Giuliana Rancic Has Had It With Infertility

on January 25, 2011 at 10:00 AM

Giuliana Rancic has become something of a folk hero to women with infertility. Here's a successful celebrity brave enough to say "hey, life isn't perfect." That honesty has been a compassionate reminder from Hollywood that we regular women are not alone even while the magazine covers practically scream the whole of Hollywood is making babies!

So it's bittersweet to hear the E! News host is calling it quits on infertility. She doesn't have a baby. But she and husband Bill Rancic are done with IVF. She's done with ultrasounds. She's done with the tests. She's just plain done.

In a touching interview on That's Fit with my one-time colleague Kristen Green-Seymour, the host admitted she had to give up lest she give up on herself:

We're taking a break. It's a good time to get back to who I am ... for the first time in a couple years, I felt like I was in control of my body again. I felt like for so long, my body had been turned over to medical labs and doctors and ultrasound machines. It was hideous. I felt like a lab rat.

It took me six months to get pregnant, but that was nothing compared to what Rancic or other women with infertility issues struggle with. I simply can't compare, nor would I try. But I can attest to feeling helpless even in those six months. Each time I saw one line on that pee stick, my heart sank.

Now multiply that pee stick by dozens, add in doctors between your legs every month and so on, and it's no wonder infertility has been linked to depression and stress. It's hard to remember where the path to pregnancy stops and you begin.

I'm saddened to hear Rancic has stopped her treatments before baby only because she so clearly wanted to be a mother. She's always come across in interviews as a genuinely nice person, and nice people deserve a bit of happiness. But in opening up once again about her decision to stop, talking so frankly about where she's drawn the line in the sand, Rancic has done an even greater service to women.

She's shown that it's not just OK to fight for your right to be a mom if you want it. She's also shown it's OK to decide you come first, that you're still important, that you still have worth whether you're a mother or not. Does her speaking out make you feel less alone?

Image via David_Shankbone/Flickr

About the author Jeanne Sager

writes articles for The Stir by day, slays closet monsters and bounds through bedtime stories with her elementary schooler by night. Diet Pepsi courses through her veins. The Phineas and Ferb soundtrack reverberates through her brain.

Filed Under: infertility, tests & procedures

Comments (27)

AngiDas

on Jan 25, 2011 at 11:17 AM

She and her husband tried and tried. It didn't work out. She has every right to claim her body back. Not every woman is meant or should be a mother. She as a person didn't fail and I really hope people aren't nasty with or about her.

Report this comment

billsfan1104

on Jan 25, 2011 at 11:25 AM

I feel for her, but she can still be a mother and adopt. Or not worry about it and she might get pregnant. It always happens. People say that they tried and tried, and then stopped and then SURPRISE, they are pregnant. I wish her the best.

idsoldierswife

on Jan 25, 2011 at 11:47 AM

Isn't she EXtremely underweight? I mean i don't think it's any coincidence that many anorexic (looking) females have difficulty getting pregnant. They barely consume enough calories to sustian THEIR life, much less to create and sustain a baby's life. I'm sure she's been advised by her doctors to gain a little weight and I'll bet she hasn't been willing to do so because of her career.

Nonmember comment from katie

on Jan 25, 2011 at 11:48 AM

I dealt with secondary infertility for 3 1/2 years. It is hard, stressful, heartbreaking, and puts a huge strain on your marriage. From her quote, it doesn't sound like she is giving up, just taking a break. Sometimes, it does work. I stopped trying last May, and in August got pregnant on my own. So it does happen for some people. I hope these two get to be parents, and maybe taking a break and stepping back from the treatments will help.

on Jan 25, 2011 at 11:59 AM

idsoldierwife,you have no idea why she can not pregnant. Many of the females in Hollywood are expected to be thin and many of them are now pregnant. Reserve your judgments for things you have full knowledge of.

jalaz77

on Jan 25, 2011 at 1:01 PM

She deserves a break. I would carry their baby for them. Adoption is something she can look into also.

BikingMom

on Jan 25, 2011 at 4:41 PM

idsoldierswife is correct-- Giuliana admitted on national television t hat her doctors advised her to gain weight, but that she had all those "sample sizes" to think about. However, I'm still sad for them. Hopefully, they'll find that adoption can be just as amazing as having a biological child.

AmyinMotown

on Jan 25, 2011 at 4:50 PM

Nice post, Jeanne. I've been so impressed with their openness.

Nonmember comment from Monzie

on Jan 25, 2011 at 4:53 PM

Yep. In idsoldierswife's defense, Rancic's doctor told her to gain weight, she "struggled" to put on a whoppin' seven pounds, maintained that for a couple of months, and then went on a strict colon cleanse to take off the weight again when she didn't get pregnant. She clearly has deep-seated body issues and they may be a contributing factor in her infertility. None of us can say for sure that being too skinny is the cause of her problems. But it's a fact that being significantly underweight is one of the causes of infertility in women.

on Jan 25, 2011 at 5:06 PM

Angie, if you have ever seen her show, you would see the doctor tell her to gain weight and then tell her husband that she doesnt want to, because of the camera. She kept saying that she needs to stay skinny for the show. SHe has put the E News ahead of her reproductive issues. I feel sorry for her, and I hope she finds happiness soon with a child.