Pregnancy Brain

I have this constant foggy feeling in my head all day. It's like it never sharpens. As a result I am becoming more forgetful, and incredibly aloof as I progress along in my pregnancy.  I know it's normal for women to experience "momnesia" during pregnancy. But, I don't remember it being this bad the last time around. It's actually gotten pretty serious. I have a full blown case of "pregnancy brain." Here's how I know- 

• I forgot I left the fridge door open, and didn't notice for 2 hours
• I never remember to flush 
• I didn't see the wall I walked into (this actually happened)
• I can't remember when baby's last diaper change was
• I stepped on poor baby's hand as she was crawling near my feet. I didn't even see her there!
• I put salt instead of sugar in my coffee, and it hasn't happened just once
• My never know where my phone is, and I always forget where I put it
• I wandered around the grocery store for an hour without remembering what I needed to get, and came home with half of the items on my list. 

Needless to say, I think Dad and baby are a little worried when I'm around. I remind them constantly that this is temporary, and soon I'll snap right back into place!... or so I think

I did some research of my own to figure out what exactly is going on with me. I just want to feel normal!

 So apparently it's all just chemicals in our brain. An article on WebMD says there is a huge surge in hormones like progesterone, and estrogen that are about 15 times the normal amount in our pregnant bodies. This can affect our thinking process. So, that explains all the silliness!

 Another cause could be the stress and anxiety of what lies ahead. This can also cause our brains to re-shift priorities. Short- term memory is primarily affected during this time, so we can rest assured that that it's just the fleeting stuff anyway, not the stuff that really matters.
But, it gets worse before it gets better, especially in the last few weeks before pregnancy. So just be mindful of this, and don't be too hard on yourself, after all you're the one giving birth!

The silver-lining? It ends after pregnancy, and there is no lasting effect of the surge of hormones. It just happens for the time being, and goes away after baby's arrival. Yes!

Hooray for pregnancy brain! Not.