JJ’s Tokophobia and Its Hidden Impact on Creativity and Relationships

In this powerful episode of Tik-Tokophobia, cohost JJ Stenhouse steps into the guest seat and shares her personal journey with tokophobia—the overwhelming fear of pregnancy and childbirth.

Only recognising her tokophobia at age 68, JJ reveals how this hidden anxiety wove itself through her life, shaping her relationships, creativity, and even her sense of self.

The conversation explores the life-altering impact of unrecognised reproductive trauma, the challenges of healing, and what truly shifts when you finally put a name to your fear.

Key discussion points:

• Recognising tokophobia late in life: JJ’s realisation, after years of baffling anxiety, that her challenges with relationships and creativity were rooted in early birth trauma and reproductive anxiety.

• How tokophobia shapes life choices: The impact of tokophobia on relationships, marriage, and the choice (or absence of choice) to have children.

• Creative stifling: Discovering that tokophobia didn’t just stop JJ from having children—it also blocked her ability to “birth” creative projects or bring her ideas into the world.

• The emotional experience of miscarriage: JJ’s experience of intense terror, denial, and then unexpected anger during an early miscarriage, and how this was misunderstood by others (and herself).

• Grieving what never happened: Reflections on how menopause can trigger a fresh wave of grief for those who never had children, even when the decision was never clear-cut.

• Medical dismissal and societal judgement: Revisiting the insensitive responses from medical professionals and the isolation of being childless by circumstance, not always choice.

• Healing and hope: JJ’s approach to overcoming her tokophobia—naming the fear, releasing stored trauma in the body, and seeing real, tangible shifts in her anxiety, creativity, and connection with children.

• The creative renaissance: How finally addressing tokophobia led to a surprising burst of creativity and a deeper sense of safety and connection.

• Practical healing insights: The power of simply naming the issue, the link between body-based anxiety and reproductive trauma, and the role of readiness in personal healing.

Who is this episode for?

This episode is for anyone living with unexplained anxiety around pregnancy, birth, or even creativity — especially if you feel “blocked” in life and can’t quite put your finger on why. 

It’s for those struggling to process reproductive trauma, feeling unseen by medical or mental health professionals, or grieving what could have been. 

If you suspect you might have tokophobia or reproductive anxiety, or you simply want to understand how deep these fears can run, JJ’s story will offer both insight and hope.

Whether you’re searching for answers, validation, or a way forward, this episode will show you that you’re absolutely not alone — and that healing is possible at any stage of life.

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If this resonates, check out our white papers — “Fear Sells (But It Doesn’t Serve)” and “The Case for Reproductive Anxiety Disorder” — and explore our RAD Responsible™ resources for more on safe, empowering storytelling around pregnancy and birth.