Hayden Panettiere Details Bleeding Out, Almost Dying During Childbirth
Hayden Panettiere's motherhood journey started off with a harrowing experience.
The Nashville star nearly died from bleeding out while giving birth to her and ex-fiancé Wladimir Klitschko's daughter Kaya in 2014.
"I was sitting there and getting the C-section, and I knew that I was knocking on death's doorstep," Hayden recounted in an exclusive E! News interview about her memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, out May 19. "I just had the most motherly moment though, where I said, 'God, please let me hear my daughter cry. I just want to know that she is OK and if it's my time to go, I'm OK with that.'"
While Hayden ultimately pulled through, undergoing seven blood transfusions and overcoming an infection, the near-death incident made her realize she was more than ready to be a mother. As the 36-year-old put it, she was willing to sacrifice herself "in a second" to ensure Kaya's well-being.
Hayden added, "I wasn't afraid at all."
However, Hayden's struggle with postpartum depression complicated her role as a mom during Kaya's early years. Ultimately, the Heroes alum opted to make another sacrifice, relinquishing custody of Kaya in 2018 so the then-4-year-old could live in Europe with Wladimir while she sought treatment.
"I don't ever want her to feel like the postpartum depression aspect was her fault in any way," Hayden said. "I want her to take away that it's OK to be imperfect and flawed, and you'll actually realize that you're not alone in any of your struggles and you don't have to stay quiet and be sick like I was."
The Scream VI actress added that she's now "always checking in" on herself and "surrounded by healthy people who bring out the best" in her, including Kaya.
"I don't know about if I would use the word closure quite yet, because I'm still talking about it and living these emotions and really trying to process them," Hayden said. "They're out of my body. They're on paper, and I just hope that they can help as many people as possible."
For more celebrity moms speaking out about their own parenting journeys, read on.
Khloe Kardashian's best quotes on motherhood are simply in the constant sweet messages she publicly shares to her daughter True.
"Everyday I give thanks that I was chosen to be your mommy," the Keeping Up With the Kardashians star shared on Instagram. "I'll never ever take this role for granted! Thank you Tutu! I will easily love you until the end of time!"
Kim Kardashian is the proud mama to four kids who she values above all else.
"I have such unconditional love for my kids. No matter what, I will always love them and support them in anything they choose to do in life. My family was so close growing up; now that I'm a mom, I understand the bond my mom and dad felt with us," she shared on her website.
"There can be ups and downs with kids but no matter what, I always learn so much from them. Being a mom is the most important job I have."
The self-made billionaire shared in an interview with Kim all about how much she thinks about her little Stormi.
"I think more about the future because of her. Every time I leave and I'm stressed about leaving her, I'm like, ‘I'm doing it for you,'" Kylie told Kim. "Everyone says you change completely when you become a mom, but I really feel the same, just better."
The mama of four shared with Parents her mentality on being a parent when she was pregnant with her second child.
On motherhood, Kourtney stated it's, "Definitely my favorite role in life. It has changed me and made me realize there is nothing else I would rather do with my time. Being a mom is what life is about. I hope people realize what the priorities in life should be and know not everything has to be perfect."
In an interview with Modeliste Magazine, via People, Kristin Cavallari expressed her experience of being a mother to her three kids.
"There's just so much more love in your life. I finally feel like I have a real identity," Cavallari shared. "I feel like I have a purpose here in life now. I'm a mom to these three amazing little babies, and my whole world just kind of opened up."
Shay Mitchell gave a candid interview to Vogue on the stresses and expectations of being a mom.
"There is a lot of stress and anxiety," she admitted. "I'd heard all these things from my friends saying, 'You're going to second guess a lot of things you do, you're going to feel guilty when you leave her.'"
But the mama to Atlas and Rome has started to feel more secure in her role, adding, "[It's been all about] just taking the time to get ready and be by myself to [say,] 'Okay cool, now I can handle this, I've got this, so many people have done this before me, and so many people have felt the same way.'"
"I don't always balance it all, I do the best that I can, and some months are crazier than others," Duff told E! News in an exclusive interview. "I'm a mother first, so [Luca]'s always my number one priority. And then my decision-making process is like, 'Hey can I make this work? Is he going to get enough of what he needs from me?'"
Now that Hilary Duff has four kiddos, we are sure that the balancing act is even tougher, but that the mama is rocking it all the same!
The powerhouse singer is a huge inspiration to all of us, but turns out the mother also makes sure to be the same for her own children.
"I realized why I was born and more than anything, all of the things I want to pass onto my child and the best way of doing that is not by preaching or telling her but showing her by example," she said.
When it comes to great parenting advice, Anne Hathaway shared that she got some A-plus list from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle!
"They get down on the child's level and speak to them eye-to-eye to make their child feel empowered," she tells The Sunday Times. "I thought that was really cool. I started doing that with Jonathan."
While the Mindy Project actress is a mother herself, she also has a sweet quote on how she viewed her own mom.
"I would say that my mother is the single biggest role model in my life, but that term doesn't seem to encompass enough when I use it about her," Mindy said. "She was the love of my life."
"We talked about how we would have cared for a daughter and the things we would teach: how to grow up to be a strong, independent, and confident woman who knows she is loved," Vanessa said.
While she plays a "Bad Mom" in movies, in real life Mila Kunis couldn't be a better parent to her two children, who she credits to changing her whole outlook on life.
"I reprioritized my life, in all honesty," the star shared during her Bad Moms press junket. "I traveled through all my 20's and I was very selfish—in a good way, not in a way I regret. And I think having a kid made me realize how incredibly selfless I want to be."
Megan Fox—who shares sons Noah, Bodhi and Journey with her ex-husband Brian Austin Green, and daugther Saga with ex-fiancé Machine Gun Kelly—has a lovely approach to her parenting style.
"I don't think I need to teach my children with harsh words or with punishment. I believe that if I love them the right way, there's no need for that," she told Harper's Bazaar Arabia of her philosophy. "I'm a free-spirit mother."
Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds' couple goals include being amazing parents to four children, including all the funny moments that come with being a parent.
"It's tough when you get pooped on and barfed on, but having a baby is wonderful," the mother joked to NW Magazine in 2016. "Even when it's tough and I'm exhausted, I think, 'I am so fortunate.'"
The mother of six, who has worked with organizations like UNICEF and is a UN Goodwill Ambassador, makes it a priority to share those same humanitarian values with her children.
"With my family, I'm trying to raise them to have respect for all people and make friends around the world and feel at home with the world and really live a truly global [life]," she once said. "I think it's what forms them and it's really important to me."
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