Tocophobia, or Fear of Childbirth, on the Rise

PHOTO Karen DuVall, 23, and her boyfriend, Dante Charlton, have decided to adopt rather than have a child of their own. DuVall has tacophobia and is afraid of giving birth.PlayCourtesy Karen DuVall
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Karen DuVall, a 23-year-old college student from Vacaville, Calif., was surprised there was a word for her unrelenting fear of childbirth -- tocophobia.

DuVall's aunt had told her about a "third degree tear" after having her first child. Later, in a sexuality class, she was horrified by a photo of a woman giving birth.

"The more I learned about childbirth, the more afraid of it I've actually become," DuVall, a college theater major, told "I'm afraid of my body being ruined. I'm afraid of having an aneurysm and dying. I'm even afraid that when I get married, my husband won't be attracted to me anymore after giving birth. I'm afraid that I just won't be me anymore."

It's not that DuVall doesn't want children -- she would eventually like to adopt.

Some people are afraid of snakes, others bridges and tunnels, but a small number of women are phobic about the very notion of giving birth.

Tocophobia (also spelled tokophobia) is derived from the Greek "tocos" (childbirth) and "phobos" (fear).

There are no statistics available in the United States, but British reports have shown that as many as 1 in 6 women have extraordinary anxiety, and the number may be growing.


Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren admitted to it in a 2007 interview, telling an Australian television show that her fear began as a 13-year-old when she saw a graphic video.

"I swear it traumatized me to this day," said Mirren, 65. "I haven't had children and now I can't look at anything to do with childbirth. It absolutely disgusts me."

A study of 26 women published in the 2000 issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry said phobic avoidance of pregnancy is a "harrowing condition" that may date from adolescence or be secondary to a traumatic delivery.

It can also be a symptom of prenatal depression. Researchers emphasized the need for doctors to acknowledge the condition.

"It's more common than one would think," said Erica Lyon, author of "The Big Birth Book," who is a consultant for New York City's Tribeca Parenting.

She counsels many older women who have waited to have children.

"I think it tends to be a woman with a type-A personality," said Lyon. "She may have a previous history of anxiety or depression or struggled with an eating disorder. We don't understand the brain enough to know why."

Pregnant Women Afraid of Loss of Control

Many women say they are afraid of losing control of their bodies during labor and an "unknown amount of pain."

"In your 20s, you feel invincible and you have not yet heard all your girlfriends' horror stories," she said. "There is the double whammy of slightly more risk and being adult longer to hear the negative stuff."

Phobias are a type of anxiety disorder, a strong irrational fear of something that poses little or no actual danger, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Many common phobias include fear of heights, public places or being in closed-in places. People with phobias avoid what they are afraid of and if they cannot, they experience panic, rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, trembling and a strong desire to get away.

Some women say even the sight of another pregnant woman can trigger crying, hyperventilation, sweating and nausea.










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As for Karen DuVall, she said she feels thankful that adoption is a possibility and that her boyfriend, Dante Charlton, has been supportive.

"In talking with her about this, what it came down to was either choosing her for my love of her, or not choosing her because of something culture expected of her," said Charlton, 24, who is also a theater major.

"I had never in all my years of thinking of having my own children think that I would be challenged in my desire to have a woman bear them for me...In the end I chose her, because there's no alternative to her."

DuVall said friends say she will change her mind, but she is steadfast.

"This is the way I am," she said. "I think adoption is a wonderful avenue for becoming a parent. I don't think I am any less of a woman for not choosing to have a baby."