Actress Anna Faris just spoke candidly about the range of emotions she felt after her and ex-husband Chris Pratt's son, Jack, was born seven weeks prematurely. "My mind would constantly return to the 'why'," she said during a recent conference on premature births. "Why did my water break? So of course I tried to look for answers."
Recounting the night that she went into labour, during the GAPPS (the Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth) virtual event, Anna said, "I was surprised that for my first pregnancy I was somewhat energetic and I didn't experience any nausea. So when I woke up in the middle of the night in a small puddle of fluid, I truly didn't have any idea what to do."
She added, according to People, that she was 35-years-old at the time and that her gynaecologist had "delicately" referred to her as having a "geriatric pregnancy", but that she had felt "healthy and happy" up until that point.
Anna, who is also a board member for GAPPS, explained that she then went to hospital and doctors told her she'd be delivering soon. After a week of bedrest, Jack was born weighing 3 lbs and 10 oz.
Jack was then take to intensive care, where he was kept under observation for a month. Discussing the emotional repercussions of this experience, Anna said, "I tried to look for answers... I asked my doctor if my dream could have caused my water to break. I asked her if the baby's nails could have torn the sack, I asked her if my sack was lacking something, if I ran too much, if I ran too little."
She added, "I did gain 60 lbs, I was up to 160 lbs, and my doctor suggested at one point that I ease up on maple bars."
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Ultimately, Anna said, she found it hard to switch off - despite in many cases of premature births, no known reason can be found. "I couldn't stop searching. I was asking her if the geriatric thing had something to do with it, if the cold cuts that I ate… I couldn't turn off my own hamster wheel in searching for answers," she told those tuning in to the virtual event.
"The truth is, in many of these cases, we have no idea why this happens... GAPPS' number one goal is prevention... and in order to prevent premature births, we need answers."
It's incredible of Anna to speak to openly about her difficult experience in order to help others. If you'd like to find out more about GAPPS' work, you can visit their website here.
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Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
