Many people regard becoming pregnant as a beautiful experience. Every year, more than 3 million women in the US get to witness this common miracle. The good news is that for the majority of them, childbirth is a story that concludes with the encouraging phrase "mom and baby are doing great" and the discomfort of childbirth begins to fade into obscurity.
Unfortunately, complications can be difficult, painful, or even dangerous for many women. It reminds us that childbirth isn't always risk-free. Celebrity women who talk openly about their challenging pregnancies, which can entail everything from minute discomfort to potentially fatal medical issues, can demystify these worries and inspire other suffering mothers to get support.
Even some celebrity moms have had major birthing issues because pregnancy may be a wonderful equalizer (leaky boobs and swollen ankles can happen to anybody, regardless of fame). We've collected 15 of their traumatic childbirth complications here.
#1 Scheana Shay
Source: scheana
The Vanderpump Rules star Scheana Shay gave birth to her baby Moon Honey Davis in 2021, but she experienced some extremely terrible moments soon after. "Almost 24 hours after being induced, my blood pressure was extremely elevated. I was diagnosed with preeclampsia, which has now turned into HELLP syndrome," she posted on Instagram at the time. "My doctor said I was lucky, and we caught this just in time to treat, as it's very unusual to be caught so late in postpartum. Until this morning, I was on a magnesium drip that made me extremely lethargic and flu-like, shivering uncontrollably to the point where I felt like I was seizing. Having not caught this condition in time, that would have been likely."
#2 Christy Turlington Burns
Source: cturlington
Supermodel Christy Turlington Burns is another famous mother who turned to activism after escaping a terrifying birthing crisis. She had a retained placenta during the delivery of her daughter, which caused substantial blood loss. She later founded her nonprofit organization, Every Mother Counts, after realizing that this was the kind of incident that causes maternal death in many different locations. She even edited a collection of essays about childbirth called Arrival Stories.
#3 Kim Kardashian
Source: kimkardashian
When we consider how difficult her pregnancies were, it actually makes sense why Kim Kardashian is a well-known celebrity who dislikes being pregnant. She had placenta accreta, a disorder that causes the placenta to enlarge excessively inside the uterus. This might lead to severe blood loss after birth and the requirement to physically remove the placenta.
#4 Beyoncé
Source: beyonce
Even
Beyoncé, a music and fashion icon, encountered difficulties during the delivery of her twins, Sir and Rumi. In 2018, she was open and honest with Vogue, saying, "I had been bedridden for more than a month, and I was bloated from toxicemia. I underwent an emergency C-section because both my health and that of my unborn children was in jeopardy. We stayed in the NICU for a long time." Gladly, everyone is now in good health and spirits!
#5 Tori Spelling
Source: torispelling
Tori Spelling, an actress and mother of five children, experienced a significant problem during her fourth pregnancy. After being diagnosed with placenta previa, which can cause internal bleeding and endanger the lives of both the mother and the unborn child, she spent 10 weeks in the hospital and months in bed rest with her son Finn. Eventually, Tori underwent an emergency C-section, but happily, both survived.
#6 Mariah Carey
Source: mariahcarey
The twins, who are now 11 years old, are "the two greatest blessings" in Mariah Carey's life, she claims. She experienced a number of pregnancy-related issues, including gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, and early-term delivery that necessitated an emergency C-section.
#7 Serena Williams
Source: serenawilliams
When speaking candidly about her childbirth experience to CNN in 2018, tennis great Serena Williams said: "I almost died after giving birth to my daughter, Olympia." She required an emergency C-section after giving birth, experienced a pulmonary embolism, and underwent a number of operations, including one to repair her stitches after coughing so forcefully that she tore her surgical wound open. It was terrifying, and ever then, she has fought to improve maternal health outcomes, particularly for women of color.
#8 Zoe Saldana
Source: zoesaldana
Actress Zoe Saldana is another famous mother of twins who experienced difficult problems during childbirth. When she was only 32 weeks pregnant, she underwent an emergency C-section to deliver her sons. "They found protein in my urine; my platelets crashed. I didn't qualify for an epidural, so I delivered under general anesthetic. I didn't even meet them until a day later," she informed Allure (via People). Two years later, Zoe would have another boy, but thankfully the second time around was much simpler for her.
#9 Jessa Duggar
Source: jessaseewald
With her third child, daughter Ivy, Jessa Duggar unexpectedly gave birth at home, which led to a significant issue. She was bleeding uncontrollably, necessitating a call to 911, a trip to the hospital, and a shot of pitocin. It's interesting to note that she had previously needed a blood transfusion after experiencing uncontrollable bleeding during the birth of her first child.
#10 Mira Sorvino
Source: mirasorvino
During her third pregnancy, Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino, who will always be known as Romy in our hearts, received the terrifying diagnosis of placenta previa. During her nearly two-month hospital stay while pregnant, she also experienced a blood clot, which thankfully disappeared with the birth of her son Holden.
#11 Kenya Moore
Source: kenya
Star of the Real Housewives of Atlanta Kenya Moore's pregnancy with daughter Brooklyn was challenging. She had severe preeclampsia in addition to fibroids, which complicated her emergency C-section. She said to People "They couldn't get the baby out. There were all these complications, and they knew if they cut into a fibroid, I could potentially bleed out and die. So they ended up cutting me vertically, to just get the baby out and make sure I survived the surgery. They were so scared they were going to lose me."
#12 Linda Cardellini
Source: lindacardellini
The Netflix series Dead to Me lead Linda Cardellini, an actress, experienced a dreadful set of difficulties after childbirth, beginning with a serious illness. She provided the full account to Elle magazine: "When I was nine months pregnant, I got sick with this super-infection, which included double pneumonia. Both my eardrums blew. My face was paralyzed. And then, when I had the baby, there were a few things that happened that were also very scary. I was in labor and they were losing her heart rate, and mine was going down too, so I had to have an emergency C-section. And I had an epidural that went too far, so my breathing was compromised. And then my daughter was stuck and had the cord around her neck, which is a common complication by itself, but I had several complications at once."
#13 Adriana Lima
Source: adrianalima
Adriana Lima, a supermodel who will give birth to her third child in the summer of 2022, was another famous mother who had preeclampsia. Due to the severity of her disease, she was forced to birth her first child, daughter Valentina, at only 34 weeks of gestation.
#14 Salma Hayek
Source: salmahayek
Salma Hayek experienced extreme nausea for the entire nine months of her pregnancy, which she attributes to one of the side effects of gestational diabetes. It took her several years to feel like she had fully recovered, according to her, who called the pregnancy "really difficult"
#15 Cardi B
Source: iamcardib
Cardi B is a mom to two adorable children, son Wave and daughter Kulture. She called giving birth to Wave a "crazy ass" experience and admitted on Instagram that she "lost so much blood," which some women may experience during a postpartum hemorrhage. Thank goodness, Cardi and Wave are doing well right now.