Can having a baby make you smarter?

It turns out YES!

Mothers often complain about baby-brain but I wonder if it's simply sleep- and rest-deprivation, and not being used to multitasking to such a high degree, dealing with stressful events, and having your routine (including sleep) completely out of whack. There's also the skill of being interrupted ever 5 seconds and remaining sane. That's a tough one.

I really feel that being a paramedic has prepared me for being a mother in all of the above ways.

And, as I think I blogged about in an earlier post, after having my first baby I felt I had gotten smarter and did an online IQ test where I scored much higher (about 10 points) than in previous attempts.

I also have a reduced requirement for sleep, a more profound sense of being present, and the ability to  make more rationale decision to prioritise (such as saving versus spending on things I don't need). My home is much cleaner and more organised.

They negative effects of becoming s mother, for me, is the deep feeling of fear. If anything happens to my child, it scares the absolute crap out of me. I suppose that is somewhat normal, especially for someone who has seen way too much scary shit at work.

What is an ILIan?

So, I posted a few weeks ago that I was going to try and raise my IQ.

It is actually really difficult to find 20 minutes a day for something you're not very passionate about; that is not in your Top 3 goals for the day.

Sadly, so many competing priorities get left behind as I am busy with being a great mum, a great partner, and maintaining the household and providing 3x daily nutritious meals for the three of us. Oh yeh then there's work, med school, and other pursuits.

Anyway, I was decluttering some more (I can totally recommend Marie Kondo's method) and stumbled across an old test I did for special university entrance and it has allowed me membership with Intertel! Yay! That is the high IQ society for people who score in the 99th percentile or above.

So, anyway, it's not Triple Nine Society (aka TNS, 99.9th percentile) but it's a double nine society lol

Taking little wins where I can.

A member of Intertel is also sometimes known as an ILIan.

The test score I used placed me in the 99.8th percentile. Just a small 0.1% increase would be enough for TNS membership. It correlates with an IQ of 143. My goal was for 146 for TNS. I think this is a reasonable gain I could expect from proper nutrition, hydration, rest, sleep, and brain training.

From Wikipedia:

Some societies, including widely known societies such as Mensa, accept the results of standardized tests taken elsewhere. Those are listed below by selectivity percentile (assuming the now-standard definition of IQ as a standard score with a median of 100 and a standard deviation of 15 IQ points).

• Top 2 percent of population (98th percentile; 1 person out of 50; approximately IQ 130):
  • Mensa International – as of January 2014, ~110,000 members from ~100 countries; annual dues for American Mensa are $70 (dues differ by country).
• Top 1 percent (99th percentile; 1 out of 100; approximately IQ 135):
  • Intertel – as of January 2014, 1,300-1,400 members; annual dues are $39.
• Top 0.1 percent (99.9th percentile; 1 out of 1,000; approximately IQ 146):
  • Triple Nine Society – as of January 2016, 1,700 members from 50 countries; annual dues are $10.
• Top 0.003 percent (99.997th percentile; 1 out of 30,000; approximately IQ 160):
  • Prometheus Society – as of January 2014, ~120 members; annual dues are $50.
• Top 0.0001 percent (not reliable with current tests):
  • Mega Society – as of January 2014, 26 members

Raising my IQ experiment

Ok so here's something that may come off as, I dunno, strange or silly or egomaniacal. But I'm going to blog about it anyway.

I want to see if I can raise my IQ.

I believe I'm in the low 140's, and at least in the high 130's. I'm in Mensa so that's minimum of 132. Maybe I just scraped through, who knows. I've only ever done the online tests.

I joined Mensa before starting med school and having a baby, where I think my IQ went up a bit just from using my brain a bit more than normal. I just did an online test that claims to be within 4% accurate, under heavy influence of sauv blanc, and still scored a 139. I think I'm better when sober and well rested. Dehydration alone reportable decreases IQ by 10%.

So, anyway, I'm conducting an experiment to see if I can raise it and get into my goal of the Triple Nine Society.

TNS requires an IQ in the top 0.1% of the population, whites approximately 145. I think I can do this.

I need to sit a proctored exam to gain evidence of my IQ. They are generally expensive, however I have quickly Googled and there is something called an ACT and I think its for College admissions and is only $40. There is one nearby in April 2016.

What I really need is A GOAL. I am lacking something to strive for. I have med school, sure, but I need something new. My proposed regime for increasing IQ will surely benefit my studies.

I have one hard rule: no nootropics except caffeine. No messing with my brain chemistry and relying on stimulants. I even want to quit caffeine. When I was really clean with my diet I experienced heightened mental clarity and I want it again.

At the very least I want to know my IQ, my best possible effort, and hopefully it is enough to get into one of the Top !% societies. Mensa is the biggest, oldest, and most well-known high IQ societies but somehow I feel like Top 2% is setting the bar bit low. There is The High IQ Society whites easier to join online and is the Top 5%. I am with them as well. I joined them before Mensa as I was more confident.

I'm aiming for high 140's.

Here's my rough wine-induced plan:

• no alcohol
• eat clean
• train mean
• early nights
• meditation
• dual N-back training
• common IQ test question familiarisation
• more research this subject

No wine will be hard. I've become to rely on it due to having a toddler.

Wish me luck.