Paris Hilton Chose Surrogacy Because of Abuse and Anxiety

Paris Hilton is in her "best era yet" as a mother of two, but she didn't get to where she is now without trauma. In an interview with Romper this week, the heiress revealed why she and her husband, Carter Reum, were certain they would use a surrogate to bring their two children into the world. She alluded to the time when she was a teenager and she suffered from sexual abuse while attending boarding school in the '90s. "I just have so much PTSD from what I went through as a teenager," Hilton says.

Paris, who is now 42, carries that with her to this day. Just going to the doctor's office or getting a shot, she says she will "literally have a panic attack" and "can't breathe." Knowing this about herself, the Simple Life alum did not think it would be healthy for her or the baby growing inside of someone "who has such high anxiety." On top of her anxiety, Hilton adds that her schedule is so busy that there "never" would have been the right time to get pregnant. "There's literally no time to do anything in my life," she tells the publication.

As Hilton and Reum were awaiting their son Phoenix's arrival, they kept it a secret from friends and family. Because her life has been so public, she didn't want her son to come into the world with "any negative energy," and she's happy she did so. However, when photos of her son was seen online, she saw criticism about the size of his head. Being protective of her child, Hilton tells the haters they can say whatever they want about her, but her baby is innocent. She calls people who talk about children to be "sick in the head."

Just last month, Hilton welcomed her daughter London, via surrogate as well. The couple knew they wanted their children to be close in age so that they would grow up together. Paris said Phoneix will be the "protective big brother" of her "mini-me" London.

In 2023, lots of celebrity couples welcomed babies. Some celebrated the birth of their very first child, while others, added a new bundle of joy to their growing family. In some cases, celebrities who couldn't have a natural birth have welcomed children via surrogate. No matter how their children were brought into the world, a baby is a blessing. These stars have opened up about their pregnancy journey and celebrated with fans as they welcomed their newborns. There must be something in the celebrity gene pool that makes their babies not look like aliens fresh out of the womb because their newborns are so adorable.

Approximately 134.28 million births will occur across the globe in 2023, according to the United Nation’s medium variant of the population projections. Based on that projection, there should be an average of about 368,000 births per day in 2023. However, birth rates have declined in most states across the US in recent years, as women are having babies at an older age, according to data released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Birth rates among women in their late 30s and early 40s rose in the last decade, and the birth rate among women over 45 also exceeded one birth per 1,000 population for the first time in more than a decade. Meanwhile, the teen birth rate dropped to a record low last year, according to the data.

As for Hollywood couples, there seems to be no shortage of babies being born in 2023. The list keeps growing and so do their families. Since the year isn't over yet, take a look below to see which celebrities welcomed babies in 2023.

In August, RiRi and Rocky [inlink id="rihanna-aap-rocky-show-off-newborn-son-for-the-first-time" text="welcomed their second son"], Riot Rose. Riot and their son, RZA are just 15 months apart. Like RZA, the name Riot Rose also has some musical ties as A$AP just dropped a song titled “Riot (Rowdy Pipe’n).”

In August, Olsen [inlink id="ashley-olsen-secretly-welcomes-first-baby" text="secretly welcomed her first baby"], Otto, with her husband. Notoriously private, the couple tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in December 2022. The pair have been linked since October 2017, but neither Olsen nor Eisner have spoken about their relationship publicly and have kept a low profile through the years. Eisner is an artist and the son of jewelry designer Lisa Eisner.

The Freaky Friday actress and her husband, Bader Shammas, [inlink id="lindsay-lohan-gives-birth-to-baby-boy" text="welcomed baby boy"], Luai, in July. Luai means “shield or protector” in Arabic. Shammas is a Lebanese financier, and the couple married in July 2022 after announcing their engagement with a series of Instagram photos in November 2021.

In June Teigen and Legend [inlink id="chrissy-teigen-surprise-4th-baby" text="welcomed a baby boy via surrogate"]. The couple already shares daughter Luna Simone, son Miles Theodore, and welcomed daughter Esti five months earlier by natural birth, in January. The couple met a surrogate named Alexandra at the same time that Chrissy found out she was pregnant. Knowing she was the perfect match upon meeting her, they took her on as their surrogate.

In February, the Nope star [inlink id="keke-palmer-gives-birth-to-her-first-child-with-darius-jackson" text="welcomed her first child"], son Leodis Andrellton Jackson with her boyfriend. Celebrating the news on Instagram, Palmer wrote, in part, in her caption: "Born during Black History Month, with a name to match!" Palmer famously revealed her pregnancy during the opening monologue while she was hosting the December 3, 2022 episode of Saturday Night Live rubbing her pregnant belly.

The actors welcomed their baby girl Matilda in March to the first-time parents. The pair announced Matilda's birth on Instagram on April 1, introducing her as "the new light of our lives." Since then, the Flight Attendant star has shared the couple's joy with her followers on Instagram.

The couple welcomed their third child in January, but have not publicly revealed their baby boy's name. Levine and Prinsloo already share daughters Dusty Rose and Gio Grace. In 2012, Levine started dating the model after being introduced by a mutual friend. They tied the knot two years later at a star-studded ceremony in Mexico. Soon after Prinsloo's pregnancy announcement, Levine was [inlink id="adam-levine-accused-of-sending-additional-dms-to-other-women" text="accused by multiple women"] of not being faithful to his wife. Since then, Prinsloo has remained by his side and has not publicly commented on the rumors.

In July, the singer and actor welcomed their second child together on the seven-year anniversary of their first date. Trainor welcomed their son Barry Bruce Trainor via c-section. The Grammy winner and the Spy Kids actor began dating in 2016. After dating for a year, Sabara proposed to Trainor, and in December 2018, they tied the knot on Trainor’s 25th birthday.

In April, Swank gave [inlink id="hilary-swank-welcomes-twins" text="birth to a couple of (million-dollar) babies"] -- twins, with her husband. At 48 years old, Swank gave birth to a boy and a girl, whose names have yet to be publicly revealed. Swank and Schneider married in 2018 in a private outdoor ceremony, and the twins are the first children for the couple.