The day Gwyneth Paltrow and her daughter Apple almost died

Gwyneth Paltrow and her Goop business

For years now, Gwyneth Paltrow has surprised the world with the spicy items from her catalogue of lifestyle products on the site 'Goop'.

(Image: Gwyneth Paltrow with her daughter Apple / Instagram)

Bye, Pepper Potts

She also played a leading role in the end of the most ambitious saga in the history of cinema. Pepper Potts, her character in 'Iron Man' and 'Avengers', said goodbye in 'Avengers: Endgame'.

(Photo: Armchair Expert Podcast)

The children of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin

These days, the actress keeps a low profile. Most of all, she and her ex-partner Chris Martin, the father of her two children, have shielded their privacy as much as possible.

(Image: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

Photos on Instagram

While it is common to see Gwyneth Paltrow with Apple and Moses on Instagram, the posts are controlled and careful, and the children nearly always appear by the side of a parent.

(Image: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

A painful story about Apple's birth

That is precisely why Gwyneth Paltrow's revelation about her first day as a mother was so surprising: she had almost died during Apple's birth.

(Photo: Armchair Expert Podcast)

'Armchair Expert'

The actress visited 'Armchair Expert,' a podcast by Dax Shepard and Monica Padman, one of the most popular in the global podcastphere. It is described as "a podcast that celebrates the messiness of being human."

(Photo: Armchair Expert Podcast)

Gwyneth Paltrow and Dax Shepard

In fact, it was the second time Gwyneth Paltrow was on the podcast, after being a guest in March 2019. It may have been the confidence of this repeated visit that gave her the confidence to discuss something she had never talked about before.

(Photo: Armchair Expert Podcast)

'We almost died'

It was 14 May 2004 and Apple's delivery was so complicated that her mother almost died. "I had two caesareans [C-sections]," she said in the podcast. "My daughter was an emergency [C-section], it was crazy, we almost died. It was, like, not good."

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

70 hours in labor

Paltrow had already revealed at some point that her labor had lasted no less than 70 hours.

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

A big scar

Although the show's listeners and presenters wanted more details, Gwyneth Paltrow left it at that. She only said that there was a "big scar across my body" which reminds her of what happened on 14 May 2004.

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

Gwyneth Paltrow's criticism of 'beauty'

In the podcast, the actress emphasized her direct criticism of the beauty convention imposed by society. She described them as "sexist."

(Photo: Armchair Expert Podcast

The big question

Gwyneth Paltrow wondered "what women are supposed to look like" after giving birth. In addition, she is grateful that "there wasn't Instagram when I had babies." Paltrow believes she would have been criticised for not fitting in with the beauty standards.

No washboard stomach

"If I see someone [say], 'Oh I just gave birth two weeks ago and I have a completely washboard stomach,' ... I'm like, wow that's not what I [looked like]," the actress said wryly.

Happy with her scar

While such cases are not the norm, they are often presented as the example to follow. "Great, more power to the lady with the washboard [abs]," she says, "but that is totally the exception and then now we're being fed all of these other images of what we're supposed to look like all the time — babies, no babies, whatever."

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

'Past perfectionism'

For Gwyneth Paltrow, these standards are "past perfectionism" and she hopes that, little by little, situations like hers will become normalised. She added, "I think women really need to be friends with each other."

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

2022 has a double celebration

Since everything turned out fine for the family, 2022 will be a special year. Gwyneth Paltrow will celebrate her 50th birthday while Apple Martin turns 18. A serious party is coming up at the Paltrow household.

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)

When is Gwyneth back on the screen?

While working on the Goop business, Paltrow is also the executive producer of the television movie 'One Hit Wonders.' It follows three '90s pop stars who come back together to form a supergroup. She's also been spotted in a controversial Super Bowl commercial while drinking from one of her candles.

More secrets revealed?

Meanwhile, the world is just waiting for the Oscar-winning actress to pay a third visit to Dax Shepard and Monica Padman so that she can spill another fascinating secret.

(Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow / Instagram)