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Jenna Dewan Says Ex Channing Tatum ‘Wasn’t Available’ After Daughter’s Birth: ‘I Was Without a Partner’
Jenna Dewan spoke candidly about the early challenges of being a working mother, while her then-husband Channing Tatum was unavailable “for weeks” after the birth of their daughter due to his work schedule.
On Monday, August 2, the Step Up actress appeared on New York Times best-selling author Gabrielle Bernstein’s podcast, “Dear Gabby,” where she opened up about the weeks following the birth of daughter Everly, 8. Dewan, 40, gave birth to Everly in London where Tatum, 41, was filming the space opera Jupiter Ascending. After the birth, Dewan returned to Canada, where she rejoined filming for the TV series Witches of East End.
“I had to travel with [Everly] and at the time, Chan wasn’t available to be with us for the most part. So, it was me, my doula, and Evie all by ourselves traveling at six weeks,” Dewan told Bernstein.
The former Come Dance With Me judge continued, stating that being on set was especially demanding. “[It] was really hard because that was long hours,” she added. “I did have her on set with me constantly. It was just really difficult.”
Adding to the stress of being a new working mother, Dewan also revealed that she struggled with her mental health.
“I had a lot of postpartum anxiety, I would say,” she said. “It was like, I just never stopped. You know, you’re up a couple [of] times in the night and then you’re working all day. I was breastfeeding, I was pumping, I was without a partner, I mean it was just craziness.”
Postpartum anxiety is when new moms experience feelings of fatigue, heart palpitations, and other physical symptoms of anxiety while experiencing constant worry about their child.
Dewan said that the experience with her second child, 16-month-old Callum, whom she shares with fiancé Steve Kazee, was calmer despite the pandemic.
“This time around, I was so grounded,” the American Horror Story alum said. “Even though the world was crazy, I was home and in this love nest and it was different.”
Dewan and Tatum, who met while filming Step Up, were married for nearly ten years before announcing their split in 2018. The actress/dancer has been with Kazee since 2018 and became engaged in February 2020, although the coronavirus has put their wedding plans on hold for the moment.
“A month after we got engaged, I had Callum, and then a week later, [coronavirus] quarantine began. We just put everything on pause,” Dewan told the wedding website The Knot.
While the couple has yet to discuss details of their upcoming nuptials, they know that Everly will be the flower girl.
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