Gemma Atkinson has revealed she almost died giving birth to her daughter Mia after suffering a 'big' haemorrhage.

The former Hollyoaks actress and her boyfriend, Gorka Marquez, welcomed their daughter on July 4. The professional dancer previously said that little Mia "certainly made an entrance, giving us all quite a fright at times," and now Gemma has opened up about her experience of childbirth. On Saturday, she shared a photo of herself sitting on a hospital bed, with Mia lying on her lap. Alongside the photo, she explained how things "could have gone very differently" as she praised "our little soldier", Mia. She wrote:

"This picture was taken when Mia was 30hrs old. The weary smile on my face doesn’t quite portray how happy I was inside as 30hrs earlier, things could have gone very differently. "Mia was a tiny baby, 4lb 10. With that in mind the midwife was concerned she wouldn’t be strong enough to open my cervix. My water broke on a tues and we gave her the benefit of the doubt but by the Wednesday evening despite her being in the perfect place and so low down, she still hadn’t managed it. "The decision was made to induce me to help her along but she disliked that even more. With every contraction her heart rate dropped. On the 3rd one midwife Katie who was taking care of me at the time pressed the panic alarm & within 15 mins I was rushed out, prepped and delivered Mia via an emergency C section. "It wasn’t what I’d planned but thanks to my hypnobirthing despite the madness & panic, I was able to calmly keep my breathing technique & accept whatever is best for Mia just do it!"

A few hours later, she explained that she was "blissfully happy" spending time alone with Gorka and Mia, when she began to feel unwell. She continued:

"Gorka got a doctor and she took 1 look at me & again pressed the panic button. I was having a hemorrhage. A big one and I lost a lot of blood. "I don’t remember much other than having around 9 doctors in the room, some injecting me, hooking me to drips, physically pulling clots out of me and one comforting Gorks who was beside himself in the corner. "I woke in another room with Gorks and my family there, Mia sleeping soundly and a lovely midwife named Di who was checking my notes. "The trauma was over and thanks to our NHS and incredible hospital staff we were ok. I’m fully aware for some people it’s a different outcome and I feel incredibly lucky that me and Mia are healthy and healed. "My mum moved in with me while Gorks was away and has been incredible! If I can be half the mum she is to me I’ll be happy! "I’m going to remind Mia of this story any time she has doubts about what she can achieve in life. "The odds were against her from the start, but she’s been a little fighter from day 1. Feeds perfectly and is gaining weight like I do on an all inclusive holiday! We’re SO proud of her, she’s our little soldier and I’m so grateful."