Singer and TV presenter Jamelia said motherhood has been her “greatest blessing”, but suffered an “incredibly traumatic” labour with her fourth child.
The former Loose Women presenter, 41, gave birth to her yet-to-be-named daughter at 36 weeks through an emergency caesarean on October 4.
Speaking about her waters breaking at 32 weeks, the former Strictly Come Dancing contestant told Hello! magazine: “It was so scary.
“I felt like I was in labour for a month, but the main objective was to keep the baby in for as long as possible. I just had to hold on.”
A month after her waters broke, midwives at Birmingham Women’s Hospital decided to induce labour after the baby’s heart rate had dropped dramatically.
Jamelia said: “I’d only ever seen a C-section on the telly, and thought: ‘Oh well, at least it’s going to be straightforward and I’ll be out in five minutes.’
“There’s this idea of ‘too posh to push’ – that it’s the easier option. But I found it incredibly traumatic. And then you’re recovering from major surgery while looking after a new-born.”
The mother-of-four was accompanied by her 17-year-old daughter Tiani – who had tossed a coin with her big sister Teja, 21, to see who would be the birthing partner.
Jamelia’s husband of five years, whose identity she has kept out of the public eye, was at home looking after their daughter, four-year-old True, while she was at the hospital.
“As selfish as it might sound, I wanted to share this experience with my girls,” Jamelia said.
She added that the newest addition to the family is the “easiest and most straightforward baby” to date.
“She’s a good communicator, very chilled and has seamlessly imprinted herself onto the family. It’s been a dream to have her.”
“Being a mother to four daughters feels like the most incredible gift.
“I feel so fortunate to have had pregnancies in my teens, 20s, 30s and now my 40s. It’s been my greatest blessing to experience motherhood at all these different times and being able to learn at different stages of my life.”
