Pregnant Lauryn Goodman: ‘I’ve had so much abuse over my miracle child’

After being told she’d need IVF to have a baby, Lauryn Goodman admits discovering she was five months pregnant at a routine kidney scan was the biggest shock of her life. The model has endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and had given up hope of having a baby without medical help. Now, just weeks from giving birth, Lauryn can’t contain her excitement.

“When they showed me the screen and there was a baby on there, I was in a state of complete disbelief. I have a benign tumour on my kidney so was at an appointment to check up on it,” she tells Closer. “I thought there was no way I could be pregnant – I thought I’d never have this moment. I burst out crying. It was the best news ever. I just cannot wait to meet my baby now – it feels like a miracle.”

The 29 year old – whose sister, Celebrity Big Brother star Chloe Goodman, is also pregnant – says she was initially devastated by the news that she’d struggle to have a baby due to the more severe form of her endometriosis and PCOS.

She says, “I’ve always dreamed of being a mum and have been broody for years. I tried to conceive for seven years with my ex-partner so I knew something was wrong. When I was given my diagnosis in 2015, I was heartbroken. I couldn’t understand why I couldn’t do something that most women can naturally. I broke up with my partner in 2016 before we thought about IVF.”

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But despite her joy, Lauryn’s pregnancy hasn’t been plain sailing. The star, who knows the sex of her baby but is keeping it secret, has suffered terrible trolling after it was revealed the father of her child is England and Man City star Kyle Walker, 29, who already shares three children with his ex. Lauryn has even temporarily changed her Instagram account to private as the abusive comments she saw online got so bad.

“People are trying to paint a picture of me that isn’t true,” says Lauryn. “They have no idea of the circumstances in which this baby was conceived. When me and the father of my child got together, it was at a time where we had both split up from our previous partners. I have been close friends with him for over eight years and I was never friends with his ex, as it was reported somewhere. I actually found it beyond insulting. At a time when I should be focusing on having a healthy baby, I had people spinning lies and leaving abusive comments on the online articles. It’s sad how bad trolling has become and how much people assume they know.”

But while Lauryn – who is due to give birth this month – won’t give details about her relationship with Kyle, she does say that she isn’t worried about being a single mum.

“Being a single parent in today’s society doesn’t have the stigma it used to,” she says. “I think single parents are amazing and so strong because they do everything by themselves. I’m fortunate enough to have a great family support network who are so excited for the baby to arrive.”

Lauryn says she’s found the last couple of months of her pregnancy stressful, thanks to the coronavirus crisis, and is currently self-isolating as per the government’s guidelines. While there are no reasons to indicate the virus could cause complications in pregnancy, it’s advised pregnant women isolate as a precaution.

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“This isn’t how I imagined my first, and possibly only, pregnancy to be. At first, I was stressed and overwhelmed with fear and the unknown,” she says. “I’m quite a homely girl anyway, but this has made me realise how much we take things like popping out for a coffee with a friend for granted. I’ve been emotional watching communities helping each other and seeing so much kindness around. I’m feeling reassured now. We’ll all come together as a nation and be strong. The only thing I’m sad about is I’m not sure when my family will be able to meet my baby after I’ve given birth.”

But despite the stress, Lauryn says that being pregnant at the same time as her sister Chloe, 26 – who is expecting a baby girl in May – has been wonderful.

“It’s been so special sharing this pregnancy with my sister. She’s really been there for me throughout everything and she knows the struggles I’ve had to conceive, so she was as overwhelmed and overjoyed as I was. We had a joint baby shower, which was amazing, and a pregnancy wellness day together. We are both so excited. I cry with the love I feel – I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like when the baby is here.”