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I Can’t Have This Baby — What is Tokophobia?
Tokophobia in short is a fear of childbirth. Extreme fear of childbirth. Tokophobia makes women not want to get pregnant.
The estimate is that about 14% of AFAB individuals experience tokophobia. (I suspect it may be more common in trans men because it can tie into gender dysphoria). A small number of AMAB people may also experience tokophobia, even though there’s no chance of them becoming pregnant.
Symptoms of Tokophobia
The primary symptoms of tokophobia are anxiety when thinking about childbirth or “intense symptoms of dread.” Some people may actually experience panic attacks.
People with secondary tokophobia (meaning it was caused by a traumatic experience giving birth) may also experience flashbacks and are at risk for PTSD. (Yes, giving birth can cause PTSD).
This goes beyond normal anxieties about pregnancy and childbirth, such as worrying about birth defects, worrying you’re going to end up giving birth in the back of a cab, being afraid of the pain, etc. It’s tokophobia when it interferes with your ability to get pregnant and/or your sex life.
What Causes Tokophobia?
Tokophobia comes in two forms. Primary tokophobia is experienced by people who have never given birth…