Popstar, actress, and newly minted billionaire Selena Gomez confessed she was “dying” to be a mother, but that her medical conditions hinder her from a more traditional path to motherhood.
“I haven’t ever said this … but I unfortunately can’t carry my own children. I have a lot of medical issues that would put my life and the baby’s in jeopardy. That was something I had to grieve for a while,” Gomez disclosed to Vanity Fair.
The star was diagnosed with Lupus, an autoimmune disease, in 2015, and bipolar disorder, which she revealed in April 2020 while with Miley Cyrus on the latter’s Instagram Live Show ‘Bright Minded.’
The Emmy-nominated actress recounted in a November 2022 outlet that she had cried in her car, thinking about how the two medications she takes for bipolar disorder would gravely affect a pregnancy. She said the issue was “a very big, big, present thing in [her] life.”
According to a doctor-reviewed article by WebMD, some bipolar medications increase the chances of birth defects during the first trimester, such as neural tube defects, heart defects, developmental delay, or neurobehavioral problems in the offspring.
The possible effects of abstaining from medications may also harm the baby. Untreated depression is associated with low birth weight and may negatively impact the development of the baby’s brain structures. Mood symptoms may also lead to poor prenatal care, poor nutrition, the use of alcohol or tobacco, and the like.
“(However,) I’m in a much better place with that. I find it a blessing that there are wonderful people willing to do surrogacy or adoption, which are both huge possibilities for me,” Gomez said.
“It made me really thankful for the other outlets for people who are dying to be moms. I’m one of those people,” she went on. “I’m excited for what that journey will look like, but it’ll look a little different. At the end of the day, I don’t care. It’ll be mine. It’ll be my baby.”
