Rattled
How to Calm New Mom Anxiety with the Power of the Postpartum Brain
Published by Countryman Press, Norton
by Nicole Pensak (Author)
Chatter for new mothers, this reassuring and practical handbook helps women navigate the seismic changes—in identity and emotion—that motherhood brings.
matrescence
noun /mæ'tres.?nts/ the process of becoming a mother: The physical, psychological, and emotional changes you go through after the birth of your child . . . largely unexplored in the medical community. ―Cambridge Dictionary
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Most new mothers bring their infants to the doctor but ignore any distressing feelings or sensations they might themselves have―that sense of being “rattled” at many moments throughout the day and night. In Rattled, Dr. Nicole Pensak shares her own experiences and those of her patients to help new mothers feel informed, validated, and guided through matrescence. After giving birth, a woman often feels like a completely different person. It may sound dramatic, but the rollercoaster of physical and psychological changes affects brain and body in a similar way that adolescence changes us. To compound that, many women hide these feelings, worrying that something is wrong with them.
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Dr. Nicole Pensak is here to reassure us that being “rattled” is normal, and not at all surprising. After all, seismic changes in identity and emotion have occurred. Research shows that a woman’s brain shifts in real, biological ways very quickly after giving birth. Many women become hypervigilant, for good reason: the brain is telling her to stay alert because she has a human to keep alive and safe. While these brainpower boosts can cause anxious feelings, they can also help to manage the distress and harness the advantages of the postpartum brain. In fact, this is a time of neuroplasticity, when the brain is more receptive to positive reinforcement.
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Trained at Yale, Harvard, University of Rhode Island, and Loyola University in Maryland, and certified in perinatal mental health, Dr. Pensak provides practical and emotional support, helping to relieve the anxiety and pressure for perfection in motherhood and paving the way for a better beginning for families and babies. She discusses mental health treatment and the upside of therapy during this changing time, and offers accessible scientific information, relatable anecdotes, and strategies for self-care. The result is a reassuring and practical handbook that new mothers and their families will refer to time and again.
The Reviews Are In ...
Praise for RATTLED
“Becoming a new mother can be extremely overwhelming, and it can lead to increased mental stress. Dr. Pensak has done an exceptional job in examining the ins and out of maternal mental health and providing practical and accessible evidence-based knowledge and strategies for new parents.”
- Eve Rodsky, best-selling author of Fair Play
“Nicole Pensak’s book is the essential item for new moms, included in baby showers and gifted from one tired mama to another. Thank goodness she is here to help and look out for all of us!”
- Zibby Owens, host of Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books
“Our children are precious—and so are their mothers. This extraordinarily helpful book provides fresh insights and many practical suggestions for those crucially important first years. Dr. Pensak is brilliant, funny, blunt, honest about her own experiences, and endlessly kind and supportive. In our turbulent days—and when the so-called village it takes to raise a child often looks more like a ghost town—we need her guidance more than ever.”
- Rick Hanson, PhD, author of Mother Nurture and Buddha’s Brain
“Nicole Pensak's Rattled answers so many of the questions my wife and I had about how motherhood changes, influences, and shapes new moms. Pensak is the perfect guide on this journey, enriching Rattled with her experiences as an author, researcher, scientist, therapist—and, of course, mom—trained in post-partum therapy, anxiety, and depression. Highly recommended!”
- Adam Alter, New York Times Bestselling Author of Anatomy of a Breakthrough and Irresistible
“In this incredibly supportive and practical resource , Rattled guides new mothers through the power and peril of matrescense, the developmental stage of motherhood . Through a blend of rigorous science and personal anecdotes, Dr. Pensak offers compelling new and alternative explanations for our anxieties and perceived inadequacies while artfully connecting us with a concrete and hopeful path forward.”
- Jamie Jacobs, PhD, Director of Caregiving Research, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Harvard Medical School
"Rattled is a must read for all mothers. Dr. Pensak seamlessly blends science and practical strategies that finally changes the narrative around “mommy brain”. Eloquently capturing the true wonder of the mother’s brain, Dr. Pensak brings much needed attention and clarity to the physiological and psychological changes that occur over the course of a mother’s development and shares tangible strategies/easy to use tools to empower mothers through their own evolution (and protect their mental health). Dr. Pensak is funny, raw, and inviting, sharing her own unique journey into the chaotic and beautiful world of motherhood. Thank you, Dr. Pensak for helping us as mothers’ feel seen during this time of profound transformation and for giving us the tools to “up the ante” and thrive.
Rattled has instantly reached the top of my list of recommendations for all moms I work with. I can’t wait to recommend to my patients, family and friends."
- Elizabeth Reichert, Ph.D. Associate Clinical Professor, Co-Director, Stanford Parenting Center, Stanford Child and Adolescent Psychiatry