Serena Williams revealed how she nearly died while giving birth to her daughter Olympia

TENNIS legend Serena Williams has revealed that she nearly died giving birth to her first daughter last year as she suffered a blood clot in her lungs blocking several arteries while she was in labour.

 

Serena, 36, gave birth to her first child last September, delivering a baby girl who she has since named Olympia. A 23-time grand slam champion, Williams said she had to undergo emergency Caesarean section during birth after her heart rate plummeted dramatically during contractions.

 

Revealing all this in an article she wrote for US news outlet CNN, Serena said: “I almost died after giving birth to my daughter but what followed just 24 hours after giving birth were six days of uncertainty. Because of my medical history with this problem I live in fear of this situation.”

 

She added that while recovering in the hospital, one day after the emergency operation, she felt short of breath and after some convincing, the hospital staff finally sent for a CT scan and then put her on a life-saving drip. According to Serena, she started coughing so much from the blood clots that her Caesarean wound popped open.

 

Serena added: “I returned to surgery where the doctors found a large hematoma in my abdomen. Then I returned to the operating room for a procedure that prevents clots from travelling to my lungs and when I finally made it home to my family, I had to spend six weeks of motherhood in bed.”

 

Williams praised the hospital staff saying if it were not for their professional care, she would not be here today. In her piece, however, Serena did not reveal the name of the hospital where she received the care.

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