Most of us know what it feels like to fear something; whether it’s spiders, heights, or public speaking. But when it comes to childbirth, fear is a common and often misunderstood response.
Childbirth is a scary event for most women, especially when they see the pain involved. For those of you who have already had children, you know what I’m talking about! If you have a fear of childbirth, you’re not alone. In fact, up to 50% of all mothers report experiencing some kind of fear during labor and delivery. It’s one of the top reasons why women choose not to have children at all.
The good news? There are things you can do to help ease your worries and fears before the baby arrives. Whether you’re looking for relaxation methods, breathing exercises, or even natural remedies, I’ve gathered them together for you here.
What are the techniques that work to overcome your fears of childbirth? If you’re facing a fear of childbirth, chances are it’s one of the following:
The fear of pain when giving birth
Childbirth is a scary event for most women, especially when they see the pain involved. For those of you who have already had children, you know what I’m talking about! If you have a fear of childbirth, you’re not alone. In fact, up to 50% of all mothers report experiencing some kind of fear during labor and delivery.
It’s one of the top reasons why women choose not to have children at all. The good news? There are things you can do to help ease your worries and fears before the baby arrives. Whether you’re looking for relaxation methods, breathing exercises, or even natural remedies, I’ve gathered them together for you here.
The pain of having a surgical incision of the perineum
I once had surgery where they cut my perineum. I had a fear of childbirth and I had a fear of pain. I was scared. But that fear was stronger than the pain I felt afterward. If you have a fear of childbirth, you’re not alone. In fact, up to 50% of all mothers report experiencing some kind of fear during labor and delivery. It’s one of the top reasons why women choose not to have children at all.
The good news? There are things you can do to help ease your worries and fears before the baby arrives. Whether you’re looking for relaxation methods, breathing exercises, or even natural remedies, I’ve gathered them together for you here.
Not knowing what to expect during labor
While there is no one-size-fits-all solution to help manage your fears during labor, there are some tricks and techniques that are surprisingly effective. Overcoming the fear of childbirth can be lessened by the help of a partner, a midwife, a birth photographer or other birth assistants, and other supportive individuals, it’s possible to make the process a little less painful and more manageable.
Not feeling prepared for the experience
It’s simply because you haven’t given birth before. You’ve been through a lot of other transitions in your life so it’s only natural that you’d be feeling nervous about this one. That’s okay! It’s perfectly normal to feel this way and it’s all part of the journey.
This is something you’re going to have to deal with in the best possible way so that you can feel confident in your decision to have a baby and that you’re able to cope with any of the challenges that may arise during the process.
Being unprepared for the emotional changes
You may have already realized that you’re going through some pretty big changes right now and that these changes are affecting you emotionally. These changes can be physical or psychological, but they all involve a change in your relationship with the world around you.
These changes are usually very noticeable, but it’s worth recognizing that, because you are going through this transition, you are going to feel a lot of different emotions. For example, you might feel sad, angry, or scared, but the thing to understand is that this is normal, as it’s part of the process. If you need help coping with these emotional changes, don’t be afraid to reach out. There’s no shame in feeling upset and you can talk to someone about this.
Not knowing what to say or do when you give birth
There’s a lot of information out there about the birth process, but most of it is medical in nature, which isn’t necessarily relevant to you personally. When people ask you what you’re doing during labor, it can be very hard to know what to say. I don’t know what I’d do if I was in your position.
I’d recommend looking for someone who has been through a similar experience to you and then asking them for their advice. If you can’t find anyone with that kind of experience, you could look for other mums online, or look at the books that are written by other people and see how they handled the experience. There are also some online sites that can be helpful to find out about your birth experience and to get ideas for what to do.
The best thing to do would be to keep an open mind when it comes to birth. If you get the feeling that something isn’t right, you should talk to someone about it. Don’t let anyone pressure you into doing things that make you feel uncomfortable. This will allow you to be more mindful about the birth experience and have a more positive outlook on the whole thing.
You may be a mother-to-be but you have some concerns about childbirth. You are worried about pain, bleeding, possible complications, and even emotional trauma. It is like having a fear of heights. When you are facing an obstacle, your brain sends signals to your muscles to prepare you for action. The problem is, your body doesn’t know that the threat has passed, and so it keeps on preparing for the worst-case scenario. The way to overcome these fears is to take action.
Just like you need to go out and climb a mountain if you want to conquer your fear of heights, you need to take action to overcome and confront your fear of childbirth. And you can do this by doing some of the activities that you are most afraid of.
Conclusion
Every woman has fears of childbirth. The truth is it can be managed. The birth of your baby is a momentous occasion that will have a lifetime of significance in your life. You don’t have to let the fear of childbirth overwhelm you. You can overcome it and live to tell about it. Remember, when it comes to birthing, it’s not what happens to you, it’s what you do with it that matters.