Lena Dunham reveals her first words to newborn baby born by surrogate after heartbreak of endometriosis ended her 'dream' of carrying a child

Lena Dunham has revealed the first words to her newborn baby girl who was born by surrogate. 

The 40-year-old actress had a total hysterectomy in 2018 after enduring brutal endometriosis-related pain which dashed her 'dream' of carrying a baby.

The star wrote an op-ed for Vogue where she and husband Luis Felber announced that they had welcomed their first child together as she revealed that her midwife had encouraged Dunham to 'talk to her' and say hello.

Dunham said her first words to the baby were: 'Hello. I’m your mama. You look nothing like I thought you would, but exactly right. We’ve been waiting for you, do you know that? It was so nice of you to come.'

The American writer wanted to make sure that the child felt some enthusiasm in their first meeting.

She wrote: 'I meant it. Like a kid who wasn’t sure if their schoolmates would arrive for the birthday party, I was bashful and dizzy with joy.'  

Earlier this year the star opened up about coming to peace with not being able to carry her own children as it was her 'dream'.

Dunham had appeared on Today with Jenna and Sheinelle back in April as she candidly admitted: 'In the moment, my pain was so overriding that I put those other thoughts aside, and it was only in the aftermath of the surgery that I started to feel the weight of what had happened.

'Some people don't dream about being mothers, but I had, and it was a big part of my identity that I was going to do it someday in that way.

'The amazing thing is, since then, I have met so many people who built their families in so many different ways, and I have really come to a place where I feel really excited. Whatever way it happens, I will feel so grateful.' 

In her new op-ed, Dunham also reflected on her journey through surrogacy as she said that she did not feel 'jealousy' over not being able to carry her baby.

Taylor Swift's BFF wrote: 'Instead, I felt a different kind of jealousy — toward said baby, for the chance to be tucked into someone who radiated such safety. I could just tell she knew how to steer an SUV in the snow.'

Dunham had told The Sunday Times in June 2025 that she and Felber were in the process of 'expanding' their family as she also said that her hysterectomy 'was a grief but it was also a relief.'

She explained: 'I thought I would have the opportunity to experience my fertility and my cycle waning and it never was. Instead it was a very quick, sharp cut-off.

'I will say we’re in the process of expanding our family in new ways,' she added, but she would not expand on the comment, simply explaining: 'I want to safely meet our children and then figure out how to talk about it.' 

In 2018, Dunham had opened up about her difficult decision to have a total hysterectomy to remove her uterus and cervix and an ovary after enduring years of endometriosis-related pain. 

A hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus, and often the cervix, fallopian tubes, and ovaries according to the Cleveland Clinic. The procedure completely and permanently prevents pregnancy.

Dunham said to Vogue in March 2018 that her decision came after 'years of complex surgeries measuring in the double digits' and trying alternative treatments such as 'pelvic floor therapy, massage therapy, pain therapy, color therapy, acupuncture and yoga'. 

Doctors discovered she had other medical issues that were causing her pain during the procedure.

'In addition to endometrial disease, an odd hump-like protrusion and a septum running down the middle, I have retrograde bleeding, a.k.a. my period running in reverse so that my stomach is full of blood,' she wrote. 

'My ovary has settled in on the muscles around the sacral nerves in my back that allow us to walk. Let's please not even talk about my uterine lining. The only beautiful detail is that the organ — which is meant to be shaped like a light bulb — was shaped like a heart.' 

Dunham said at the time that she was keen to explore other options to have a child as she explained: 'I may have felt choiceless before, but I know I have choices now.'

 In 2020, she wrote an essay for Harper's Magazine in which she talked about not being able to carry her own child and the search for a baby.

She got candid about how expensive the process of trying to get a baby is as well as the mental toll it took especially when it came to her ongoing health struggles. 

Lena wrote: 'There is a lot you can correct in life—you can end a relationship, get sober, get serious, say sorry—but you can’t force the universe to give you a baby that your body has told you all along was an impossibility. Weak animals die in the woods as their pack mates run ahead. Bad eggs don’t hatch. You can’t bend nature.

'The irony is that knowing I cannot have a child—my ability to accept that and move on—may be the only reason I deserve to be anyone’s parent at all. I think I finally have something to teach somebody.' 

And now, the star has announced that she welcomed a bouncing baby girl with her husband. 

Dunham married Peruvian-British musician Felber in a low-key London ceremony back in September 2021. 

Felber previously revealed how they were set up on a blind date by a mutual friend and got on so well on their first meeting that they 'didn't stop talking for eight hours'. 

The pair met in Covid-19 lockdown so for their first date they took a walk along the River Thames together at night as the pubs were shut at the time. 

Lena first revealed she was dating Felber during an interview with The New York Times back in April 2021.

'It's been a few months. I feel really lucky,' she said, adding that Felber was, 'the greatest person I've ever met.'

Lena had previously dated musician Jack Antonoff from the bands fun and Bleachers as they broke up before she underwent her hysterectomy. 

They had dated for five years from 2012 to 2017 before their split, which was described as 'amicable' at the time.