The Duchess of Sussex has revealed she suffered a “rare and scary” medical condition after giving birth to one of her children.
In the first episode of her new podcast, Confessions of a Female Founder, Meghan said she was diagnosed with post-partum pre-eclampsia following childbirth.
She described it as a “huge medical scare”, and said she had to manage without the world knowing what she was going through.
Meghan, who shares two children with the Duke of Sussex, did not reveal whether she faced the medical complication after the birth of Archie, five, or Lilibet, three.
According to the NHS website, pre-eclampsia affects some women during pregnancy or soon after their baby is delivered, with early signs including having high blood pressure.
“It’s so rare. And it’s so scary,” Meghan said of the condition.
“You’re still trying to juggle all these things and the world doesn’t know what is happening, quietly, and in the quiet you are still trying to show up for people,” she added.
“In the quiet you’re still trying to show up mostly for your children. But those things are huge medical scares.”
The first guest on Meghan’s podcast was Whitney Wolfe Herd, founder of dating app Bumble, who also suffered from the condition.
Herd described it as “life or death, truly”, adding: “It’s really scary.”
She said she would “never forget” the image of Meghan, after giving birth to Archie, “and the whole world was waiting for his debut”.
In the podcast, Meghan also talked about her experience of juggling work and childcare, and how Lilibet often joins her during online meetings when she’s working from home.
“I don’t leave the house to go to an office, my office is here,” she said. “Lili still naps, she gets picked up early and she naps. She only has a half day in preschool.
“If she wakes up and she wants to find me, she knows where to find me, even if my door is closed to the office.
“She’ll be sitting there on my lap during one of these meetings with a grid of all the executives.”
But Meghan insisted she “wouldn’t have it any other way”.
“I don’t want to miss those moments. I don’t want to miss pick-up if I don’t have to. I don’t want to miss drop-off.”
Meghan’s new podcast, with Lemonada Media, follows an earlier series called Archetypes on Spotify, which faced some tough criticism.
It’s the latest in a flurry of business ventures from the duchess, who has also recently starred in a new Netflix lifestyle series – titled With Love, Meghan – and launched a new brand, As Ever.
She has said the new series will feature “candid conversations with amazing women” and also include “girl talk”.
In the first episode, she added that having young children, while building a business, helped to bring “perspective”.
“Because you’re building something while your child’s going through potty training… and both are just as important,” she said.
“In your own world, that’s super high value. And in [Lili’s] world, that’s super high value.”
