There is a phobia that only affects women, specifically 2% of the female population and to which less attention is paid than it should. We are talking about tocophobia or the fear of getting pregnant , a disorder that can prevent you from forming a family due to the pregnancy panic. We tell you all about tocophobia in our dictionary of phobias .
What is Tocophobia
Tocophobia is the fear of pregnancy, of becoming pregnant, or of childbirth . It could be thought that it is not a serious problem, since having a certain fear of the changes that occur in the body during pregnancy are normal and logical. The same happens with childbirth, a moment that you can understand as precious or as a nightmare.
But with fear and all, most women who want to be mothers embark on the adventure of pregnancy and overcome those fears as best they can. Then everything will be forgotten when you hold your baby. These women do not suffer from tocophobia.
The women suffering tocophobia will never dare to become pregnant . And for this they can even avoid sexual intercourse. Can you imagine the number of problems that can result from this phobic disorder? The fear of pregnancy is so intense and excessive that it pervades all areas of life.
Causes of tocophobia
As with all phobias, tocophobia can develop from a traumatic experience related to pregnancy or childbirth . It may simply be that you have seen an explicit video of what is happening at the time or have heard experiences from other women.
People who have been sexually abused can also develop this phobia of getting pregnant or even having sex. There are two types of tocophobia that can better clarify the causes or origin of this fear. Primary tocophobia is experienced by those women who have never become pregnant because fear leads them to avoid this situation.
For their part, secondary tocophobia is suffered by those women who have already gone through that experience . If they have had a difficult pregnancy or difficult delivery, they are terrified of going through that situation again.
Symptoms and consequences of tocophobia
The symptoms of tocophobia are the same as those of other phobias, that is, the symptoms of anxiety . Nervousness, palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness or panic attack appear at the very idea that they may become pregnant.
The consequences are obvious. The behavior that produces a phobia is avoidance . And of course you can spend your whole life without having to be a mother. Of course, not having children is not a problem, as long as it is a decision and not an avoidance due to a phobic disorder.
There is no obligation to be a mother. But not wanting to get pregnant becomes a disorder when you avoid it out of fear. And in this case, you need to seek treatment.
Treatment of tocophobia
To overcome a phobia, psychological help is needed and cognitive behavioral therapy is the most effective. With this therapy, that distorted initial thought is worked on until it becomes a useful and rational thought. From there you can begin to transform the avoidance behavior.
In the treatment of phobias , the usual practice of relaxation techniques is always recommended to reduce the degree of anxiety that they entail. And in the case of tocophobia, you can go to a specialist to explain the process of pregnancy and childbirth in a realistic way but without fear.