Tiffany Chen lost all "facial function" after giving birth to her daughter.

The 45-year-old martial arts instructor and her partner Robert De Niro welcomed daughter Gia into the world in April, and almost as soon as they got home from hospital, she recalled how her face "felt weird" and began "melting on itself", prompting her to eventually seek medical treatment, leading to a diagnosis of Bell's palsy.

Speaking to Gayle King in a preview from her upcoming interview on 'CBS Mornings', Tiffany said: "When I went home, I started to feel like ... my tongue felt strange.

"It felt a little tingly, just starting to get a little bit numb. And then I realised my face just felt weird. I didn't know what the feeling was that I was having. It felt weird.

Asked if her face looked different, she replied: "Yeah.

"When I got home, it was like everything was starting to just fall down on itself. Like, my face was melting on itself. And then a week after giving birth, that was when it all hit. And I called my doctor, and I ... was trying to eat.

"I went to put a fork of food in my mouth and everything came out. I couldn't eat. And then I was starting to slur. So I said, 'There's something really going on here.' ..

" [The hospital] admitted me. And I lost all facial function the minute I got into the hospital."

The 'Taxi Driver' star introduced his daughter to the world onthe show in May, where he revealed the tot's full name and confirmed she weighed 8lbs 6oz when she was born on 6 April as he showed off a photo of her.

When host Gayle King asked Robert if the baby was planned, he replied: “Yes, this baby was planned.

“We are over the moon. She was brought here by love.”

The 'Meet the Parents' star originally let slip the news about his seventh child during an interview with ET Canada.

Reporter Brittnee Blair said: “I know you have six kids...”, prompting Robert to reply: “Seven, actually. I just had a baby.”

He later told 'Access Hollywood' he thinks fatherhood is both exciting and “scary”.

Robert added: “Sometimes I don't think people really know what being a good father is, you know you have a responsibility, but it’s a mystery, it’s a lot of excitement but scary and you do your best.”

Tagged in