Beyoncé reveals she had emergency C-section, praises Jay-Z in Vogue magazine essays

NEW YORK -- Beyoncé reveals she had an emergency Caesarean section when she delivered her twins. The singer, in a series of essays in September's Vogue magazine, says she was 218 pounds and was swollen from toxemia.

The 36-year-old says they spent many weeks in intensive care and her husband, Jay-Z, was a "soldier and such a strong support system."

"I am proud to have been a witness to his strength and evolution as a man, a best friend, and a father," she wrote.  

She says she put pressure on herself to lose weight in the three months after the birth of her first child. But after the twins, she approached things differently.

Beyoncé says she has a "little mommy pouch" and she's in no rush to get rid of it.

She says it's important for her to help open doors for younger artists. Her photo is the first Vogue cover to be shot by an African American photographer, 23-year-old Tyler Mitchell. "I cried 3 times already this morning," Mitchell tweeted Monday.

Beyoncé also reveals that she recently researched her ancestry and discovered she is a descendant of a slave owner who married a slave.

"I pray that I am able to break the generational curses in my family and that my children will have less complicated lives," she said in the article.

Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour reportedly gave Beyoncé full editorial control of her cover and feature. Sources told HuffPost that Wintour gave Beyoncé "unprecedented control over the cover of the upcoming September issue," which included allowing her to choose her own photographer.

Beyoncé's 2015 September cover for Vogue was notable because she did not participate in an interview for the magazine -- an unprecedented move for a non-model cover star.