Serena Williams opens up about coping with the mental toll of motherhood

'I think people have to talk about it more.'

Serena Williams. Source: Getty Images

Serena Williams has opened up about her struggle adjusting to life as a mother after the traumatic birth of her daughter Olympia, in an interview with Harper's Bazaar UK.

The tennis star - who made headlines this week with a triumphant comeback clinching her first match at the French Open in a striking black catsuit  - graces the cover of the July edition of the magazine in a jaw-dropping one piece.

In the accompanying interview Williams speaks very frankly about coping with the mental toll of parenting a newborn and admits to breaking down after not being able to find her daughter's bottle. 

“Honestly, sometimes I think I still have to deal with it. I think people have to talk about it more because it’s almost like the fourth trimester, it’s part of the pregnancy," she reportedly said in the magazine interview which hits stands in the UK on Thursday.

“I remember one day, I couldn’t find Olympia’s bottle and I got so upset I started crying … because I wanted to be perfect for her.”

For a modern superwoman like Williams - who has steered through the mental and physical stresses of competing in an elite sport with 23 grand slam titles under her belt  - to confess to challenges with motherhood comes as a relief and reassurance to mums everywhere struggling with maternity.

The 36-year-old, who is married to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, revealed in an interview with Vogue earlier this year she had an emergency caesarean and suffered life-threatening complications after giving birth. 

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