Motherhood Changes Your Brain—And That Changes Everything
If you’ve ever thought, “I just don’t feel like myself anymore,” after becoming a mum, you’re not imagining it—and you’re certainly not alone.
Motherhood isn’t just a change in circumstance. It’s a profound transformation—physiologically, neurologically, emotionally, psychologically, and socially. And yet, most return-to-work programmes, workplace policies, and social narratives still treat it like a brief pause in an otherwise linear career path.
Understanding the science behind the transition to motherhood helps explain why so many women feel disoriented, overwhelmed, or “off” when they return to work:
The Evidence: What Really Changes
Your Brain: Research shows that pregnancy and early motherhood reshape the maternal brain. Areas linked to empathy, emotion regulation, and caregiving become more interconnected, supporting the intense emotional attunement required to care for a baby (Hoekzema et al., 2017).
Your Hormones: Hormonal changes—especially in oxytocin, oestrogen, and prolactin—affect your memory, mood, emotional sensitivity, and even your immune system (Bridges, 2016).
Your Identity: Psychologist Daniel Stern and anthropologist Dana Raphael introduced the term matrescence to describe the psychological shift that occurs in motherhood. Like adolescence, it involves rethinking your identity, values, and priorities.
Your Environment: Despite these profound changes, society often expects new mothers to operate as if nothing has shifted. Emotional labour, logistical planning, and mental load are undervalued—especially in traditional workplace structures.
So What Does This Mean for You?
When returning to work after becoming a parent, many women feel like they’re navigating a world that no longer quite fits. The pressure to perform as you did “before” can clash with your new values, responsibilities, and capacity.
This isn’t a failure on your part—it’s a gap in how society and workplaces understand the transition to motherhood.
Tips to Support Yourself Through the Transition
- Reassess Your Values: What mattered to you before might not feel as important now. Take time to reflect: What do you want more of? What are you ready to let go of?
- Redefine Success: Success after motherhood might look different—and that’s okay. Honour your current season of life. Give yourself permission to set new goals, new boundaries, and a new rhythm.
Find the Right Support: Whether it’s through coaching, peer groups, or flexible work arrangements, surround yourself with people and structures that see and support the whole you.
You’re Not Broken. You’re Becoming.
This transition is real. It’s messy, powerful, and worth honouring. If you’re feeling disoriented in your return to work, know that it’s not a personal failing—it’s a natural response to a profound shift.
You deserve support that understands the full picture—not just a policy or checklist. This is exactly the work I do: helping working mums find clarity, confidence, and a way forward that aligns with who they’re becoming.
If this resonates with you, let’s connect.
Or take five minutes today to reflect:
What values have shifted for you since becoming a parent?
What would it look like to honour those values at work?
There are no wrong answers. Just an invitation to start where you are.
You’ve got this
Becs x
Becs Bradley is a professional coach who helps women navigating motherhood, specifically helping them to redefine the concept of “having it all” – check out her profile on our site and get in touch to find out more about the ways she can help you.
And access her free guide “The Working Mama’s Guide To Owning Your Path” – the guide that supports you to navigate your exit, return and career beyond parental leave.
Taking parental leave and returning to work are two major transitions— exciting, emotional, and sometimes a little overwhelming. Whether you’re preparing to step away from your career for a time or gearing up for your return, this guide is here to support you.
June 2, 2025
