CHARLOTTETOWN -- A Prince Edward Island professor is conducting research in the hopes of better understanding what's behind the fear of childbirth as it relates to women who request a planned cesarean birth.
Janet Bryanton of the University of Prince Edward Island School of Nursing says she plans to interview women who have requested a planned cesarean birth because of their fears of childbirth.
Bryanton says she wants to find out what's at the root of their fears and gain an understanding of what they're going through in the hopes of quelling some of those fears for other women.
Bryanton says understanding of those fears will enhance women's physical and mental health by decreasing negative birth outcomes, such as post traumatic stress disorder or the fear of a subsequent birth.
She says she also wants to raise awareness about the significance of the childbirth experience in general and the importance of having a positive experience.
Bryanton says she wants to give women a voice so that others know they are not alone in their fears.
