Sophie Delezio has spoken about how her traumatic childhood experiences resurfaced during the birth of her first child.
The 24-year-old welcomed her son, Frankie, in September 2024 with her husband, Joseph Salerno.
In a new interview, Delezio – who survived two major car accidents before the age of five – revealed she experienced PTSD symptoms while in the delivery room.
“PTSD, to me, comes out in mysterious ways,” she told The Canberra Times.
She said it is unlike what is often portrayed on screen, adding, “For me, it was facing an operating theatre.”
“So with a rush of adrenaline and some Taylor Swift songs playing in the background, my son was born in my most hated space in the world.”
Delezio required an unplanned caesarean section to deliver her son.
She said the kindness of the medical team and the support of her husband helped her through the experience.
In 2003, when Delezio was two years old, a car crashed through the window of her daycare centre, trapping her under the rubble.
She suffered burns to 85 per cent of her body and lost both of her feet, several fingers and her right ear.
Three years later, she was struck by a car near her Sydney home, the impact throwing her 18 metres from her wheelchair.
She sustained a broken jaw, a broken collarbone, nine broken ribs, punctured lungs, two fractured vertebrae and a brain injury.
In May, Delezio shared a request for parenting advice with her 367,000 Instagram followers, saying her son cried constantly.
She admitted she was in a state of “exhaustion” and asked for suggestions on how to find the energy to cope.
“To all the mums out there, how do you cope when you’re feeling run down and just a bit exhausted?” she asked.
“How do you keep your child entertained?
“I have to provide top-tier entertainment. Otherwise, there are going to be many tears. And to be honest, probably from both of us. How?”
The country has followed Delezio’s story since her first accident made national headlines in 2003, and many continue to follow her life as an adult.
She married Salerno, her childhood sweetheart, in a Hunter Valley wedding earlier in 2025.
Images: Instagram
