“OK, so what do you think about this, on Saturday we should go to… um… ahh… go to….” No! It was happening again. My brain was shorting out on me. Come on, think Sarah, think. What was I trying to say?? My husband was wondering the very same thing.
“Why”, he asked me, a hint of annoyance creeping into his voice, “why do you keep stopping in the middle of a sentence?”.
I must admit it had become a bit of a problem of late. In fact I was finding that my just turned three year old kept completing my sentences for me! Yes, this was definitely becoming an issue.
Baby brain, pregnancy brain, momnesia, call it what you will, it’s a real thing, an annoyingly real thing. I’d smugly made my way through one pregnancy, moved countries twice, and given birth to my second before the accursed forgetfulness struck. So what causes baby brain?
Research has indicated that while the capacity of your brain remains unchanged during and after pregnancy, lack of sleep, surging hormones, and multi-tasking all contribute to the phenomenon. Quite simply, having a baby changes our priorities, and when we only have a certain amount of space to fill in our brain, it can quickly become clogged with everything baby related, pushing away information it no longer deems a priority.
Sleep is definitely a critical factor. Some studies have shown that new mothers lose around 700 hours of sleep in the first year of having a baby. This definitely has negative effects on the brain, and our ability to remember things.
If you, like me, are experiencing momnesia, there are a few things you can do to help yourself:
- Get more sleep: easier said than done, but if you need to, grab a nap during the day when your children are sleeping, or try to get to bed even one hour earlier
- Simplify: cut any excess activities out of your day until your forgetfulness starts to decrease
- Write things down: start making lists, or jotting down things that you’ve become prone to forgetting
Overall, mommy-related forgetfulness is not something to be concerned about. Cut yourself some slack and enjoy whatever you’re doing, if you’ve forgotten something important, it will eventually come back to you. Now… where did I put my keys?
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Sarah Chann
Sarah is passionate about living a satisfying life and taking joy in the small things. She has two children (so far) she is trying to raise bi-culturally, along with her Cambodian husband. She thinks family and friends are some of the most important things in life. Sarah works from home, generally blogging about running a home based business as a stay at home Mom.
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Love it. Always knew there was a term for the ailment
Now it’s just a matter of remembering it Debbie 🙂
I do not have a enough sleep or even a nap because my baby never had a deeper sleep. it was a reall great post i think i need to do an list thank you for sharing.
Hi Catherine, both of my children have been very light sleepers and during the day would cat nap instead of having a long sleep. I found that even lying down next to them and allowing my brain to relax was helpful, even if it was only for 10minutes at a time. Sometimes you don’t need to have a big sleep, you just need a few moments to stop and relax. All the best 🙂
Simplifying as much of your life as possible is a must with a new baby, or a toddler, or hey, how about just for life in general?
Yup Holly, my current mission is de-cluttering the house because I think it will help simplify our lives and hopefully have a positive knock-on effect on my brain.
Lol, I joke about this all the time. I will walk into a room and forget why I’m there. Too much info is in my brain, lol.
Totally understand that one Stephanie! I find myself reversing my steps and wondering what will jog my brain into remembering what I was supposed to be doing 🙂
A nap is my answer to momnesia. It always helps.
Yes Elizabeth, I agree. A nap is my go-to solution too.
I didn’t have it with my first pregnancy or even post-baby… but I’m expecting #2 now and I have it REALLY bad this time around. It’s so frustrating!
Oh Lalia, I think it’s almost worse when you’ve had one pregnancy and first child free from baby brain. I totally understand the frustration and hope you manage to find some solutions 🙂
This is awesome. I have had mommy brain for 18 years now. It seems to be getting worse. I struggle finding the write words sometimes or I will start rambling without giving sone a subject first.
Oh no – 18 years?? What strategies have you developed to deal with it?
This had me totally laughing! Is there one of us who can’t say we’ve had these moments? I have to make light of it because otherwise, it would make me crazy!
I totally agree Liz!
Yes, all the time! Like right now! Just kidding! When I’m afflicted with momnesia, a nap is in order!
Absolutely Lisa! My struggle is finding a time when both the kids are napping so I can nap then too. How do you manage it?
This is funny. Love the graphic!
Thanks Erinn. I find it easier to cope with things when I can poke a little fun at them 🙂
I heard about this too.. but what I do know for myself is that to write down a to-do-list so there is lesser chance of forgetting something.
Hi Dominique, I agree! I have a whiteboard up in the kitchen where I can jot down my shopping list, or things I need to get done in the next day or two, otherwise they seem to go into my head and straight out again.
I have heard of this syndrome I wonder if there is a medication or a therapy to help this. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Adriana, usually” Momnesia” is pretty simple and something that can be helped by getting some more sleep. It is only of concern when the parent starts putting the child/ren at risk, for example through forgetting to buckle up their restraints in the car. In these cases it would be advisable to see a Doctor, and potentially get some extra help for the family until the issue resolves.