Oti Mabuse has admitted she feels both fear and hope as she prepares to give birth to her second baby.
In an Instagram post, the Strictly star reflected on the traumatic arrival of her daughter almost three years ago.
She said those memories remain vivid while she looks towards a different experience this time.
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Oti says trauma from first birth remains
Her first labour began after her waters broke early. She then endured a 16-hour natural labour and contracted sepsis.
The infection was passed to her newborn, who was initially in a critical condition. Her daughter was placed in an incubator.
The baby spent six weeks in neonatal intensive care at University College London Hospital before eventually going home.
Oti recalled the monitors, tiny nappies, wires and constant handwashing that became part of daily hospital life.
She also remembered waiting for updates and the first cuddle, then leaving hospital without her baby.
Oti wrote: “The trauma stays with you. Even when your baby grows, even when life becomes beautifully ordinary, some memories still feel like yesterday.”
She thanked the doctor she said saved both lives, plus the NHS neonatal team. She praised their “expertise, equipment and kindness.”
“I will forever be grateful to the incredible doctor @nikkilack_obstetrician who saved my life and my baby’s life, and the NHS neonatal team who cared for our daughter when she was so tiny and vulnerable. How lucky we were to have that expertise, equipment and kindness around us,” she said.
Oti Mabuse hopes second baby birth will be gentler
The 36-year-old is now expecting her second baby with husband Marius Iepure.
She described carrying gratitude, fear and hope at the same time. Her wish is for this delivery to bring a gentler beginning.
She wrote: “Hoping this birth will be different. Hoping for a gentler beginning.”
Oti also noted that many women have different experiences when giving birth for a second time.
That possibility has allowed her to hope while acknowledging her continuing fear. Her post offered reassurance to other mothers carrying difficult memories from neonatal care.
Oti said gratitude for a child can exist alongside pain about their early experience. She added that fear can accompany hope.
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