Cognitive behavioral therapy techniques in the treatment of tokophobia – a literature review

Background
Tokophobia is a type of specific phobia related to the pathological fear of natural childbirth and occurs in about 6–10% of expectant mothers. Tokophobia is multifaceted, and its underlying factors are biological, psychological, and social. There are primary and secondary tokophobia and tokophobia coexisting with depression. The crucial symptom of tokophobia is the fear of pain. Tokophobia is associated with low pain tolerance, inhibiting the endogenous mechanisms of analgesia caused by pregnancy. The basic form of treatment for tokophobia is psychotherapy.

Objectives
The purpose of this article is to review the latest publications which state the methods of therapy for tokophobia.

Material and methods
To assess available cognitive behavioral therapy techniques in the treatment of tokophobia, a systematic review of four electronic databases (EBSCOhost, PEDro, PubMed, and Scopus) were searched until the end of May 2023.

Results and conclusions
The use of cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques for this type of specific phobia can minimize negative beliefs about childbirth and experienced pain, which can result in a reduction of negative experiences and thereby reduce the number of caesarean sections on demand. The inclusion of alternative interventions, such as the practice of mindfulness and compassion, seems to be a supportive treatment option in the case of a tendency to worry in pregnant women, as well as the experience of discomfort during pregnancy.