Gwyneth Paltrow 'nearly collapsed' when she had pneumonia

Gwyneth Paltrow was so scared when she had pneumonia she "nearly collapsed".

The 'Two Lovers' actress - whose father Bruce Paltrow died of the inflammatory lung illness in 2002 - was horrified when she was told she was suffering from the condition as she thought she was going to die.

Gwyneth told People magazine: "When I fell ill with pneumonia last year the fear of dying sort of swept over me to the degree that I lost my sight for a second and I nearly collapsed.

"I thought of what it would mean to my family. I thought about the things that I still need to accomplish, and I felt the bitter clinch of this fear wrap itself around every organ in my body until the doctor walked in and told me I was fine."

Gwyneth, who is married to Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, revealed she was most worried about what would happen to the couple's children - four-year-old daughter Apple, and son Moses, two.

Despite the incident, the 36-year-old actress is determined not to become obsessed with her own mortality and has not thought about the legacy she will leave her children.

She explained: "I just sort of do the best that I can on a daily basis and I learn."

Gwyneth has previously spoken of her devastation at her father's death, adding she worried she is developing pneumonia whenever she falls ill.

She said: "To this day I'm faced with his death all the time. I've had pneumonia twice in the past year, and that's ultimately what he died of.

I've been dealing with my own fear of death - every time I get a cold."