Kourtney Kardashian has opened up about the “terrifying scare” she and her husband, Travis Barker, experienced last fall, which resulted in the 45-year-old undergoing emergency fetal surgery two months before the birth of their son, Rocky.
Mrs. Kardashian Barker, who wed the Blink 182 drummer in May 2022, recounted the ordeal during a recent episode of Hulu’s reality series “The Kardashians,” which aired June 20.
“Baby Rocky had to have fetal surgery for fluid in his lung, and it’s super rare,” she said while in the hospital recovering from the procedure.
“But it’s also super rare and lucky that we caught it. Thank you, God, for a successful surgery,” Mrs. Kardashian Barker continued. “I’m honestly just so grateful, I have no words.”
The reality star elaborated on the health scare in a separate interview.
“I was definitely filled with fear after the surgery, and the fluid in his lungs actually did start coming back,” she explained.
However, the Poosh founder said she watched the 2017 documentary “Heal” and learned about the connection between “the power of positive thinking” and one’s overall health.
‘Praise Be to God’
Shortly after the emergency fetal surgery, Mrs. Kardashian Barker—who shares three children, Mason, 14, Penelope, 11, and Reign, 9, with her ex, Scott Disick—said on Instagram that she “will be forever grateful” to her doctors for saving her son’s life.“As someone who has had three really easy pregnancies in the past, I wasn’t prepared for the fear of rushing into urgent fetal surgery. I don’t think anyone who hasn’t been through a similar situation can begin to understand that feeling of fear. I have a whole new understanding and respect for the mamas who have had to fight for their babies while pregnant,” she penned.
Birth of Baby Rocky
The television personality—the eldest of the Kardashian and Jenner children—detailed her three-day labor process on the Hulu reality show, sharing that she and Mr. Barker, 48, went to the hospital on the evening of Oct. 29 after her contractions began.“With everything that we’ve been through to get to this place, it’s crazy that tonight is when we’re actually going to the hospital,” she said during the June 20 episode.
The Lemme cofounder, who underwent several rounds of in vitro fertilization before conceiving her son naturally, said she was three centimeters dilated up until 4 a.m. on the morning of Oct. 30. However, “nothing progressed,” so the couple decided to return home. They went back to the hospital the following day, and after Mrs. Kardashian Barker received an epidural, her water finally broke.
“At 11:45 p.m., my doctor checks me and says, ‘It’s time,’” she recalled. “My whole body [was] shaking.”
Although the couple was hoping for a Halloween birth, Rocky arrived at exactly 12:00 a.m. on Nov. 1.
“I’m holding Rocky Thirteen Barker, and it’s everything I ever dreamed of,” the mom of four said, adding that she was happy her mother, Kris, was with her during labor, despite not initially wanting her to come.
“Travis was like, ‘If my mom was alive, she would be here. Let your mom come,’” she recounted. “I’m so happy that my mom was here. It turned out to be really special.”
Reflecting on her son’s birth, which occurred while Frank Sinatra’s song “That’s Life” was playing, Mrs. Kardashian Barker expressed her contentment in life.
“I have the most supportive and amazing husband I could ever dream of, and I’m so happy in my blissful baby bubble and the love with Rocky,” she gushed. Mr. Barker shared a similar sentiment, calling Rocky’s birth “one of the best days” of his life.
“The way that it all happened is just such a reminder that God’s timing is everything,” Mrs. Kardashian Barker said.
