Prenatal Response Paper

The research is discussing the effects of prenatal stress (PS) on the development of socioemotional symptoms as well as neurodevelopmental disorders. The study arises from existing literatures where a significant relationship has been established between prenatal stress and social deficits such as autism and attention-deficit hypersensitivity disorder among children and schizophrenia among adolescents. King et al. identifies exposures to environmental hardships and stressful events as the underlying factor in the development of PS (274). The aspect has a negative impact on the immune and endocrine system as well as neurological development (Charil et al. 56). Studies have revealed that PS affects several aspects of brain development in the fetal stage. It increases rate of cell death and reduces rate of proliferation in the hypothalamus-pituitary axis (Schoenfeld and Gould 15).

Prenatal stress is an important topic to me; both our daughters are adopted from the same birth parents. The birth mother was addicted to heroin and was prescribed suboxone to help her with the addiction. Of course, she became addicted to suboxone, it is considered a wonder drug to combat opiate addiction. Suboxone is readily available as a street drug. My daughter experienced a great deal of stress in utero, not only from the drugs, but also due to abusive relationship between the birth mother and the birth father. The birth father beat the birth mother so severely in her 7 month of pregnancy, the state moved her to a hospital several hours away as a Jane Doe in order to protect the baby. It is probably the best possible outcome for my daughter as her health was monitored daily for the last 45 days of gestation. However, she was born addicted and required morphine for the withdrawals, she was in the NICU for thirty days in Seattle, I was with her during this time. My point to her history is that until the age of two she startled easily with any loud sound, and to this day if anyone speaks loudly or with an angry tone she becomes upset. Also, if anyone approached her unexpectedly she would flinch as if shielding herself. According to a 2012 Forbes article stress in utero can lead to ADHD and anxiety disorders. She has outgrown the flinching and

During pregnancy, there are some factors beyond the mother’s control which can have negative significances for the fetus. Maternal stress occurs when the mother is exposed to psychosocial stressors during pregnancy (Kramer et al, 2009). The mother could also develop depression during or after her pregnancy. This mental illness affects the mother’s ability to function and cope with everyday life (NIHCM, 2010), thus affecting her relationship with her baby. Recent research evidence has highlighted that there is some overlap between the symptoms of maternal depression and stress (Cheng & Pickler, 2014), and that these play a role in affecting the normal development of the fetus. However, other research has indicated that stress and depression do not harm the fetus, and in fact can be developmentally beneficial (DiPetro, 2004). In this essay, a number of symptoms of maternal stress and depression shall be addressed, and the extent to which they affect the developing fetus. First to be discussed is how the emotional stability of the mother may affect the relationship she has with her baby.

The brain develops in such a way that it leaves itself vulnerable to these negative influences. The prenatal brain develops an overabundance of neurons, some of which are then carefully eliminated before age 4 (5). In a process similar to this, the amount of synapses between neurons is built up during early childhood and then pruned back for the next 30 years of life (5). These two processes are both disturbed by elevated levels of stress hormones (5). The two centers of the brain with the most postnatal changes, including the growth of new neurons after birth, are the hippocampus, which is part of the limbic system, and the cerebellar vermis (6). The hippocampus is in charge of creating and retrieving memories, working together with the other parts of the limbic system, such as the amygdala, which records the emotions for each memory. The vermis controls the production and release of two of the catecholamine neurotransmitters, dopamine and norepinephrine (6). Both the vermis and the limbic system have higher concentrations of receptors for the stress hormone cortisol than anywhere else in the brain (6). Due to this fact, these still-developing areas are the most vulnerable to the damage done by elevated levels of stress hormones.

Approximately 740,000 women per year use at least one illegal substance during their pregnancy (“Birth Defect Statistics”). These substances can range from marijuana to cocaine. Premature birth is defined as the birth of a child on or before thirty-seven weeks of pregnancy. There are around 500,000 premature births per year (“Preterm Birth”). It is hard to directly correlate premature birth solely to drug use, since most women that use illicit drugs during their pregnancy also smoke and drink. However, a recent study shows that around sixteen percent of women that only use drugs during pregnancy have given birth to a premature infant, and these are only the women that admitted to using these drugs (“Causes and Risk Factors”). Negative effects

time. There are a variety of milestones that include ways in which a child plays, learns,

There is a unique connection between mothers and their children due to the crucial time of prenatal development. During this time, biological factors such as hormones pass through the placental barrier from the mother and into the fetus’ bloodstream. Additionally, the fetus senses the mother’s presence through sensory activity. For instance, a fetus often detects his or her mother’s heart rate and voice by the sounds produced. Due to the direct connections, mothers are strongly advised not to consume teratogens such as alcohol, drugs, or other substance that may be detrimental to a fetus during pregnancy. However, there are factors not quite tangible that mothers should be wary of during pregnancy such as stress. The stress hormone, cortisol,

Modern day technology has taken the “surprise” out of pregnancy for a large number of parents if they choose to utilize it. An option parents might explore is having a prenatal assessment to determine if there are any identifiable genetic abnormalities in the unborn child. There are risks associated with certain procedures such as false positive results, procedure induced miscarriages or possible fetal limb abnormalities.

Maternal stress also plays a role in the prenatal development affecting the length of gestation. Most commonly, maternal prenatal stress affects birth outcomes including prenatal delivery. Emerging research suggests that measures of pregnancy-specific stress are better than measures of general psychological distress for predicting developmental outcomes including preterm delivery (Davis & Sandman, 2010). Goals from the study in this article investigated maternal cortisol and stress and how each affects cognitive and motor development. Women who reported having higher levels of stress during the prenatal period reported a strong correlation with cognitive and motor development were associated with a stronger correlation of cognitive and motor development in their children, and reported higher levels of stress and anxiety earlier in pregnancy. However, one could question the validity of this report because the information was self-reported.

Stress is a common issue that all people of all different backgrounds experience, weather it is environmental, situational, or family related it can happen to anyone. However, stress in pregnant women can be a health hazard for both the mother and the unborn baby. The baby can be born premature, have many organ developmental issues, and the mother can suffer from many complications as well. The connection

During early pregnancy, maternal inflammation may be related to an increased risk of autism in children. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences recently did a study on mothers with elevated C-reactive protein. Included in the study were results showing that mothers with CRP levels in the top 20th percentile, were 43 times more likely to have a child with autism. This is an important discovery in that now, scientists can diagnose it early on, they can prepare parents for raising an autistic child. In the study, scientists were able to figure out that elevated levels of CRP is a leading cause for mothers to have autistic kids. I chose this topic because I work for the Red

Dendritic spines receive information from a single synapse, so when the density is altered, then changes in brain structure and function are reflected in behavior. The neurological effects of pregnancy are not limited to brain regions that directly promote maternal behavior, but also include areas that regulate learning and memory and areas involved the control of fear and anxiety. Kinsley reported the long-term changes that were observed in rats, were that similar to and showed persisting influences on the human brain. For example, like rodents and other mammals, women display striking reductions in physiological and psychological responses to stress during gestation. stress is simply a reaction to a stimulus that disturbs our physical or mental equilibrium.” Stress is also known to impair the production of new hippocampal neurons and it also impairs memory during pregnancy, which shows the relationship pregnancy and cognitive function. The specific aspects of cognitive function that are affected by pregnancy and stress have been determined to exist during

Charil’s article looks more deeply into the specific areas of the human and animal brain that may be effected by prenatal stress (PS) such as the corpus callosum, cerebellum and cerebral cortex. Prenatal stress can be linked to such conditions such as ADHD or forms of attention/anxiety/hyperactivity disorders as well as autistic symptoms. Also, instead of focusing on the broad term of stress, these authors try to determine whether the predictability, form and level of stress make a difference in the outcomes. For example, can a diagnosis of schizophrenia be related to the death of a parent in the first year of a child’s life? Or does a pregnant woman who experiences the toll of a natural disaster more likely to birth a child with autism? This

Having taken this class I have come to understand a lot about my emotions and why I feel the way that I do about certain things throughout my life. Stress is something that has weighed heavy on me since a very young age. I have always wondered why I seemed to not be able to handle stress as well as my peers. Then I came to understand that mothers who experience high levels of stress during pregnancy release high levels of cortisol, and in turn this can have a lasting effect on the baby. (Wood, et. al., 2014) This includes the child not being able to deal with stress as well as he or she grows up and even an increased chance at the baby suffering from high blood pressure later in in life.

At one time or another, most people experience stress. The term stress has been used to describe a variety of negative feelings and reactions that accompany threatening or challenging situations. However, not all stress reactions are negative. A certain amount of stress is actually necessary for survival. For example, birth is one of the most stressful experiences of life. The high level of hormones released during birth, which are also involved in the stress response, are believed to prepare the newborn infant for adaptation to the challenges of life outside the womb. These biological responses to stress make the newborn more alert promoting the bonding process and, by extension, the child's physical survival.