CAPPA Blog Rihanna is Really Scared to Have a Baby
Posted on Thursday, June 03rd, 2010 · Permanent link to the post
Posted by: Cindy Pitts Gilbert (CAPPA)
Celebrity Pop Star Rihanna from starpulse.com said; “I’m really scared of the actual
childbirth situation but I do want to be a mom one day. Even if I have to adopt, I want to be a mom.” (www.starpulse.com)
Boy oh boy, Rihanna does that bring back memories. When I was about college age I remember saying “I’m afraid to have a baby.” Sometimes I wonder today if the reason it took me over 7 years to get pregnant, once my desire finally outweighed my fear, was because my mind was so totally freaked out for so long that my body said OK, if that’s the way you want it.. Newly wed
at 19 the thought of having a baby, well actually the thought of labor and delivery was petrifying to me. So Rihanna, I can understand your fear, I remember it well, and you are not alone.
So, what is fear anyway? I like how Wikipedia describes it: “Fear is an emotional response to a perceived threat. It is a basic survival mechanism occurring in response to a specific stimulus, such as pain or the threat of danger.” (www.wikipedia.com) That is exactly what CAPPA wants to change. CAPPA wants to change—the perceived threat of danger, to a perception of joy and happiness.
It’s funny how sick birth control pills made me, but that daily nausea wasn’t as scary to me as facing the fear of labor. Why was it so scary? Because, everyone said it hurt, that’s why? Doesn’t that sound like a “perceived threat?” Today, I know that my fear was based on a lack of knowledge or perhaps a false perception. I had no true knowledge of birth I’d never witnessed one, seen a video, attended a class or read a book. I simply didn’t understand. It was a secret society that I had not been inducted in to. I’m not trying to say birth is painless or without hard work. It is called “labor” after all. It seems like daily the internet quotes one celebrity after another expressing a fear of labor, fear of ruining their bodies or sex lives. CAPPA’s has a
vision , “Imagine a world where women are encouraged to trust their bodies, and where myths about childbirth and breastfeeding are dispelled.” Well, for me childbirth turned out to be amazing twice and after 7 years of worry and distress that I wouldn’t be inducted into the club, I have 2 wonderful children that wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t overcome my fear and learned
through childbirth education that I had, to coin a famous phrase, nothing to fear, but fear itself.
Rihanna, please don’t be afraid. CAPPA would love the opportunity to share the joy of birth and remove the fear from the experience for you. Knowledge is power and CAPPA wants to change the way the world views “having a baby.”
