If you’ve ever felt a deep dread of pregnancy, birth, or anything connected to babies—only to wonder if you’re broken or mad for feeling that way — this episode will feel like coming home.

This week, Alexia and JJ turn the spotlight directly onto the messy, often misunderstood intersection between tokophobia (the pathological fear of pregnancy and childbirth) and mental health.

Sharing candid stories from their own healing journeys, they pull apart the ways tokophobia is more than “just a phobia” — it’s often the linchpin disorder underlying chronic anxiety, depression, OCD, isolation, and the crushing feeling of being fundamentally “not like other women”.

They also offer real hope: once you name it, you can begin to claim your life back.

In this episode:

• Why tokophobia is rarely “just” about birth — it’s the mother of all anxiety disorders (yes, really) and can fuel decades of depression, anxiety, and self-doubt

• How Alexia and JJ each realised they had tokophobia — sometimes only decades after the damage was done

• The vicious cycle: medical dismissal, social isolation, and why talking about tokophobia still feels taboo

• Triggers everywhere: from pregnant bumps to baby talk at work — how daily life can feel like an emotional minefield for people with tokophobia

• Relief after miscarriage? Fear of holding a friend’s baby? The tangled web of “unacceptable feelings” that come with the condition — and why you’re not alone

• Why the mental health system mostly fails tokophobic women, and how not being believed actually makes things worse

• The life-changing power of finally having a name for what you’re experiencing (and finding your tribe)

• Small steps to healing: where to seek help, how to find validation, and why your story really does matter

Who is this episode for?

This episode is a lifeline for anyone silently struggling with the fear of pregnancy, birth, or motherhood — especially if you:

• Feel haunted by anxiety, dread, or panic around anything to do with babies, pregnancy, or childbirth

• Experience depression, OCD or emotional isolation that seems tangled up in your reproductive story — but can’t find support that actually understands the root cause

• Have lost friendships, avoided life milestones, or kept quiet from embarrassment or shame

• Are tired of being dismissed by doctors, family, or even therapists who simply don’t “get it”

• Want to know you’re not broken — and need practical hope for healing

You don’t have to suffer in silence. This episode will leave you feeling seen, reassured, and ready to take the next step — whether that’s finding support, naming your fear, or simply realising you aren’t the only one feeling like this.

For professionals, partners, and anyone supporting someone with intense birth anxiety, this episode is an eye-opener — don’t miss the insight on true compassion and what actually helps.

If this resonates, subscribe to Tik-Tokophobia. There’s a whole community here waiting for you.