In this webinar, we will explore:

🧠 The maternal caregiving network
How motivation, reward, empathy, emotion regulation, and executive function work together in parenting, and why caregiving is far more than “bonding hormones”.

⚠️ Fear vs caregiving neural networks
How threat, alarms, separation, and uncertainty can shift the brain away from caregiving circuits and toward survival physiology, without parents choosing this.

👶 The role of infant sensory cues
Why touch, smell, sound, and eye contact matter so deeply for parental brain plasticity, and what happens when those cues are delayed or replaced in the NICU.

💔 Stress, anxiety, and trauma in NICU parents
What neuroimaging studies show about altered maternal brain responses under stress, and how anxiety can override motivation and reward pathways.

🧩 Clinical implications for NICU practice
How understanding these neural mechanisms changes:

• how we interpret parental behaviour
• how we support co-regulation and attachment
• how we reduce shame and increase safety for families

This webinar is evidence-based, nervous system-informed, and deeply practical, designed for clinicians who want to understand why behaviour looks the way it does, not just how to manage it.

Who this is for:

✔ NICU nurses, midwives, neonatologists
✔ AHPs, psychologists, family support teams
✔ Anyone working closely with parents under extreme stress

(No prior neuroscience knowledge needed.)

Becoming a mother in the NICU is a deeply transformative experience, yet it can feel overwhelming, isolating, or confusing.

Understanding matrescence and the neurobiological changes of the maternal brain helps parents and professionals support bonding, emotional wellbeing, and parental identity during this critical period - making a lasting difference for both parent and baby.

Format:

• Live online teaching

• Practical examples grounded in NICU realities

• Space for reflection and questions

This session draws on neuroscience alongside lived experience of the NICU, and is part of the wider NICU Neuroscience work.