Since Jolie was born two weeks ago, I’ve noticed (or believe that I’ve noticed) the following physiological changes in myself:
I’ve lost weight.
I don’t seem to need my morning coffee nearly as much — i.e. I used to be very groggy until I got my coffee, but now I’m alert pretty quickly regardless of whether or not I’ve been caffeinated, though the coffee still helps me feel less physically tired or exhausted.
I don’t mind nearly as much if circumstances prevent me from showering until later in the day.
I seem to radiate more heat.
My hunch is that there are real hormonal changes going on which are tied directly to her birth, though I recognize that alternative explanations could be offered (e.g. that I’ve lost weight because I’ve been living off the exclusively vegetarian, mostly healthy meals that various people have been bringing us rather than on the fast food and restaurant fare that comprised much of my pre-Jolie diet; and the shower thing could just be me, say, just growing the fuck up a little bit).
There is a small body of scientific evidence out there which suggests that men, particularly men who are very involved in the child-rearing process, experience hormonal shifts after their babies are born. This article from Mothering Magazing, for instance, cites a study which found that "in new and expectant fathers" testosterone levels dropped "by as much as 33 percent." Also:
the hormone decreased in response to sounds of an infant’s cries, and when men held or comforted their own child. Such a reduction may serve to encourage fathers to interact, rather than compete, with their children. In a correlating discovery, Wynne-Edwards found estrogen levels were heightened in fathers and were most likely initiated by their partners’ pregnancies.
Research has not determined exactly how these hormonal changes occur. It may be the result of close contact between the sexes: a high level of intimacy between a couple appears to be a factor in how a mother’s body chemically signals approaching birth to a new father. But it’s not known whether high levels of affection are the cause or the effect of hormonal changes.
Anyway, although I’m bothered a bit by the idea of being all de-testosteron-ed at the same time that the estrogen is flowing in, that’s nothing compared to the rush I get from the idea that nature has hooked me up so that I’m physiologically better suited, from almost the moment she’s born, to take care of her. That’s powerful mojo.
