Getting candid. Khloé Kardashian opened up about the challenges of welcoming a child via surrogate.
During the season 3 premiere of The Kardashians, which started streaming on Thursday, May 25, Khloé, 38, told Scott Disick about how she was adjusting to life as a mom of two.
“But a surrogate process — Kim [Kardashian] knows — is very hard for me. It’s a mindf—k. It is really the weirdest thing,” the Good American cofounder, who shares daughter True, 5, and a son, 9 months, with Tristan Thompson, said. “[I do feel less connected]. People do say it takes a minute to feel connected but Kim said hers was easy. This is not easy.”
Khloé recalled watching her baby boy’s August 2022 birth, adding, “I definitely buried my head in the sand during that pregnancy that I didn’t digest what was happening. So I think when I went to the hospital that was the first time it really registered. It has nothing to do with the baby.”
The reality star noted that her lack of personal knowledge about surrogacy may have played a role in the long adjustment period.
“I definitely was in a state of shock from my entire experience in general. I felt really guilty that this woman just had my baby and I take the baby and go to another room and you are separated,” she concluded. “It felt like such a transactional experience because it is not about him. I wish someone was honest about surrogacy and the difference of it. But it doesn’t mean it is bad or good. It is just very different.”
In response, Kim, 42, reflected on her own experience after welcoming daughter Chicago, 5, and son Psalm, 4, via surrogate.
“She had a really hard time accepting the whole process. I do think that there is a difference when the baby is in your belly — it actually feels your real heart. Think about it. It touches your organs. There is no one else on this planet that will feel you from the inside like that,” the Skims founder, who also shares daughter North, 9, and son Saint, 7, with ex-husband Kanye West, explained. “People can connect in different ways and people can not connect.”
Khloé became a mother for the first time when she welcomed True in April 2018 with Tristan, 32. The former couple, who dated off and on since 2016, expanded their family again in the aftermath of his paternity scandal with Maralee Nichols.
A source exclusively told Us Weekly at the time that Khloé hadn’t rekindled her romance with the NBA player since their second child’s arrival. (The insider noted that the baby was conceived ahead of Tristan’s drama with Maralee, 32, which resulted in son Theo’s birth in December 2021.)
“Khloé and Tristan are coparenting, but not speaking [outside] of coparenting, that is the only communication they have anymore,” an insider shared with Us. “Tristan has realized that he’s a parental figure to True and the new baby [and] that’s all he is to Khloé right now.”
More recently, a second insider confirmed things still haven’t changed between them romantically.
“He knows they’re always going to be in each other’s lives because of their children. But that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been trying,” the source said in April. “At this point, he feels like all he can do is be the best father to their kids that he can and show Khloé over time that he’s there for their family. He is so happy he was able to find a home right around the corner from them because they’re his priority. He just wants to be there for his kids.”
That same month, the Strong Looks Better Naked author gushed about watching her youngest child grow up. “He’s eight months old and he is a little chunk and I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she shared during her appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show. “He is a quiet baby. He’s a happy baby, which is amazing and my daughter was the same, so I’ve been lucky twice.”
The Hulu personality went on to say that True “loves being a big sister” to her sibling. “I was worried because I wasn’t pregnant and I didn’t know if it would be hard for her to understand,” Khloé continued. “And it’s just crazy how resilient and instinctual children are and she’s so maternal and loving and she’s such a good big sister.”
Sign up for Us Weekly’s free, daily newsletter and never miss breaking news or exclusive stories about your favorite celebrities, TV shows and more!
Hulu releases new episodes of The Kardashians every Thursday.
