Rattled: How to Calm New Mom Anxiety with the Power of the Postpartum Brain

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The Countryman Press, Apr 30, 2024 - Family & Relationships - 240 pages

A Zibby Owens' Best Book for Parents

matrescence
noun
/mę'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.

 

In Rattled, Harvard- and Yale-trained clinical psychologist, researcher, and leading expert in maternal mental health Dr. Nicole Pensak reclaims the postpartum experience and hands mothers back their power. She reveals the groundbreaking truth: the postpartum brain isn’t in crisis, it’s in reconstruction. Anxiety, sensitivity, and emotional intensity aren’t signs of failure—they’re signs of a brain rewiring for intuition, connection, protection, and creativity. Blending cutting-edge science with relatable stories from her clinical work and her own journey, she offers practical, evidence-based strategies for managing worries, navigating identity shifts, dealing with mom guilt, supporting relationships, and releasing the toxic myth of “perfect motherhood.” More than a road map, Rattled is a lifeline and a revolution—an empowering manifesto for every parent stepping into the raw, beautiful, disorienting territory of early motherhood. Families will return to its pages again and again for validation, strength, and the reminder that what rattles you can also remake you.

 

Selected pages

Contents

Introduction
How to Really Prepare for Motherhood
The Ideal Mother
The Real Mommy Brain
Prepare Your Postpartum Mental Health Care Plan
Matrescence and the Transition to Motherhood
Prep Your Marriage
How to Adjust to New Mom Experiences and Emotions
Soften on Mom Shame
Embrace Your New Mom Rage
How to Manage a Maternal Mental Health Crisis
How to Go from Surviving to Thriving in Early Motherhood
How to SelfDirect Maternal Neuroplasticity
Back to Work
Up the Ante
Acknowledgments

Baby Bonding and the First Letdown
The DoubleDown Method to Manage Mom Guilt
Notes Index

Other editions - View all

Rattled: How to Calm New Mom Anxiety with the Power of the Postpartum Brain
Nicole Pensak
No preview available - 2025
Rattled: How to Calm New Mom Anxiety with the Power of the Postpartum Brain
Nicole Pensak
No preview available - 2024

Common terms and phrases

activity anxious asked baby’s BDNF becoming a mother behavioral benefit better biological brain changes brain plasticity breastfeeding breathing challenges clinical cognitive behavioral therapy cognitive distortion cognitive reserve COVID creative daycare depression and anxiety diaper early motherhood emotion-focused emotions experience fathers feeding focus Healthy Reframe Hoekzema hormonal husband important increase intimacy intrusive thoughts Jordan learning light therapy maternal brain maternal brain plasticity maternal mental health matrescence medication mental health conditions MICHELLE OBAMA mind mom guilt mom rage mommy brain moms needs neural networks neuroplasticity nurture octopus opportunity pandemic parenting partner patients perinatal phase play pleasure postpartum depression postpartum mental health postpartum OCD postpartum psychosis practice pregnancy primary caregiver problem-solve psychological rage Remember response schedule shame sleep SNAPSHOT stress symptoms tasks tell tend therapy things toddler transition to motherhood trauma treatment triggered understand weeks women worry

About the author (2024)

Nicole Amoyal Pensak, PhD, is a nationally recognized licensed clinical psychologist certified in Perinatal Mental Health, specializing in anxiety, depression, and OCD treatment. She trained at the Yale School of Medicine, completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School, and currently owns a private practice based in Monmouth, New Jersey. Dr. Pensak is also on the Expert Provider Board for Mother Untitled and a TEDx speaker.

Bibliographic information

TitleRattled: How to Calm New Mom Anxiety with the Power of the Postpartum Brain
AuthorNicole Pensak
PublisherThe Countryman Press, 2024
ISBN1682688313, 9781682688311
Length240 pages
Subjects ›  › 

Family & Relationships / Parenting / Motherhood
Health & Fitness / Pregnancy & Childbirth
Psychology / Mental Health
  
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