New mom Maria Menounos opens up about NOT choosing fear amid health battles

New mom Maria Menounos has heard warnings about raising daughters.

"A lot of moms (say) that at some point, daughters turn a little tough," the journalist and actor tells TODAY.com. "I thought, how do I avoid that? I didn't do that with my mom, I was so respectful of my parents and I wanted to be like them. I (might) have to be real strict, like they were with me."

With a newborn daughter at home, Menounos has years to decide.

"Bringing my daughter up in the Greek community is going to be really important, giving her those strong roots, going to church and letting her know it's (good) to have and be a good member of the community."

In June 2023, Menounos and her husband, Keven Undergaro, welcomed their first child Athena Alexandra, with help from a surrogate after their 10-year battle with infertility.

Menounos has dealt with a slew of health challenges. She had a benign, golf-ball sized brain tumor removed in 2017. After that, she was diagnosed with diabetes, and in 2023 revealed that she had battled pancreatic cancer and had surgery to remove a tumor.

Menounos and Undergaro pursued surrogacy as the journalist cared for her mother Litsa, who was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2016. Litsa died in May 2021.

“When you’re met with a potential death sentence, everything changes,” she told People at the time. “I need people to know there are places they can go to catch things early. You can’t let fear get in the way. I had that moment where I thought I was a goner — but I’m OK because I caught this early enough.”

In February 2023, Menounos and Undergaro announced they were expecting a baby with help from a surrogate.

Menounos spoke to TODAY.com for her partnership with RXBAR’s limited-edition ManifX bars with customized wrappers on which people write their goals (for example: meditate, go for a walk). Customers can enter for a chance to win the bars from September 7 to September 21 on RXBARManifX.com.

Manifestation is a daily habit for Menounos, who says she navigates the unknown with positive thinking and appreciation for the gifts she has.

"We’re so good at catastrophizing and allowing fear to have its way with our minds," she tells TODAY.com, adding, "Gratitude is the greatest place to be emotionally ... so when I have a fearful moment — and I’ve had many — I will choose positive thoughts."

Menounos said her community propped her up during the pregnancy.

"One of the greatest gifts was having friends who went through (the surrogacy process) like Kim Kardashian who helped me through this," says Menounos. "I asked her, 'Should I be worried about this? Should I be micromanaging that?' and she was so chill about everything with her surrogates that she gave me permission to not feel like I had to control. That's a message I want to spread as well."

Kardashian is the mother of four children with her ex-husband Kanye West: North, 10, Saint, 7, Chicago, 5, and Psalm, 4. She conceived her two youngest children using surrogates.

"The greatest rewards have come from surrendering," says Menounos. "I knew I chose (a surrogate) with high morals and ethics, who wanted to do a great job. She said, 'I'll do whatever you would do if you were pregnant' so I suggested eating organic, staying away from sugar because diabetes runs in my family and avoiding caffeine," she says. "I told her, 'But, if you have a craving, you are a human being, cave into it. I trust you.' And she delivered me a beautiful baby and I will forever be grateful for that sacrifice."

Menounos' surrogate even convinced her dad to stay in the delivery room for the birth of his grandson.

"My father wasn't there for my birth because he had to work," says Menounos. "I told our surrogate that he's really uncomfortable around blood and pain. When we walked into the delivery room, she told him, 'You're staying.'"

"He said, 'No, no, no, no,'" says Menounos. "She asked him very seriously, 'What if I need you?' and he stayed."

Menounos credits her father with filling two parental roles now.

"Every day, (Athena and I) talk to my mom," she says. "We thank her for helping us come together and tell her we love her. We pray for her each night and say hello and kiss her photo each morning. I just want Athena to know her grandmother. I never thought I'd be doing this without my mom."

Still, transitioning to parenthood feels "natural" to Menounos and Undergaro.

"We look at each other like, 'Why does this feel normal? This doesn't feel different,'" she says. "It’s been pretty seamless and a joy. I look at (Undergaro) all the time like, 'We’re a family, this is so crazy.'"

This article was originally published on TODAY.com