers, that moment when a student feels like they are learning...and enjoying it.

I felt very lucky to be sitting there today to hear the comment, to see the expression, to feel the energy.

It was a good day.