August Hermann was born via emergency C-section on June 28, 2006, when Hargitay was 42 years old. For the new mom, August was a long time coming. «Nobody wanted to be pregnant more than me. From the minute I found out, I was wearing full-on maternity pants,» she told People. «My stomach was totally flat, mind you, but I was just so excited.»
During her third trimester, the actor was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, causing her to change her diet. «The first time you’re pregnant, you’re like, I gotta eat more! I have to make sure he has enough of every single food group! I did get into eating too much,» she said. «This pregnancy was really hard for me at the end. I wasn’t mobile.»
During their May 2023 interview with People, Hargitay’s husband Hermann spoke about August’s stutter and how it inspired the couple to get involved with the Stuttering Association for the Young. «It was extraordinary when we first heard his stutter to meet [SAY founder] Taro [Alexander] and have someone to go to because so many stutterers live in isolation,» he told the outlet. «And there are so many people who come [to SAY] for the first time, and when they come they say that they’d never heard another person with a stutter.»
He also said that August’s stutter taught him the power of patience, adding, «It is increasingly important that we give out grace to take space and take time and to let the ideas out that want to come out. And some of it is just speaking. Just everyday speaking, that chance to simply be.»