Reality star Jess Wright has announced that her first child was delivered by emergency Caesarean section five days before her due date.
The former The Only Way Is Essex cast member, 36, had been “intent” on having a natural birth, with her husband, 39-year-old businessman William Lee-Kemp, and Loose Women panellist mother Carol Wright by her side.
However, baby boy Presley was delivered by Caesarean section at London’s Portland Hospital on May 17, after Wright noticed his movements had lessened.
She told Hello! magazine: “In those last few weeks he had been so active and then, all of sudden, it completely dropped, which was very scary, so our doctor told us to come straight to hospital.”
Medics tried for 48 hours to induce the birth, and Wright said: “They monitored him again and found his heart rate was dropping slightly.
“They thought he might be lying in an awkward position, so the sensible decision was to have an emergency C-section and get him out quickly.
“I had been so intent on having a natural birth and to go through that experience as I’d done all the hypnobirthing, but I had a sense of ‘this is our destiny, this is how it is supposed to happen’, and we accepted it, and then got excited that it was happening so quickly.
“I felt like I had to be strong and positive and embrace it, rather than going in there panicking. It was the most incredible, surreal, overwhelming experience ever.”
Wright revealed the couple had chosen the name Presley months before their son was born.
“I heard the name from someone when I was eight weeks pregnant, and I said to Will, ‘We’ve found the name’, and he loved it.
“We had a couple of names since then, but that one seemed to suit him best.”
Speaking about her son’s middle name, Stone, Wright said: “We both really love it as it’s so different.”
She added that becoming a mum had been a “whirlwind” but it was “amazing”.
“It is such an intense, crazy time having your first child and not knowing what to expect. We are learning more every day,” she said.
“What we have taken from the first few weeks is that there is no set routine, there are no set rules. You learn as you go along.”
The reality star said her TV and radio presenter brother Mark Wright, who was also on Towie, “loves being an uncle” but his wife, actress Michelle Keegan, has not met Presley yet as she is filming in Australia.
Wright announced in November she was pregnant with her first child after marrying Mr Lee-Kemp in Majorca in September.
She has previously revealed the couple discovered she was expecting during their wedding celebrations.
They married in a lavish ceremony on the Spanish island – followed by a poolside reception and a banquet in a castle – which was broadcast on ITVBe.