Is women’s growing fear of natural childbirth justified?

Over the years, the women who attend my childbirth clinics have become increasingly fearful of natural birth. It has become more difficult to move them beyond what seems like an unreasonable fear not just of the pain of labour, but fear for their own safety and the safety of their babies. Why are they so much more afraid?

Some attribute their fear to some reality television channels on the process of giving birth. Rather than help women view birth as the normal life event that it is, to my horror, “reality” shows have made birth appear more medical than ever, and essentially end up marketing fear of natural childbirth.