Former Miss France Reveals Struggle with Postpartum Recovery and Caesarean Complications

"I had a complicated end of pregnancy, I was sick at the time of my childbirth and I was operated on by Caesarean section, so I had a complicated return home. I felt physically diminished, in great vulnerability, with a mix of emotions and hormones. I cried quite easily... We don’t talk much about the very real postpartum period. But my daughter just celebrated her two months and I feel better," confides Malika Ménard in an interview with Paris Match.

Two months after this difficult childbirth, Miss France 2010 is trying to reclaim her body. "When they open your belly like that, you can’t walk the way you want to at first. So I had three weeks of real convalescence, before starting abdominal rehabilitation, while caring for my Caesarean scar with my physiotherapist. It’s a matter of patience and resilience," she recounts. She also confides that she was doing sports before her pregnancy, "not necessarily in self-transcendence but rather in maintenance, with reformer, Pilates..." She adds: "After two months of interruption, my physio told me I could slowly resume Pilates at a beginner level and see how I felt."

A first-time mom at 37, Malika feels fulfilled. She plans to pass on important values to little Sherazade in the years to come. "I would especially like her to feel emotionally secure, to have self-confidence. I took a long time before I had confidence in myself and I don’t want her to lose as much time. It’s not a regret because it’s my life story, but I’d like her to gain that time. I’d like to spare her a few disappointments, even if life necessarily has its share of good and bad moments."