Top 10 fears about giving birth

We may not talk about it much, but most of us have some fears around labor and delivery. We surveyed more than a thousand expecting moms to learn what worried them most about giving birth. Here's what they had to say.

Not getting to the hospital in time

• "My fear was giving birth on the side of the road!"
• "I was afraid I'd have the baby in the car."
• "My fear was having my water break and needing to quickly get to the hospital while my husband was at work."

Life-threatening complications

• "My fear was there would be serious complications endangering both the baby's life and mine."
• "I worried about me or the baby dying during the delivery."

The baby not being healthy

• "This was our fifth child, so the birthing experience wasn't scary – but the thought of her not being okay was."
• "I feared that there would be something – anything – wrong with the baby."
• "I was mostly concerned about the baby's health. I was horrified the baby would be sick or die. I know it's morbid, but it was my biggest fear!"

Unwanted interventions

• "I was afraid of ending up with a c-section or an episiotomy."
• "I was afraid of getting a cascade of medical interventions that involved more drugs than I wanted."
• "I feared ending up with a c-section – which I did."
• "I was scared that I'd have to be induced, which ended up happening anyway since I was 10 days late."

Being in pain

• "I was terrified of the pain (it wasn't as bad as I anticipated!)."
• "I was worried about pain and not getting the epidural in time."
• "I was most scared about the pain of pushing."

Not knowing how to care for the baby

• "I worried about how my husband and I were going to take care of this tiny human being."
• "The fact that I was about to be a mom was so scary to me! I don't know why, but it was."
• "It was scary to realize that I would soon be fully responsible for another life."

Loss of modesty

• "I was worried about my water breaking in a public place."
• "Honestly, I was worried how my bladder would do. I have a chronic condition. Looking back, that seems silly, but I was worried about it!"
• "I was afraid that I'd have a bowel movement during pushing."
• "I was scared about being naked in front of a bunch of people."
• "I'm a very modest person, and I don't like to be 'out in the open,' and that's what I was most concerned with."

Facing the unknown

• "I think the biggest fear I had was that I just didn't know what to expect."
• "The unknown was really my biggest fear. I didn't know how it would hurt, just that it would. There was also a bit of 'Now what do we do?!' panic."

Not being able to give birth

• "I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to do it."
• "My biggest fear about giving birth was not being able to push enough for my baby to be born!"
• "I was nervous that I wouldn't be physically able to push my child out."
• "I just didn't think I'd be able to push a baby out of my vagina."

Tearing

• "Tearing has always been my biggest fear."
• "I was particularly afraid of tearing."

Watch the video: How To Overcome Your Fears Of Giving Birth (June 2022).