by Lexi Inks
Despite being the most-followed woman in the world, there are still things Selena Gomez hasn’t shared with the public. The Only Murders in the Building actress spoke to Vanity Fair reporter Yohana Desta in a candid interview published on September 9, weaving through stories of her journey in love, her career, and her health over the years. In a deeply personal moment, Gomez opened up about her experience with infertility during the interview.
“I haven’t ever said this,” she told Vanity Fair, “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.”
While she hasn’t revealed many extensive details about her medical condition, Gomez has been open about her diagnosis of and subsequent treatment for lupus — an autoimmune disease that causes one’s immune system to essentially attack itself, resulting in an intense amount of inflammation in the body. The singer revealed her diagnosis for the first time in a 2015 interview with Billboard, and shared about her experience undergoing chemotherapy for the condition.
In an Instagram photo posted in September 2017, Gomez revealed that she had received a kidney transplant due to her struggle with lupus. The photo showed her holding hands in side-by-side hospital beds with actress Francia Raisa, one of her close friends — and her kidney donor. In her caption, the Rare Beauty founder explained the procedure as the reason for her inability to promote her recent music releases, and thanked Raisa for “the ultimate gift and sacrifice.”
Although opening up about her medical infertility was likely difficult for Gomez during her Vanity Fair interview, sharing her future aspirations to become a mother through adoption has a deeper, personal meaning. Her own mother was adopted, and the singer shared that without that part of her family’s story, “I probably wouldn’t be here. I don’t know what her life would’ve been like. She and I are very thankful for how life played out.”
Gomez’s very public relationship with Benny Blanco was, of course, a core topic of discussion — especially as it relates to her vision for life. Vanity Fair reported that in a recent podcast interview, Blanco said he wanted to have children in the future. If the other conversations he’s had surrounding his relationship to Gomez are any indication, growing a family together certainly seems to be in the cards. Blanco eagerly told Howard Stern in a May interview that he wanted to marry her one day, and Gomez shared this admiration right back during her conversation with the magazine.
“I’ve never been loved this way,” she shared. “He’s just been a light. A complete light in my life. He’s my best friend. I love telling him everything.”
Gomez is not alone in her journey of accepting that she won’t be able to give birth to her future children. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 11% of women at reproductive age in the country deal with fertility issues. There can be any number of reasons a woman may not be able to conceive, but for Gomez, the underlying circumstances aren’t what matters most to her.
“I find it a blessing that there are wonderful people willing to do surrogacy or adoption, which are both huge possibilities for me,” she says. “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.”
