Naomi Osaka recently shared her experiences with postpartum depression, a challenge she faced following the birth of her daughter, Shai.
Shai was born in 2023, and her father is Cody, a rap artist and former partner of Osaka.
In a clip promoting her upcoming documentary, “Naomi Osaka: The Second Set,” she admitted, “Honestly, I struggled a lot after giving birth, and I didn’t manage it very well.” She continued, saying that even though people talked to her about postpartum issues, she thought she could avoid them entirely.
Osaka expressed a wish for her daughter to understand that her birth was more than just a wonderful gift. Yet, during those initial months, she felt completely lost, saying, “I felt like a shell of myself all day long. I didn’t recognize who I was anymore.”
The tennis star is the 23rd seed for the upcoming US Open, where she’ll compete against Greet Minnen in her first match.
She previously triumphed at the US Open in 2018 and 2020, in addition to winning the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021.
At 27, Osaka held the world number one ranking for 25 weeks starting in January 2021, but since her return to the sport after Shai’s birth, her performance hasn’t matched her past success.
Her emotions were on full display after her first-round exit at the French Open in May, where she felt she had let down her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, who has a history of coaching Serena Williams.
“I really feel like I should be doing better as time goes on,” Osaka remarked, expressing her frustration at the idea of disappointing others, especially Mouratoglou, calling him one of the greatest players ever.
In 2021, she had stepped back from the French Open, citing overwhelming anxiety.
Osaka had been fined $15,000 and faced the risk of being expelled from the tournament for refusing to engage with the media.
Ultimately, she withdrew, revealing her battle with depression.
On social media at the time, she admitted, “Since winning the US Open in 2018, I’ve been dealing with ongoing depression, and it’s been tough to cope. Public speaking isn’t my forte, and I tend to get really anxious before speaking to the global media. The pressure to give the best response is quite overwhelming.”
