Hormonal factors of false pregnancy
Medical conditions like uterine tumors, menopause or cancer can cause changes in a person's hormone levels. These hormonal changes can mimic pregnancy symptoms like missed periods, fatigue or weight gain.
This fear may lead women to avoid becoming pregnant, even though they want to have children, or to opt for a Caesarean section in order to avoid vaginal birth. Tokophobia may occur in women who have never given birth to a child, but it may also affect women who have had prior traumatic birth experiences.
Unfortunately, no matter how much we feel that we may know our bodies, pregnancy cannot be self-diagnosed. The only way to know whether or not you're pregnant is through a pregnancy test.
Avoidant: A person with this type of tokophobia decidedly does not want to get pregnant at this time in their life. The tokophobia presents more as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), with obsessive worry about getting pregnant.
On the other hand, another 2015 study in the same journal suggests a mid-cycle rise in testosterone is likely behind the baby-craves–which is intriguing since this is a hormone usually considered to give us traditionally “masculine” characteristics, such as competitiveness, impulsiveness and confidence. So, what gives?
Edward Marut, an OB-GYN and reproductive endocrinologist at Fertility Centers of Illinois, tells Romper. Marut says that when a person feels an "intense longing to have a baby, the longing likely releases oxytocin from the brain."
Of course, as women age, the odds of conceiving also gradually lower. The ideal childbearing age is often considered to be in the late 20s and early 30s. Pregnancies later in life could come with some health risks. However, age is just one factor when it comes to giving birth to a child.
Societal pressure and personal desire to have a baby may spark feelings of baby fever, and can sometimes make someone feel like they're 'running out of time' to have children. And for those who struggle to become pregnant, this feeling can be intensified.
For some women, pregnancy and birth have no impact or can even improve symptoms. If you have OCD for the first time in pregnancy, it may get better soon after birth. However, it can continue, and keep coming back later in life if you do not get the right treatment.
It's okay to obsess about getting pregnant just a little. But it should not consume your life and make you lose yourself in the process. First, take a deep breath. This is not an easy place to be and it can feel isolating and overwhelming, especially if it's your first time.
There is a higher incidence of OCD in pregnancy and during the postpartum than in the general population (Fairbrother et al., 2021). During the perinatal period, content of intrusive thoughts or “obsessions” is often related to accidental or intentional harm coming to the baby.
It's natural to be scared when you don't know what to expect from pregnancy or don't know what your options are. One of the best ways to help lower your pregnancy fears is to be well informed. If you haven't yet done so, get a free pregnancy test. Read up on the facts and information about pregnancy.
Pregnancy scares are fairly common. A 2011 survey done by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, now called Power to Decide, found that 54 percent of young women surveyed said that they've had a pregnancy scare.
In the last 15 years, though, research on human mothers and babies has caught up to show that my mother-in-law was at least partly correct: A pregnant woman's emotional state—especially her stress, anxiety, and depression—can change her child's development with long-lasting consequences.
Perinatal and postpartum OCD usually (but not always) revolves around significant fear of harm coming to the infant, with worries frequently focused on accidentally or deliberately harming the child or the child becoming ill.
It's called hormonal urge, even baby fever, sometimes. Khyati does believe that there is an urge. At a certain age, hormones do act up in a way that women show an eagerness and willingness to have babies.
Baby fever is the name for the longing that some people experience relating to the desire of having a child (or grandchild) of their own.
Signs That You Are Ready to Have a Baby
YOU (and YOUR PARTNER if you're in a relationship) want to have a baby. You have some disposable income. You and your partner are healthy (both physically and mentally). Your social life isn't as much of a priority anymore.
A gap of 3 years or more greatly reduces the chances of sibling rivalry. By this time the older child is secure in him or herself and quite independent. In addition, the mother's body is fully recovered from the challenges of pregnancy and birth of the first child.