Louann Brizendine facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Louann Brizendine
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Louann Brizendine in 2009.
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| Born | December 30, 1952 Hazard, Kentucky, United States
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| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | USA |
| Alma mater | UC Berkeley, Yale School of Medicine, Harvard Medical School |
| Known for | Research on the effect of reproductive hormones on the brain and behavior |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Medicine |
Louann Brizendine is an American doctor and scientist. She is a neuropsychiatrist, which means she studies how the brain affects our feelings and behavior. Dr. Brizendine is also a professor and researcher at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She has written three popular books: The Female Brain, The Male Brain, and The Upgrade.
Education and Training
Louann Brizendine studied at UC Berkeley from 1972 to 1976. There, she earned a degree in neurobiology, which is the study of the nervous system. She then went to Yale School of Medicine from 1976 to 1981 to become a medical doctor (MD). After medical school, she completed her training in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School from 1982 to 1985.
Research and Career
Dr. Brizendine's research focuses on how hormones affect women's moods. She is a certified expert in both psychiatry and neurology. In 1988, she joined the faculty at the UCSF Medical Center. She now holds a special position as an endowed professor of psychiatry.
In 1994, Dr. Brizendine started the UCSF Women's Mood and Hormone Clinic. She still works as the director of this clinic today. The clinic helps women understand how their hormones can influence their feelings.
Books and Writing
Dr. Brizendine is well-known for her books. Her first book, The Female Brain, was published in 2006. This book explored how the female brain works. It received many reviews, both positive and negative. Some people felt it focused too much on differences between genders.
Dr. Brizendine later explained that her book might have overemphasized these differences. She said, "Males and females are more alike than they're different. After all, we are the same species." This means that while there are some differences, boys and girls, men and women, are mostly similar.
In 2017, The Female Brain was made into a romantic comedy movie. Dr. Brizendine's work inspired the main character in the film. She also wrote another book called The Male Brain, which came out in 2010. She has mentioned that her books' focus on gender differences helped them become best-sellers. Her most recent book, The Upgrade, was released in 2022.
See also
In Spanish: Louann Brizendine para niños
