United Kingdom, May 19 -- Hayden Panettiere was "knocking on death's doorstep" while giving birth to her daughter.

The 36-year-old star has recalled almost dying from bleeding out when she was giving birth to her and ex-fiance Wladimir Klitschko's daughter Kaya, now 11, back in 2014, and she had "the most motherly moment".

She told E! News: "I was sitting there and getting the C-section, and I knew that I was knocking on death's doorstep.

"I just had the most motherly moment though, where I said, 'God, please let me hear my daughter cry. I just want to know that she is OK and if it's my time to go, I'm OK with that.'"

The Nashville actress, who is also known for her roles in the Scream franchise and Heroes, survived after seven blood ...