Serena Williams Reveals She Had an Emergency C-Section

For the first time, star tennis player Serena Williams is revealing that she had an emergency C-section and endured several more surgeries in the days after giving birth to her daughter.

Appearing on the cover of Vogue, the 36-year-old opened up about the birth of her daughter, Alexis Olympia, revealing that while the pregnancy had been easy, she was forced to undergo an emergency C-section after the infant’s heart rate dove dangerously low. But that was just the beginning of Williams’ medical ordeal.

“That was an amazing feeling,” Williams said. “And then everything went bad.”

The 36-year-old went on to explain that the day after the birth, she began experiencing shortness of breath. After telling hospital staff that she was concerned that she had developed blood clots in her lungs because she was off her anticoagulant medications leading up to the delivery, a CT scan confirmed her fears.

Williams was immediately put on a heparin drip, but the constant and violent coughing caused by the pulmonary embolism caused her C-section wound to open and her abdomen filled with blood. Williams eventually had to have a filter inserted into a major vein to prevent blood clots from travelling to her lungs. She was forced to remain on bed rest for six weeks.

News of Williams’ ordeal comes just days after she announced that she’d be dropping out of the Australian Open.

“After performing in my first match after giving birth I realized that although I am super close I’m not where I personally want to be,” Williams said in a statement. “My coach and team always said, ‘Only go to tournaments when you are prepared to go all the way.’ “

The 36-year-old has already won the Australian Open seven times, and she added that she plans on coming back to the tournament in the future.