Selena Gomez recently revealed her inability to bear children due to her ongoing medical issues, highlighting the risks to both her and a potential fetus.
In a conversation with Vanity Fair, the “Only Murders in the Building” actress and former Disney star disclosed her earlier aspirations to have a family by her mid-thirties.
“I haven’t ever said this, but unfortunately, I can’t carry my own children,” she explained. “I have a lot of medical issues that would put both my life and the baby’s in jeopardy. That was something I had to grieve for a while.”
The 32-year-old didn’t mention the specific health issue during the interview, but she has openly discussed her 2015 diagnosis with lupus, a condition where the immune system attacks the body.
She was also diagnosed with anxiety and depression in 2016, which are often associated with lupus and the medications used to treat it.
In 2017, Gomez underwent a kidney transplant as a result of her lupus. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2020 after a psychotic episode during which she experienced auditory hallucinations and suicidal thoughts.
In 2022, she shared with Rolling Stone her ongoing necessity for certain medications to manage bipolar disorder, which could compromise her pregnancy safety. “That’s a significant, constant presence in my life,” she remarked at that time.
Gomez has mentioned that she is open to adoption, in part because her own mother was adopted.
“I probably wouldn’t be here,” Gomez told Vanity Fair, “if my mother hadn’t been adopted. I don’t know what her life would’ve been like. She and I are very thankful for how life played out.”
Gomez revealed to Vanity Fair that she might pursue parenthood through adoption or surrogacy. “It’s not necessarily the way I envisioned it. I thought it would happen the way it happens for everyone,” she said.
“[But] 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.”
“It made me really thankful for the other outlets for people who are dying to be moms. I’m one of those people. 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.”
