Pregnancy & Birth Made Easy Early Brain Development in Pregnancy with Neuroscientist, Dr. Greer Kirshenbaum
"It's our birthright to be deeply connected to our babies and to grow from it." - Dr. Kirshenbaum
What if the most important thing you could do for your baby’s brain… isn’t something you buy, schedule, or optimize — but in the way you nurture & feel?
This week, I sit down with Dr. Greer Kirshenbaum — neuroscientist, author of The Nurture Revolution, and former doula — to talk about what modern neuroscience says about pregnancy, birth, infant sleep, and the first three years of life. We talk about how your emotional experiences during pregnancy shape your baby’s brain, why nurture is not “soft” but biologically essential, and what moms really need to know about stress, bonding, sleep training, and early brain development.
If you’ve ever worried about doing enough, getting it right, or messing up your baby, you're going to love this discussion and I hope more than anything, it puts your mind at ease. I feel like I cannot say this enough, but YOU are the perfect mother for your baby AND you're doing better than you think you are!
Here’s some highlights from the episode:
• How pregnancy experiences shape your baby’s brain before birth
• The neuroscience behind what doulas do in the birth and postpartum space
• Why the first 0–3 years are the most critical window for emotional and mental health
• What “nurture” really means from a brain-based perspective
• Dr. Kirshenbaum’s views on infant sleep and why she questions sleep training
• What’s considered normal for baby sleep around the world
• How mothers can regulate stress — for themselves and their babies
• Why soothing your baby also soothes your own nervous system
• What happens if early nurture wasn’t ideal (and why there’s still so much hope)
• The core message of The Nurture Revolution and how it supports modern motherhood
This episode is a beautiful reminder that you don’t have to be perfect to raise a healthy, secure, thriving baby. If you’re pregnant, postpartum, or even just thinking about motherhood, this conversation will leave you feeling calmer, more confident, and deeply validated in the most important role you’ll ever have.
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