The most important stereotype connected to a pregnant woman is that she cannot afford to be afraid. She cannot fear the long journey of pregnancy, she cannot fear that something is wrong, so she cannot be afraid of childbirth.
And why all this?
Why is it not permissible for a woman to be afraid in experiencing such an important, significant event, full of conflicting emotions, painful and totally changing as pregnancy, and in particular of childbirth?
The tocorphobia specifically, that is the rooted fear of childbirth, is a phobia that accompanies many women, which can have important consequences also on a psychological and social level, this fear is very often accompanied by the fact of not being able to bear the pain of labor .
Fear could be influenced by past experiences or other people's stories of experiences.
The consequences of this phobia can give very serious implications about prolonging the period of labor or being a predisposing factor for post-partum depression.
Psychotherapy has proved to be a treatment that brings benefits in a very targeted way, as it has been shown that tocophobia can lead to the development of various types of strategies such as avoidance, or not having children in order not to have to face and live again the period of labor and later delivery.
Last but not least, tacophobia can also have implications on couple and family life, avoiding sexual relations, choosing a rigid contraceptive and giving up having a child.
Being afraid is fundamental, as is having the awareness of being able to face it thanks to a job psychological targeted.