Gwyneth Paltrow, 49, revealed she “almost died” while giving birth to her daughter, Apple, after being rushed to the hospital for an emergency cesarean.
Gwyneth opened up about the traumatic experience during an episode of Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast on Monday.
“I had two caesareans. My daughter was an emergency – it was crazy, we almost died. It was like not good,” the Goop founder shared. “Anyway, there’s a big scar across your body and you’re like, oh wow, that didn’t used to be there. And it’s not that it’s bad or you want to judge it but you’re just like, ”Oh my god.”
According to Gwyneth, her labor with Apple lasted 70 hours before she ultimately welcomed her 9lb, 11oz daughter.
Gwyneth, who shares daughter, Apple, now 17, and son Moses, 15, with ex-husband, Chris Martin, 44, of Coldplay, went on to explain how the scarring from the emergency surgery not only changed her outlook on her body, but also society’s expectations of mothers.
Gwyneth went on to criticize social media for creating unrealistic body expectations for women, including the idea that women can bounce back into shape and have ‘washboard abs’ just days after giving birth.
“Thank god there wasn’t Instagram when I had babies because now it’s like if I see someone, ”Oh I just gave birth two weeks ago and I have a completely washboard stomach,” and I’m like, wow that’s not what I [looked like],” Gwyneth commented.
PHOTOS: Gwyneth Paltrow: Red Carpet Style File
Gwyneth Paltrow: Red Carpet Style File
View Gallery“And like great, more power to the lady with the washboard [abs] but that is totally the exception and then now we’re being fed all of these other images of what we’re supposed to look like all the time — babies, no babies, whatever,” she adds.
Gwyneth, who is now married to Brad Falchuk, 50, concluded that women shouldn’t judge or put pressure on each other surrounding formula feeding and breastfeeding, saying they should all be “friends” who support one another instead.
This isn’t the first time Gwyneth has opened up about body image — she’s previously shared more on the subject on her Goop blog.
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By Mardi Houn
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