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Gabrielle Union Reveals Struggle With Infertility: “I Have Had Eight or Nine Miscarriages”
So heartbreaking. Being Mary Jane star Gabrielle Union has been extremely open about her struggle with infertility and IVF treatments in the past, but the actress got even more candid about the subject in her new book, We’re Going to Need More Wine. In the memoir, Gabrielle revealed that she and her husband — Cleveland Cavaliers player Dwyane Wade — consecutively tried and failed to get pregnant with baby No. 1 for three years, but she suffered multiple miscarriages.
“I have had eight or nine miscarriages,” the 44-year-old wrote in an excerpt obtained by People. “For three years, my body has been a prisoner of trying to get pregnant — I’ve either been about to go into an IVF cycle, in the middle of an IVF cycle, or coming out of an IVF cycle.”
Gabrielle said that she was constantly bloated as a side effect of the hormones, and even though the treatments took a toll on her body, she and her husband “remain bursting with love and ready to do anything to meet the child we’ve both dreamed of.”
She married Dwyane, 35, in 2014, and even though she previously didn't want children, being a stepmom changed her mind, as her NBA star hubby has three sons — 15-year-old Zaire, 10-year-old Zion, and three-year-old Xavier from previous relationships. The couple is also raising Dwyane's 16-year-old nephew, Dahveon Morris.
Gabrielle said that even though being a stepmom is rewarding in itself, society can put a lot of pressure on women to conceive. Even though family and friends may mean well, she said it is especially painful whenever she is asked about whether she plans to have any children of her own.
“For so many women, and not just women in the spotlight, people feel very entitled to know, ‘Do you want kids?'” she said. “A lot of people, especially people that have fertility issues, just say ‘no’ because that’s a lot easier than being honest about whatever is actually going on."
