Michelle Obama Reveals She Had a Miscarriage and Underwent IVF With Both Daughters
In her new memoir, Becoming, Michelle Obama reveals that she suffered a miscarriage in her 30s and experienced fertility issues while trying to have children with her husband, former president Barack Obama. Ultimately, the couple conceived their daughters, Sasha and Malia, through in vitro fertilization—something Michelle dealt with largely on her own as Barack was away serving the state legislature. As the former First Lady details in her book, she had to administer the shots that are a part of in vitro fertilization many times herself.
Michelle opened up more about this experience to Robin Roberts on Good Morning America Friday (November 9). “I felt like I failed because I didn’t know how common miscarriages were because we don’t talk about them,” she said. “We sit in our own pain, thinking that somehow we’re broken.”
She continued, “That’s one of the reasons why I think it’s important to talk to young mothers about the fact that miscarriages happen.”
In the interview, Michelle says she realized the “biological clock is real” around age 34 or 35 and that “egg production is limited.” “We had to do IVF,” Michelle told Roberts.
Ultimately, Michelle hopes opening up about her struggles will help other women going through similar experiences. “I think it’s the worst thing that we do to each other as women, not share the truth about our bodies and how they work,” she said.
Becoming will hit bookstores and E-reader platforms everywhere on Tuesday, November 13. Click here to look at tickets for Michelle’s upcoming book tour in support of the project.
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