Did you know that early caregiving experiences can boost mental wellness and diminish depression, anxiety, and addiction in adulthood? From 0-3 our little ones have extremely pliable brains. Not only are their sensory and motor systems developing but their emotional brain and stress systems are developing too! The best part, we can help shape baby’s brain through simple experiences in pregnancy, birth, and infancy like cuddling.
In this episode of Yoga| Birth| Babies I speak with Greer Kirshenbaum PhD. She’s a neuroscientist, doula, infant and family sleep specialist, and founder of Nurture Neuroscience. I first stumbled upon Greer’s work on instagram and was taken by the way she combines neuroscience and the baby brain. It’s fascinating to me and I am so excited to share our rich conversation with you.
New and Expectant parents, have a pen and paper ready because you are absolutely going to want to take notes!
In this episode you will learn:
- Learn a bit about Greer and what inspired her to combine neuroscience with infant development?
- All about an infant’s brain, why it is so unique and how it develops in the first 3 years.
- What happens when parents try to push their baby or toddler to accomplish milestones or tasks outside their current development.
- The development of stress systems in the infant brain.
- Signs a baby is overstimulated.
- Signs a baby is feeling stressed
- How to nurture brain health for babies.
- How physical contact ie holding and cuddling your baby helps their brain develop.
- How to increase oxytocin vs cortisol and why is this important for a baby’s brain.
- The science behind baby’s sleep development.
- Providing safe and supported sleep for our infants.
- One final tip/piece of advice for new or expectant parents.
- Where you can find Greer’s work.
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About Greer:
Greer Kirshenbaum PhD is a Neuroscientist, Doula and Infant and Family Sleep Specialist. She is leading The Nurture Revolution #thenurturerevolution to change the way our society cares for infants and parents. Greer’s company, Nurture Neuroscience, is on a mission to revolutionize the future of health. Greer wants families and perinatal practitioners to understand how early caregiving experience can boost mental wellness and diminish depression, anxiety, and addiction in adulthood by shaping babies’ brains through simple intuitive enriching experiences in pregnancy, birth and infancy. Greer works with families to support infant sleep, teaches courses, provides consultations in pregnancy and infancy and is a birth and postpartum doula. Greer leads an Infant and Family Sleep Specialist Certification with bebo mia.
Connect with Greer:
- Website: https://www.nurture-neuroscience.com
- Instagram: @nurture_neuroscience_parenting
- Facebook: @NurtureNeuroscience
- Linked in https://www.linkedin.com/in/greerkirshenbaum/
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