Over the weekend, Gal Gadot revealed that the birth of her fourth daughter in early 2024 was accompanied by a life-threatening health crisis. In her eighth month of pregnancy, the 39-year-old “Wonder Woman” star was diagnosed with massive blood clot in her brain.
As Gadot also shared in an Instagram post on Sunday, she learned that she’s not alone among pregnant women who have faced such a terrifying medical emergency. “I had no idea that 3 in 100,000 pregnant women in the 30s+ age group are diagnosed with CVT,” Gadot said.
A CVT is a cerebral venous thrombosis that forms in the brain’s venous sinuses and prevents blood from draining out of the brain, leading to a pressure build-up in the blood vessels and a stroke, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. While a CVT that occurs in pregnancy is “rare,” it can be severe, according to a 2022 study published in World Journal of Clinical Cases.
However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that pregnant women are indeed at higher risk for other kinds of blood clots during pregnancy, childbirth and during the three-month period following delivery — especially those that form in the arms, legs or lungs.
The risk grows because a woman’s blood begins to clot more easily to lessen blood loss during labor and delivery, the CDC said on its website. Pregnant women also may experience less blood flow to the legs later in pregnancy because the blood vessels around the pelvis are pressed upon by the growing baby.
The CDC said the risk for blood clots increases in women who are 35 and older and who experience complications in pregnancy and childbirth, who are immobile due for a prolonged period of time for bed rest and who give birth by C-section. Other risk factors include smoking, obesity and previous blood clots or an inherited clotting disorder.
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, the symptoms for the kind of clot that Gadot suffered include headache, blurred vision, fainting or loss of consciousness, loss of control or movement in a part of the body or seizures. Someone suffering a CVT needs to get to an emergency room right away.
“For weeks, I had endured excruciating headaches that confined me to bed, until I finally underwent an MRI that revealed the terrifying truth,” Gadot explained on Instagram.
“We rushed to the hospital, and within hours, I underwent emergency surgery,” Gadot said, while explaining that her daughter, Ori, now 9 months old, “was born during that moment of uncertainty and fear.”
While Gadot said that her daughter is healthy and she is now healed, this crisis taught her the importance of listening “to our bodies.” She said, “pain, discomfort, or even subtle changes often carry deeper meaning, and being attuned to your body can be life saving.”
By sharing her own story, Gadot said she hoped to “raise awareness and support others who may face something similar.”
“In one moment, my family and I were faced with how fragile life can be,” she said. “It was a stark reminder of how quickly everything can change, and in the midst of a difficult year, all I wanted was to hold on and live.”
Gadot hinted that she required weeks of care after surgery and childbirth. She thanked “the extraordinary team of doctors” at Cedar Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles for “weeks of dedicated care,” which helped her “make it through” and begin her road to recovery.
“Today, I am fully healed and filled with gratitude for the life I’ve been given back,” she said.
Gadot initially announced the birth of her fourth child on Instagram in March, though she made no mention of the harrowing medical situation at the time, People reported.
“My sweet girl, welcome,” Gadot captioned a photo of herself cradling Ori in a hospital bed at the time.
“The pregnancy was not easy and we made it through,” she continued, adding, “You have brought so much light into our lives, living up to your name, Ori, which means ‘my light’ in Hebrew. Our hearts are full of gratitude. Welcome to the house of girls.. daddy is pretty cool too.”
Gadot, who is married to film producer Jaron Varsano, is also mom to Alma, 13, Maya, 7, and Daniella, 3.