Robert De Niro's partner, Tiffany Chen, has candidly shared her experience of a 'postpartum complication' following the birth of their daughter, Gia Virginia, in April.
This is the first time the 45-year-old mother has opened up about her journey into motherhood since the arrival of the Hollywood legend's seventh child. In an earnest conversation with CBS Morning co-host, Gayle King, that is set to air on Friday, Tiffany unveiled the complexities she faced post-childbirth, revealing she has been diagnosed with Bell's Palsy.
© CBS Photo Archive“I started to feel like my tongue felt strange, it felt like a little tingly, just starting to get a little bit numb and then I realised that like my face just felt weird," she told Gayle.
"When I got home, it was like everything was just starting to fall down on itself like my face was melting on itself and then a week after giving birth that was when it all hit and I called my doctor," she shared. "I was trying to eat. I went to put just a fork of food in my mouth and everything came out, I couldn’t eat. I was starting to slur. So I said, there’s something really going on here so they said go right to the hospital, admitted me and I lost all facial function the minute I got into the hospital."
MORE: Robert De Niro opens up about exciting Tribeca comeback
The news of baby Gia's arrival had taken the world by surprise back in May, just as the couple's relationship had done. Their romance blossomed on the set of Robert's 2015 comedy, The Intern after they first crossed paths years earlier.
The 79-year-old Oscar-winning actor is a proud father to six other children: Drena (51), Raphael (46), twins Julian and Aaron (27), Elliot (24), and Helen (11).
The release of Tiffany's interview comes amidst a difficult time for the Robert clan, following the tragic demise of the actor's 18-year-old grandson, Leandro. Leandro was found deceased, surrounded by white powder, in a high-end one-bedroom apartment in New York's Cipriani Club Residences on July 5th.
© Stephane Cardinale - CorbisLeandro's devastated mother, Drena, later confirmed on Instagram that her son had succumbed to an overdose of fentanyl-laced pills. Robert, along with friends and colleagues such as Tommy Mottola, Christopher Walken, and Harvey Keitel, joined in mourning the untimely loss of the young lad at his funeral service.
Amid these challenging circumstances, the birth of Gia Virginia has been a source of joy and solace for Robert.
The esteemed actor offered a glimpse of his newborn during an appearance on CBS Mornings in May, and he later expanded on his experiences as a new father during the Tribeca Film Festival on the Today Show.
© Arnold Jerocki"It feels great," the Goodfellas star gushed, discussing the joy of raising a newborn. Regarding the changes fatherhood had brought about in him, he told host Hoda Kotb: "I have certain awareness — when you’re older you have awareness of certain things in life, dynamics, everything, family dynamics. It's amazing, but I'm very happy about it."
Robert acknowledged that Gia's arrival was entirely planned, rhetorically questioning, "How you could not plan that kind of thing?" in a chat with Page Six.
MORE: Bradley Cooper chats with Robert De Niro at Silver Linings Playbook premiere
MORE: Robert De Niro welcomes sixth child at 68
In a pre-Father's Day discussion with People, he revealed that his six older children hadn't met their two-month-old sister yet, but they would soon.
Currently, Robert, Tiffany — a martial arts enthusiast who played a Tai Chi instructor in The Intern — and their little daughter, Gia Virginia, are enjoying their family time in New York City.
