'Whose baby is this?' Why Paloma Faith 'freaked out' when she met her daughter at IVF clinic
British singer Paloma Faith has opened up about her mental health struggles following the birth of her second child.
Faith, 43, and her former partner, artist Leyman Lahcine, have two daughters aged eight and three.
The singer says her struggles occurred after the birth of their second daughter, conceived using IVF.
She says she became convinced there had been a mix up at the IVF clinic after her daughter was born with light hair.
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Paloma Faith has opened up about her mental health struggles following the birth of her daughter. Getty
"My hair colour is naturally dark, and my ex-partner is fully Algerian, but this baby was blonde, and it was really freaking me out," she told The Sun.
"I went a bit psychotic, because after being in the clinic, I was thinking 'Whose baby is this?'"
She was so concerned she rang the clinic to ask if a mistake was even possible, only to be assured there wasn't.
Faith now understands she was feeling "disassociation" after having the baby using fertility treatments and then a "planned caesarean", after which she says her daughter needed urgent attention and was taken away from her for six or seven hours.
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The singer says her struggles occurred after the birth of their second daughter. Getty
Faith and Lahcine were together for nine years before ending their marriage in 2022.
The singer has since spoken about how having children changed their relationship and confessed to struggling with co-parenting.
"People always ask, what did you do? What did he do? But it was a fundamental breakdown that we were both in control of saving or letting go," she told the Independent.
"You either grow together, adapting to one another like expandable foam and filling the gaps where it's empty – or one person grows and the other stays the same," she added.
Faith and Leyman Lahcine were together for nine years before ending their marriage in 2022. Getty
"And I think for me, becoming a mother was such a massively life-changing experience that for the first time in my life, I needed more than nothing – and the expandable foam just wasn't there."
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"Our relationship ended because we have those children. And I think that was worth it," she said, later adding the split had "left me broken but in other ways, I'm so whole."
In an episode of Great Company with Jamie Laing, Faith said: "We have children together and that's what makes this a different type of heartbreak album because the heartbreak will be forever and the navigation of our relationship changing shape will be forever, probably until we die."
"I think for me, becoming a mother was such a massively life-changing experience." Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
"You can't really let go of someone you've got kids with.
"In my case, it's even harder I think in a way because we really like each other a lot and we're really close and we still love each other."
If you or someone you know is in need of support following childbirth contact PANDA on 1300 726 306.
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