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"With 80 pages of notes and references supporting 190 pages of text, she seamlessly weaves together the findings of innumerable articles and books, both technical and popular, along with accounts of patients she treated at her clinic, to support her claim that "the female brain is so deeply affected by hormones that their influence can be said to create a woman's reality." "In a breezy, playful style (the calming hormone oxytocin is a 'fluffy, purring kitty'" while testosterone 'has no time for cuddling'), Brizendine follows the development of women's brains from birth through the teen years, to courting, pregnancy, childbirth and child-rearing, and on to menopause and beyond." ( Review: "A Brain of One's Own" , Post, Aug. 20).

Neuropsychiatrist Louann Brizendine fields comments and questions about her new book, "The Female Brain."

Submit your questions or comments before or during the discussion.

Louann Brizendine, M.D., is the founder and director of the UCSF Women's Mood and Hormone Clinic in San Francisco, Calif. This is her first book.

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Takoma Park, Md: If there are differences between women's brains and men's brains, does this mean that women might have what might be called "natural" advantages in some activities or occupations, and "natural" disadvantages in others? Not insuperable advantages or disadvantages -- especially given the distributions of both female and male brains around their means -- but potentially discoverable average tendencies? Are we permitted to ask such questions? And if so, don't a lot of people owe Larry Summers an apology?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: differences in male and female brain circuits are just like any other brain-talent difference--as a society we need to learn about them and make it possible for all to use their "best talents" to improve our society and civilization on this planet.

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Alexandria, Va: Hello Dr. Brizendine! We happen to share a slight variation of the same unusual surname. I work for a local community services board, as a therapist specializing in addiction. Lately, our program has adopted a treatment modality called the MATRIX Model. This model is an educational approach to teaching our clients about the neurobiology of addiction, and I can honestly say that this approach has produced in a very short time some exciting results. I have already seen our clients experiencing a noticeable reduction of shame-based feelings regarding their addiction, as they begin to understand that addiction is a disease of the brain, and that the process of addiction activates the less sophisticated lower brain, actually rewiring the brain to the point that the cerebral cortex is no longer in charge, and that people become more impulsive and reactive in the process of addiction, to the point that the lower brain begins to equate the substance with a survival response. This helps our clients to understand why they have behaved in ways that are usually not in their true character. And it helps them to understand that addiction is a chronic relapsing brain disorder, and that the healing process of recovery begins in their brain. I'm looking forward to reading your book. Do you provide any discussion or information on addiction which may look at differences in neurobiology based on gender?

Leonard Brisendine, LPC

Dr. Louann Brizendine: yes, in my book, THE FEMALE BRAIN, I explain differences in Emotion brain circuits and the "mirror neurons" that activate more in the female brain to the emotions of another on average. you may also want to look at the paper I just published this August in Current Psychiatry titled "Gender Differences in Addictions"

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Washington, D.C.: I haven't read your book but as a sufferer of PMDD I say AMEN! Without the birth control I've been taking for 13+ years I go completely crazy for 2 days a month.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: the 5-8% of women with severe reactions to their own hormone fluctuations in our generation should indeed take heart! there is a cure as you have discovered and it can help millions of women be their best-selves throughout every week of the month. I make this point in my case-description of "Shana" in CHAPTER TWO: TEEN GIRL BRAIN of the book.

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Washington, DC: Just want to say a huge thanks for writing your book. The

more we are informed of the facts about gender differences

in brain structure and function, the better we can be at

formulating treatment plans.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: yes, each woman is an individual and has her own variation of hormones--just as is true in men since we have not yet put research dollars into studying the behavioral effects of testosterone surges in the male brain--sadly.

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Washington, D.C.: The Sunday Bood World review of you book was

very intriguing, and I look forward to reading

your book.

My (very non-expert) impression from what I've

read on this subject is that since (1) environmental factors can affect how one's genetic make-up is expressed and (2) genetic factors can affect how the environment impacts

development, that there is no clean nature/nurture dichotomy. And as a result,

anyone pre-disposed to favor the dominance

of either genetics or environment can support their

case by a selective sampling of the

evidence. Am I way off here?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: in my book, THE FEMALE BRAIN, the chapter one: BIRTH OF THE FEMALE BRAIN describes how the brain circuits we are each born with are re-enforced by all the experiences we have--good, bad and ugly--so nurture actually "changes the brain cells" by strengthening some connections in our brains and letting others die off.

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Rockville, Md: Do the brains of homosexual men show more 'feminine' traits that those of heterosexual men?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: in my book THE FEMALE BRAIN in Appendix three: SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND THE FEMALE BRAIN I describe and review all the research on homosexual brains which would indicate it is genetic and only somewhat environmental and is certainly not a moral-choice.

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Arlington, Va: Hi Dr. Brizendine,

I've read the review for your book in the Post, and your book seems very intriguing. But it was unclear to me how much of the book was summarizing the current state of your field, and how much of it is your new hypothesis (still to be tested by peer-reviewed research). Can you please elaborate? Thanks.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: I reviewed 1,008 studies to write THE FEMALE BRAIN so it includes what the current research studies show are the differences between the "average female" and average male brain and those emergent behavioral studies. I have included all the studies I reviewed in the Notes and References for anyone who would like to read the original research studies and to hopefully interest the need generation of young scientists to pursue the vast amount of research that remains to be done on the male and female brain.

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Laurel, Md: Your findings about women's brains being affected by hormone levels sounds like something that society will only allowed to be applied when it benefits women -- e.g. Andrea Yates is not guilty when any many would have been convicted. But low numbers of women applied in certain fields, like computer science or aviation, because it doesn't suit their brain-style must still be regarded as a society problem.

When can we begin to accept the idea that certain arenas just don't appeal to women as much as men?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: what gets the "attention" of the average male or female brain has a lot to do with what jobs or careers appeal to us on average. As technology changes and makes most jobs less a matter of brute strength--men and woman --as we know from experience--can do everything the opposite sex can do--from politics to art to science and math.

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Kensington, Md: I am intrigued by your views on hormones and the female brain. I am wondering whether you have heard about the concept of continuous contraception and the pills that allow women to go 3-12 months without bleeding. What effects do you think these hormonal changes have on women's brains and emotional lives? Are you concerned about the marketing of these pills to young women? Do you see a difference between the Pill -- which changes hormones but does allow for monthly bleeding -- and these continuous contraception pills?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: yes the new "continuous pill" is a wonderful improvement for many/most women. I It does not change fertility and decreases the numbers of times per month the brain and body have to deal with hormonal changes.

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Alexandria, Va: One thing that concerns me about the view that there are "female" and "male" brains is that some of us just don't have the same brain as our gender but people treat us as if we do or should. I am a woman, but in most ways, I think and communicate like a man does. To name a few - I flip TV channels to relax instead of talking about my day, I navigate by road name/number and distance as opposed to landmarks, and if you tell me about a problem you're having, I'll immediately offer up a solution as opposed to empathizing with how you feel. My point to all this is that yes, it's great that we can acknowledge that men and women -in general- really are inherently different in many ways, but don't forget about us poor men and women that don't talk or think the way people expect us to. We can't change our brain's orientation any more than we can change our sexual orientation.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: as I point out in THE FEMALE BRAIN we must always honor individual differences and realize that --in almost every category--the male and females have about 10% overlap into the other sexes "average' skill sets. this ends up being millions of people so we cannot ever generalize when it comes to the individual but where studies are concerned they must compare the statistical average between male and female.

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Oakton, Va: Here is a typical male lament! What is it about the female brain that appears to make women want sex less than men do? Is it a consistently lower level of testosterone? Other counteracting hormones? Or, are possible factors such as fear of pregnancy, family protectiveness, lack of male knowledge about how to adequately give women pleasure, etc., entirely cultural in nature? Thank you. I personally try to be very patient with my girlfriends and maintain the "romantic" aspects of a relationship at a high level, which is fun in itself (plus lots of going out shopping together!).

Also, are there cross-ethnic differences in female testosterone and other hormone levels?

Thank you.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: in Chapter Four: SEX--THE BRAIN BELOW THE BELT I describe the differences you allude to--the average couple who are the same age--males have three times the sexual interest than the female. I have couples in my clinic where the opposite occurs --but on average this seems to be the case. the brains of both male and female are "FEMALE-TYPE" up until about 8 weeks of fetal life when the tiny testicles of the male fetus begin to pump out huge, adult male levels of testosterone that marinate the brain--changing it from female-type to male brain. one of the areas that grows larger as a result in he male brain is the brain area for "sexual pursuit" ends up twice the size in the male and when testosterone surges begin at puberty--those circuits are switched on full-blast in the male brain.

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Washington, DC: Sadly for sure that the behavioral effects of testosterone

surges in the male brain have not been studied and an

appropriate treatment found. Observing the past and

present geopolitical male-initiated wars with each other

seems to indicate that, in part at least, this is a long standing

and horrifying demonstration of those surges. I wonder

what it would take to get those studies funded.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: we must first recognize that these hormone surges in the male brain have behavioral consequences that science needs to better understand.

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St. Mary's City, Md.: Even though your research is well-intentioned, I'm concerned that it will be misused against women. Men like Neil French and Lawrence Summers remain convinced that women are biologically inferior to men. Even more outrageous are the claims by fundamentalists such as James Dobson that God intentionally created women as inferior. In the eyes of these men, women will never be able to prove their worth.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: the female brain is --on average--more talented at reading "emotional and social nuance" than males which theoretically makes women better at negotiation and less interested in war-games. This might be the time in world history where using the talent-set of the female brain would be useful to us all.

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Alexandria, Va: Dr. Brizendine, I am a psychotherapist and work with addictions. I have recently been interested in the relationship with compulsive behavior and menopause. Is there a relationship, and, if so, in what way. I work with a lot of women in mid to late middle age. It would be of great interest to them and me to know. Judy Cousins, LCSW

Dr. Louann Brizendine: in Chapter Seven: The Mature Female Brain I describe this relationship and more about the changes in our female brain during this phase of life--which can be freeing for many women to pursue their own interests and advance their careers.

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Atlanta, Ga: Do girls' mathematical abilities develop later in childhood than boys?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: In Chapter Two: TEEN GIRL BRAIN I review the studies that show --on average--the female brain matures 1 to 2 years earlier than the male. Girls who take advanced AP classes in math and physics in high school do just as well in college in math and physics--and having FEMALE math and physics teachers as role-models seems of utmost importance to girls.

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Are women behaving more like men?: Have we as a society bought into the male way of doing things as being better? I know that 'team playing' is becoming important in corporate America - and we all know that women are better at creating alliances, right?

But ... you see things like the rate of accidents young women have sykrocketing over the past decade or so and you begin to wonder.

I think what I'm saying here is - how do we as a society acknowledge the nature part of how we're generally wired but push ahead with progress in the nurture?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: we must remember that - naturally- the workplace that we still exist in was made FOR AND BY MEN ...and so women --**up until now** have had to make themselves more male-like on purpose to "fit in". this is starting to change as society realizes...and WALL STREET realizes that retaining the "best female talent' requires a change in the workplace to being more female-friendly.

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Philadelphia, Pa.: Do male and female brains process pain differently? If so, does this vary according to types of pain. It seems men could never go through child birth, yet women sometimes are more affected by other types of hurt.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: Female pain circuits vs male have been known to be different for a long time and pain medicines even work better or worse depending on the sex of the patient. in CHAPTER TWO of THE FEMALE BRAIN I describe these studies of brain and pain differences. and in Chapter Six: EMOTION: THE FEELING BRAIN I explain the emotional-pain differences.

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Oxon Hill, Md: I haven't read your book, but I did read the review. How would you react to those that would use "female" vs "male" brain differences as the reason to argue that women would not do as well as men in certain positions, such as management or high power positions. I work for a civil rights agency and I hear this argument all the time, even in this day and age. It's constantly used as a reason to pay women less and not promote them as fast or sometimes not at all.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: men and women deserve "equal pay for equal work" as any intelligent person would agree.

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Bowie, Md: Do the physiological characteristics of the female brain in any way explain their predominance among such things as horoscope and palmistry fans and readers of People or the National Enquirer?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: we know that women read more and purchase 80% of all books. Women are also more interested in social-connectedness and read emotional nuance better than men...on average.

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Lakeland Fla: I'm a male working in a large office environment. Over the

past several years, the percentage of women in professional

and management positions has increased dramatically, and

the tone at work has changed accordingly. Some of my male

co-workers and me have noted that things we find

insignificant now take on a high level of importance. There

is more micro-management. And concerning the need for

communication, we feel there are too many meetings and e-

mails. What are your observations about how the work place

has changed due to the greater influence of women?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: now that the workplace is becoming more "female 'friendly" it means that communication--in all its forms--take on greater significance. This may mean that males will become increasingly uncomfortable with a workplace made "for and by females" ...we all would hope for a greater "balance"

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Harrisburg, Pa.: I know an executive who states she always wants both females and males in the decision making process because she believes women can bring totally different both sexes bring different perspectives to the decision making process. Would you agree with this, and what is it about male and female brains that allows each to see different perspectives on problem solving?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: In Chapter Six: EMOTION: THE FEELING BRAIN I describe in the story of Sarah and Nick how the female brain is working to pick up on emotional nuance and emotional meaning through activating her "mirror neurons" and describe the basic brain differences in taking into account and reading the emotional situations and intentions of others better. the female brain brings a different perspective to problem solving than the male--we need "all kinds of minds" to run this complicated world we live in!

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"Marinating in Testosterone": Just wanted to let you know that this phrase, which I read in a review of your book describing the period that the male fetus spends pumping out more testosterone than female fetuses, has become a catchphrase in my house whenever my husband is having trouble with communication. (And yes, HE'S the one who says it, not me!) Funny.

You can already see some backlash to your book, though, in the chatters who question why we can't see that women are worse at technology and so forth than men are. Since women just entered the workforce and the university just a few decades ago, and are definitely playing catch-up in certain fields, let's hold off making judgments. The year before Tiger Woods came on the scene, some similarly unenlightened person could have made the same comment about blacks and golf! Minorities tend to catch up once access is improved, though it takes time once access is gained.

I do agree, though, that we have to use care when excusing bad behavior (like murdering one's children) on the basis of hormonal problems. Testosterone may have a role in some male violent behavior, but I don't think any of us would excuse it. If you have a problem, you have a responsibility to address and control it.

Dr. Louann Brizendine: hormones do NOT cause a behavior and do not excuse a behavior...hormones and brain circuitry only "predispose us to a behavior" and then our civilized brain circuits must inhibit that predisposition, otherwise males who have a sexual impulse towards an attractive woman might rape more often. Societies role has always been to curb the instinctive impulses of our brain circuits--but I think it does help to have a population who is educated about hormones and brain circuits.

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Carteret, NJ: Do hormones play a role in the female brain of a person with bipolar disorder?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: hormones can "push" the brain in biopolar illness just as hormones can "push" the brain in seizure disorders.

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Alpharetta, Ga: You describe testosterone as the 'doesn't cuddle' hormone, but a survey earlier this year actually described more men as describing 'falling asleep in each other's arms' as ideal than women. I'm guessing maybe it has something to do with snoring...

Dr. Louann Brizendine: testosterone is present in BOTH males and females as the hormone that predisposes to sexual interest.

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Baltimore, Md: I've worked in an office many years as an engineer for both male and female bosses. Would you agree with my following two assessments?

Female bosses are superior to male bosses in that they are better at paying a small amount of attention to many different projects and the people working on them.

Male bosses are superior to female bosses in that when someone superior to the boss orders the boss around the male boss can occasionally disagree and comply with his superior without believing the superior is incompetent or abysmally rude.

Of course these are generalities; we could find exceptions. But would you agree the above is generally true?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: the typical male --studies show--is very focused on where he stands in the hierarchy and what the pecking order is...and male bosses erroneously assume that is true for females as well..I describe some of these studies in THE FEMALE BRAIN in Chapter one.

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Sydney Australia: Some medical commentators dispute that PMS can be

identified as an actual medical condition. (I suspect they

are mostly male). What were you able to conclude?

Dr. Louann Brizendine: each woman has her own response to hormonal fluctuations and 80% of women notice they may become a little more "emotionally sensitive" the two days before the menses starts. Male hormone surges of testosterone ---sadly--have not yet been adequately studied, but perhaps one day will be.

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Dr. Louann Brizendine: the talent-set in the average female brain is for picking up on social and emotional nuance and remembering the details of emotional events and arguments that men will not even remember happened...on average. Brain imaging studies have shown that male and female subjects may come up with the same answer--but are actually--and surprisingly--USING DIFFERENT BRAIN CIRCUITS to do so. I review these studies in THE FEMALE BRAIN in the introduction and other chapters.

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