14 celebrities who have struggled with infertility

It’s no secret that one of our favourite celeb couples, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend (married in 2013), are expecting their first child together—and it’s super exciting! But, it wasn’t easy for them to conceive. The model, 30, opened up about her fertility issues on her talk show, FABLife, saying that she and John have been trying for years to start a familly. “I wanted to talk about it for so long,” she told E! news, “It didn’t feel right to ever tweet, ‘Ugh, doing my IVF shots again.’ It just sounded silly. It definitely was not planned in that episode at all.”

People in their inner circle knew about their struggle, but it never got out to the public. The couple are expecting baby Legend this spring, and she is absolutely glowing at the love and support she is receiving from fans. She tweeted “Regarding the IVF business, I have never gotten so many kind, encouraging words in my life. You guys are awesome and appreciated…” We’re so happy for the two of them!

The supermodel, 42, and boyfriend Erik Asla, welcomed baby York via surrogate in January 2016. The former America’s Next Top Model host has been trying for years to become a mother and has underwent many IVF treatments. “I’ve had some not happy moments with that, very traumatic moments,” she says. “It’s difficult as you get older. It’s not something that can just happen.” Tyra and her boyfriend were overjoyed to welcome little York. “As I gaze into the beautiful eyes of my son, I think about all the people who struggle with fertility or carrying a child and continue to pray for them every day. My hopes and dreams are filled with well wishes that they get to feel what my little treasure, York Banks Asla, feels like in my arms,”

The Hart of Dixie actress and husband, Kyle Newman, have two sons, James Knight, 2, and baby Leo Thames, 8 months. The couple tried to conceive for seven years, with Jamie going through five rounds of IVF and suffering five miscarriages. She opened up on Instagram after her first son was born, “For all the struggling women & moms out there that think they are alone – This is the truth about conceiving my son and struggles after. 8 yrs of pain and undiagnosed PCOS & Endometriosis.” She suffered through a painful pregnancy and labour, and struggled with breastfeeding and mastitis after James Knight was born. However, after her second baby, the family seems to be happier than ever.

The 42-year-old actress and husband, Max Handelman, had wanted a family, but endured years of unsuccessful attempts caused by embryo implantation issues. She told Women’s Health magazine that she finally accepted that she would not be able to get pregnant, “Once my focus became the baby and not the pregnancy, it was a very easy decision.” The couple now have two boys—‚—Felix, 4, and Magnus, 3—both born by gestational surrogate. After the birth of her second son in November 2012, The Hunger Games actress wrote on her website that “the experience ‘exceeded all expectations’ and that she’s ‘thankful for the support from friends and family, as well as the Center for Surrogate Parenting for helping make all this possible.”

After having a miscarriage, Mariah Carey sought acupuncture (to decrease stress) and fertility treatments to become pregnant with her twins, Moroccan and Monroe. “The main thing I did that was tough was to go on progesterone like every month…, and then when I was pregnant, I had to stay with the progesterone for 10 weeks,” Mariah told Barbara Walters in an exclusive interview for 20/20. “It minimizes the chance of miscarriage by 50 percent.”

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Talk-show host Jimmy Fallon waited two weeks after the birth of his daughter, Winnie Rose, to disclose that she was born via surrogate and that he and his wife had struggled with infertility for five years. “My wife and I had been trying for a while to have a baby,” he told Today’s Savannah Guthrie. “Anyone who’s tried will know, it’s just awful. We tried a bunch of things,” he added. “So we had a surrogate.” 

“I know people have tried much longer (than we have), but if there’s anyone out there who is trying and they’re just losing hope…just hang in there,” he said. “Try every avenue; try anything you can do, ’cause you’ll get there. You’ll end up with a family, and it’s so worth it. It is the most ‘worth it’ thing.”

Hugh Jackman opened up to Australia’s Herald Sun about he and wife’s Deborra-Lee Furness infertility struggle: “Trying to have children is wonderful and when you feel as though that’s not going to happen, there’s a certain anxiety that goes with it.” Although Hugh and Deborra always planned to adopt, they expected to have a couple of biological children first. “But when we decided we’d had enough of IVF,” he says, “we went ahead with adoption.” They have two adorable kids—Oscar and Ava. 

In an exclusive interview with Hello! Canada Magazine, Céline talks about the baby she lost while pregnant with twins, Nelson and Eddy. “One little baby decided to step back to help the other two survive,” she tells the magazine. “The doctors said to me if there’s something wrong, nature takes its course,” she adds. “I still think of the one who stepped back. I’m sure every woman has the feeling about the little one that’s not there.” She also talked about the IVF procedures she underwent to become pregnant. “We tried five times before I got pregnant. On the sixth try, it worked out. We were blessed twice.” Céline’s husband, René Angélil, spoke about IVF, as well. “We are living the reality of the majority of couples who have to use [IVF],” he has said. “The process can be long and arduous.” 

“Well, you know, we’ve been trying to expand our family for a number of years and we actually have explored a variety of ways of doing so,” Sarah Jessica Parker told Access Hollywood when she announced that she and Matthew Broderick were expecting twins via surrogacy. “[Surrogacy] was one of the things we discussed with seriousness that had real possibilities for us.” When asked if she’d struggled with infertility, Sarah said, “Yeah, I mean, I couldn’t pretend otherwise…It would be odd to have made this choice if I was able to, you know, have successful pregnancies since my son’s birth.”

Read more: Celebrity parents of multiples>

Nicole Kidman revealed she had a gestational carrier when she and hubby Keith Urban announced the birth of their second child. “Our family is truly blessed, and just so thankful, to have been given the gift of baby Faith Margaret,” she said in a statement. “No words can adequately convey the incredible gratitude that we feel for everyone who was so supportive throughout this process, in particular our gestational carrier.” 

“I get pregnant pretty easily, but I have a hard time keeping them,” Courteney Cox told People Magazine shortly after giving birth to daughter Coco with David Arquette. “I don’t say it’s a walk in the park,” she said of the multiple miscarriages she endured before finally getting pregnant. “But what are you going to do? We just try again.” David also opened up about the struggle, sharing that the IVF they underwent was “nerve-racking,” and adding, “I feel terrible that she has to go through so much.” 

Kim Fields, aka “Tootie” from Facts of Life, had her with her second child at age 44. But becoming pregnant certainly wasn’t a piece of cake for the actress. “We’re very, very blessed,” she says of the pregnancy. “It was planned. We’ve actually been trying for a couple years. We had gotten pregnant twice and [miscarried]. Chris and I were very blessed to really have one another, to have our family and friends and our God to really get us through that.”

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“We were crushed,” Brooke Shields told People of struggling with infertility. “Up till then, I thought simply because it was time and I wanted to have a baby, it would work out,” the mom of two said. “Being a type A personality, I’ve always believed that if I did my homework, if I worked hard enough, I’d get the results I wanted,” she continued. “But you can’t ensure success unless you’re God—and you’re not. Neither are the doctors.” In the end, she was left with a profound realization. “Maybe I’ll never know why it happened,” she said. “But it made me understand the difference between wanting to have a baby and truly wanting to be a mother.” 

I had the pleasure of interviewing Giuliana Rancic last year. When I asked her what advice she had for those struggling with infertility, she said, “Never lose hope! Everything happens for a reason and there is a greater plan for you. One of my favourite quotes is ‘Everything will be OK in the end. If it’s not OK, it’s not the end.’” Guiliana has a son, Duke, born via surrogate. “I would advise anyone exploring [surrogacy] to do all their research,” she said. “It is important to make sure that whatever path one chooses is right for them.”