Allison Williams opens up about her traumatic emergency C-section experience during her son Arlo's birth.
Allison Williams has shared candid details about her emergency C-section trauma, shedding light on the emotional intensity of her son‘s birth three years ago. The actress, best known for her work in “M3GAN” and “Girls,” discussed the distressing experience that changed her life, emphasizing the unpredictable nature and emotional weight of emergency childbirth.
Allison Williams Shares Her Emotional Birth Experience
In a recent appearance on Amanda Hirsch’s “Not Skinny But Not Fat”podcast on June 24, Williams recounted her 36-hour labor and the complications that led to an emergency C-section with her fiancé Alexander Dreymon’s son, Arlo. She described the harrowing moments when medical staff became concerned about the baby’s heart rate, which continuously dropped as soon as she arrived at the hospital. Williams remembered,
“his heart rate would go down.”
—Allison Williams, actress
Facing medical uncertainty, Williams reflected on the rush of difficult emotions that overtook her as the possibility of surgery became a reality. She revealed,
“Deeply stressful. I realized in that moment that I hadn’t thought about the possibility of having a C-section.”
—Allison Williams, actress
The unexpected turn made Williams confront her own lack of preparation for surgical birth, noting she avoided thinking about it prior to labor. She admitted,
“wondered what it was like. I kind of was like, ‘Blah blah blah blah blah. I’ve never had surgery. I don’t wanna think about this.’ And so I didn’t.”
—Allison Williams, actress
As labor progressed and it became evident that surgery was necessary, Williams described her fear and shock.
Image of: Allison Williams
“That was just a profoundly scary moment where I realized like, ‘Oh my god. I’m about to have surgery for the first time,’”
she explained.
“And this all just feels extremely scary and not what I was picturing.”
—Allison Williams, actress
Reflecting on the moment she was told the C-section would happen, Williams shared,
“In the moment where she told me it was happening, I was processing a lot of things at the same time,”
she remembered.
“’What’s about to happen to me? What’s this gonna be like? What does this mean, etcetera?’ And if I knew the answers to some of those things, I would just be processing like, ‘This isn’t going the way I pictured it,’ or ‘I’m scared’ or ‘This is vulnerable.’”
—Allison Williams, actress
Williams admitted that prior knowledge about C-sections might have softened the trauma, but her priority in the moment was not to get overwhelmed by fear about things going wrong. Still, she recalled the intimidating environment in the operating room, saying the doctors were,
“just all around you, looking at you, and you’re like a wounded animal on the table.”
—Allison Williams, actress
Despite the difficult circumstances, Williams finds pride and joy in motherhood. Speaking with Savannah Guthrie during a January 2023 episode of “Today,” she described her son Arlo,
“He is adorable, I’m very proud,”
and added,
“I get weird and shy when I talk about it because it’s so new. But I’m obsessed with him. It’s all I think about.”
—Allison Williams, actress
Williams acknowledged the profound changes motherhood brought to her life, contrasting her experience with that of friends. She recalled,
“I had some friends who were like, ‘Most of the things stayed the same, a couple of things about my routine shifted,’”
and explained,
“And as it was happening, I was like, ‘Everything is unrecognizable to me now. It’s all different.’”
—Allison Williams, actress
She concluded with an acknowledgement of the challenge, saying,
“I don’t know how people do it any other way.”
—Allison Williams, actress
Other Well-Known Figures Speak Out About Their Parenthood Journeys
Allison Williams’s candid discussion is part of a broader cultural moment, as more public figures—including Bella Robertson, Olivia Culpo, Caelynn Bell, Julianne Hough, Whitney Port, Michelle Yeoh, Eve, Mary Bonnet, and Erin Andrews—have begun sharing their own challenging experiences with conception, pregnancy, and parenthood. These stories contribute to wider awareness around topics like infertility, pregnancy trauma, and fertility treatments.
Bella Robertson and Jacob Mayo Open Up About Infertility
Bella Robertson and her husband Jacob Mayo have openly discussed the difficulties they’ve faced regarding fertility, using their family’s reality series to provide a window into their struggles.
“We share the story of infertility in the show and that’s something that we haven’t really shared publicly that much, but that’s something that others just don’t know.”
—Bella Robertson, reality star
Robertson emphasized the reality behind public perceptions on social media, stating,
“When you just look at someone on social media, you can’t know what anyone’s going through.”
—Bella Robertson, reality star. Their willingness to show their true selves fostered greater authenticity on screen, a value they both embrace in this chapter of their lives.
Olivia Culpo Discusses Endometriosis and Fertility Concerns
Olivia Culpo, former Miss Universe, has been transparent about how her 2020 endometriosis diagnosis impacted her thoughts on future fertility.
“I want to have kids, but I want to make sure that I can,”
—Olivia Culpo, television personality.
“It could be really hard for me to have babies.”
—Olivia Culpo, television personality
Culpo discussed how endometriosis can complicate the path to motherhood, explaining,
“Endometriosis can affect your fertility in a lot of different ways,”
and outlined,
“You can have endometrial tissue growing near or on your ovaries, it can affect the quality of your eggs, scar your fallopian tubes.”
—Olivia Culpo, television personality
Caelynn Bell Shares the Struggles of Trying to Conceive
Bachelor Nation’s Caelynn Bell has spoken about her and husband Dean Bell’s long journey towards pregnancy following their wedding. The emotional toll has been significant, but Caelynn approaches it with resilience.
“I’m putting way less pressure on myself than I was in the first few months of trying.”
—Caelynn Bell, reality star
The couple continues to pursue medical testing as they seek answers and hope for their future as parents.
Julianne Hough Works to Preserve Her Fertility
Julianne Hough, a cohost on “Dancing With the Stars,” has been open about her battle with endometriosis and its impact on her plan to have children. In June 2025, she revealed she had frozen her eggs for a third time, proactively managing her reproductive health while focusing on her career and personal timeline.
Whitney Port Navigates Loss and Fertility Hurdles
Whitney Port, alum of “The Hills,” has experienced multiple setbacks on her path to expand her family with husband Tim Rosenman. Since the birth of their son Sonny in 2017, Port has endured two pregnancy losses herself and two miscarriages through a surrogate. She took steps to grow her family, confirming in July 2024 she was preparing for another egg retrieval.
“I’m feeling definitely better than my last round because I know a little bit more what to expect,”
she shared,
“and I just have so much trust and faith in my doctor.”
—Whitney Port, television personality
Despite disappointments, Port remains clear about the completeness of her family, writing for Sonny’s 7th birthday,
“Especially now, as we embark on this fertility journey for number two, I know we are complete no matter what,”
and adding,
“You are a blessing. We love watching you grow and are beyond grateful for how chill you are.”
—Whitney Port, television personality
Michelle Yeoh Reflects on Fertility Treatments and Acceptance
Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh spoke on her past struggle to conceive with her first husband, Dickson Poon, describing the pain of repeated fertility treatments.
“I always wanted to have children,”
she revealed.
“I went and did fertility [treatments] to aid in the process. I think that’s the worst moment to go through is every month. You feel like such a failure.”
—Michelle Yeoh, actress
She explained her journey toward self-compassion over time, saying,
“At some point, you stop blaming yourself. There are certain things in your body that don’t function in a certain way. That’s how it is. You just have to let go and move on.”
—Michelle Yeoh, actress
Eve Recounts the Pain of Pregnancy Loss
Rapper Eve has written about the heartbreak of suffering an ectopic pregnancy while filming her self-titled sitcom, requiring emergency surgery.
“It was 2006 when I found out that I was pregnant,”
she shared in her memoir.
“I had to have emergency surgery and stop filming the show for two weeks. I don’t know why I lied to everyone on set and said that my appendix had ruptured, really. Maybe because I was lying to myself.”
—Eve, musician
She described the challenge of finding enough time to heal:
“If I faced losing my baby, then I didn’t know if two weeks would be enough emotional healing time,”
continuing,
“In the end, it was barely enough healing time for me physically, before I was right back to work on set. I had lost so much weight after the surgery, and my body was so frail.”
—Eve, musician
Mary Bonnet Stays Hopeful During Her Fertility Journey
“Selling Sunset” standout Mary Bonnet, who had her son Austin as a teen, is now open about fertility attempts with husband Romain Bonnet. Despite recent surgery for a septate uterus, Mary is not rushing decisions, balancing career and personal life.
“We don’t know what the outcome is going to be,”
Mary said.
“We’re just kind of taking it as it as it comes. I’ve been super busy right now with the book and with the season and everything. So, I know nothing’s going to happen if I’m stressed out and if I’m running around.”
—Mary Bonnet, real estate agent
Despite uncertainty, the couple finds joy in their dog, Thor.
“We have our fur baby though, Thor. Romaine is obsessed with him,”
Mary noted, adding,
“So if it doesn’t happen, he says he’s OK. He’s got his little fur baby, and he is just beyond obsessed. We’ll be OK. What’s meant to be will be.”
—Mary Bonnet, real estate agent
Erin Andrews Describes the Isolation of Fertility Struggles
NFL sportscaster Erin Andrews faced a tough path to parenthood with husband Jarret Stoll, including her cervical cancer diagnosis in 2017. With her eggs frozen beforehand, Andrews underwent IVF, later choosing to share her story.
“I just was so tired of keeping quiet,”
she explained.
“It was such a hard, painful journey. I think I went numb through most of it, because you just feel like a robot and you’re on this really unfair roller coaster that more times out of none, you’re going to get really bad news.”
—Erin Andrews, sportscaster
Andrews has used her platform to connect with others in similar situations, stating,
“I’m a vocal person, and I could speak from the heart and just talk about how crappy it was and that I get it for a lot of couples and families that are trying to have a child.”
—Erin Andrews, sportscaster
Changing Conversations Around Motherhood and Fertility
These personal accounts—particularly Allison Williams’s testimony of emergency C-section trauma—are part of a wider shift in which celebrities and public figures speak honestly about parenthood’s most difficult chapters. Through sharing experiences with infertility, pregnancy loss, medical emergencies, and complicated births, figures like Williams, Michelle Yeoh, Whitney Port, and others help to demystify and destigmatize the realities that many families face.
This growing openness is creating space for more honest conversations about reproductive health, resilience, and the unpredictable path toward building a family, resonating with anyone seeking support or understanding on their own journey.
