Serena Williams is revealing for the first time that she was forced to endure multiple surgeries in the days after giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia.
The tennis star, 36, tells Vogue that the problems began after Alexis Olympia’s heart rate started to drop during her delivery and it was decided that the best option would be to have Serena undergo an emergency c-section.
‘That was an amazing feeling, and then everything went bad,’ said Williams.
The day after the birth, Williams was experiencing a shortness of breath and told the staff that she was concerned that she had developed blood clots.
Williams, who had to stop taking her anticoagulant medications leading up the delivery, was right, and had indeed developed several clots in her lungs.
She was immediately given a drip, but when constant coughing from her pulmonary embolism opened up the scar from the c-section, her abdomen quickly filled with her now-thinned blood from the same drugs which were saving her life.
In the end, Williams had to have a filter inserted into a major vein to prevent any possible clots from entering her lungs, and was forced to go on bed rest for the next six weeks.
Opening up: Serena Williams covers the February issue of Vogue with daughter Alexis Olympia, where she reveals she gave birth via emergency c-section
‘I was happy to change diapers, but on top of everything she was going through, the feeling of not being able to help made it even harder,’ said Serena’s now-husband Alexis Ohanian.
‘Consider for a moment that your body is one of the greatest things on this planet, and you’re trapped in it.’
Serena was noticeably absent from social media in the weeks after Alexis’ birth, and was not seen in public until mid-October, when DailyMail.com obtained photos of her meeting with wedding planner Preston Bailey in New Orleans.
In the interview, she is quick to admit that being a mother had been a challenge for her, comparing it to her time on the court.
‘Sometimes I get really down and feel like, Man, I can’t do this. It’s that same negative attitude I have on the court sometimes. I guess that’s just who I am,’ said Serena.
‘No one talks about the low moments – the pressure you feel, the incredible letdown every time you hear the baby cry.’
She then added: ‘I’ve broken down I don’t know how many times. Or I’ll get angry about the crying, then sad about being angry, and then guilty, like, Why do I feel so sad when I have a beautiful baby? The emotions are insane.’
In addition to Alexis, Serena is also getting help from her mom Oracene, who said she is concerned about her daughter’s work ethic.
‘She’s always been that way, ever since she was a little girl. She’s going to need to learn to slow down. She’s responsible for another life now,’ said Oracene, who is urging her daughter to be a strict parent.
‘You should see how they travel with that baby. They pack everything! It’s a bit extravagant for me. But once she’s back on the tour, she’ll find a balance.’
Serena had been planning to make her big return this month at the Australian Open, but announced just last week that the comeback would have to wait.
The winner of an Open-Era record 23 Grand Slam wins made that decision after losing an exhibition match to Jelena Ostapenko in December, with the Franch Open champion eeking out the win 10 – 5 in a super tiebreaker.
Serena is still adjusting to being a mother on the tour, which she noted might be the most rebellious thing she has ever done, and gives credit to the men who have managed to find a balance.
She is quick to note however that it is easier for them not havinbg to carry and then deliver the actual child.
‘It’s so unfair,’ she said at one point while speaking about Roger Federer.
‘He produced four babies and barely missed a tournament. I can’t even imagine where I’d be with twins right now. Probably at the bottom of the pool.’
The men of the ATP Tour have also been offering up tips and gifts to Serena, with Federer’s fellow Swissman Stanislas Wawrinka sending Alexis tiny blue Tod’s driving loafers and Novak Djokovic sending along articles about the all-natural lifestyle he has adopted for his son Stefan.
Serena i also getting love and support from some of her fellow female tour members, including Caroline Wozniacki, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Angelique Kerber and, of course, big sister Venus.
In her absence, Venus had her best year on tour in a decade, making it to three of the four Grand Slam finals.
‘I know that her career might have been different if she had had my health,’ Serena said of her big sister, who suffers from the auto-immune disease Sjogren’s syndrome.
‘I know how hard she works. I hate playing her because she gets this look on her face where she just looks sad if she’s losing. Solemn. It breaks my heart. So when I play her now, I absolutely don’t look at her, because if she gets that look, then I’ll start feeling bad, and the next thing you know I’ll be losing.’
Serena then remarked: ‘I think that’s when the turning point came in our rivalry, when I stopped looking at her.’