According to estimates from the American College of Obstetricians and the Mayo Clinic, between 15 and 20 percent of known pregnancies end in miscarriage, yet a recent survey found that 55 percent of responders believe miscarriage is "uncommon." Another study showed that 40 percent of participants who had experienced pregnancy loss said they felt very alone in the aftermath.
Though Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month is coming to a close, the value of having open conversations about miscarriage cannot be overstated. Many public figures have made a point to share their own stories of pregnancy loss to provide support and comfort to other women going through this painful experience.
Here are 21 celebrities who have opened up about their miscarriages.
P!nk revealed that was pregnant with her daughter during a 2010 episode of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show." The singer said she delayed making the announcement because of her experience with pregnancy loss."I didn't want to talk about it because I was just really nervous, and I have had a miscarriage before," she said.
In 2013, Gwyneth Paltrow told the Daily Mail's You magazine that she experienced pregnancy loss after having her two children. Discussing her children's requests for a new baby sibling, the actress said, "I had a really bad experience when I was pregnant with my third. It didn’t work out and I nearly died. So I am like, 'Are we good here or should we go back and try again?'"
Beyoncé spoke publicly about the miscarriage she suffered before becoming pregnant with Blue Ivy in her 2013 HBO special, "Life is But a Dream." The singer described her experience as "the saddest thing I've ever been through."That same year, she explained why she chose to share her story during an interview with Oprah. "There are so many couples that go through that and it was a big part of my story," Beyoncé said. "It's one of the reasons I did not share I was pregnant the second time, because you don't know what's going to happen. And that was hard, because all of my family and my friends knew and we celebrated. It was hard."
Like her famous onscreen character Monica, Courteney Cox also struggled with fertility issues. The actress had multiple miscarriages before carrying and giving birth to her daughter Coco. "I get pregnant pretty easily, but I have a hard time keeping them." she told People magazine. Cox told NBC News that her struggles sometimes made it very challenging to do her job and make people laugh. "I remember one time I just had a miscarriage and Rachel was giving birth," she said. "It was like that same time. Oh my God, it was terrible having to be funny."
Lily Allen has been very open about her experiences with pregnancy and infant loss. The singer revealed recently that her new song "Something's Not Right" was written in memory of her stillborn son, whom she delivered in 2010 -- two years after she had a miscarriage."It was a really long battle, and I think that kind of thing changes a person," Allen said of the experiences in her documentary.The singer has also encouraged her fans to donate to Sands, an organization that supports families affected by infant loss and funds research to help prevent future occurrences.
In 2007, Nicole Kidman opened up about her early struggles to become a parent with Tom Cruise in an interview with Vanity Fair. "From the minute Tom and I were married, I wanted to have babies," she said. "And we lost a baby early on, so that was really very traumatic. And that's when we would adopt Bella."
In 1992, Kathie Lee Gifford told her audience on “Live with Regis and Kathie Lee” that she had recently lost a baby."Until you experience [a miscarriage] yourself, you really don't understand the heartbreak of it," she said.
While pregnant with her twins Monroe and Moroccan, Mariah Carey told "Access Hollywood" that her first pregnancy with Nick Cannon had ended in miscarriage. "It kind of shook us both and took us to a place that was really dark and difficult," she said.
Brooke Shields wrote about her miscarriage in her 2006 memoir Down Came the Rain. The actress learned the news right before she was set to go onstage for a performance with the Kermit the Frog. In an interview with People, the actress reflected on the experience. "We were crushed. Up till then, I thought simply because it was time and I wanted to have a baby, it would work."
In 2009, Céline Dion spoke with Access Hollywood about trying to have a second child with husband Rene Angelil.The singer said she had been pregnant for a few days, but "it didn't stay." In an interview with Oprah, the singer maintained a positive attitude about the experience. "It’s life, you know? A lot of people go through this. We tried four times to have a child. We’re still trying. We’re on the fifth try, and I’ll tell you, if five is my lucky number, this fifth try has got to come in."
In her memoirThe Art Of Men,actress Kirstie Alley opened up about her miscarriage, an experience she said led to her weight gain. "When the baby was gone, I just didn’t really get over it. Neither did my body," she wrote. "I so thoroughly convinced my body that it was still pregnant after nine months that I had milk coming from my breasts. I was still fat, I was still grieving, and I had just been told it was very possible I would never be able to have children. Fat, childless, with little hope for any future children ... that’s when I began to get fat."
In 2010, Giuliana Rancic suffered a miscarriage at nine weeks. "I was angry at life and at God," she told People.The talk show host said she wanted to share her fertility struggles with others. "Hopefully we can help people understand that there's nothing to be ashamed of," she said. "It's such a taboo subject, but it's a very common problem."
In a 1998 interview with canoe.ca, Tori Amos talked about her miscarriage and how it inspired her music. "I went through a lot of different feelings after the miscarriage -- you go through everything possible," she said. "You question what is fair, you get angry with the spirit for not wanting to come, you keep asking why," she added. "And then, as I was going through the anger and the sorrow and the why, the songs started to come."
Jane Seymour told Entertainment Tonight that she had once suffered a miscarriage at work."I actually lost a pregnancy live on television, announcing the Rose Parade, but nobody knew at the time," she said.
In a 1998 interview with Good Housekeeping, Christie Brinkley opened up about her three miscarriages. "After the first miscarriage, I tried to take the attitude that it was my body's way of telling me that this pregnancy wasn't meant to be, and that it was better for everybody," she said. "But after the second one, it was really devastating. Four months is a lot of living with that little life in you -- thinking about it, eating right for it, nurturing it and all of a sudden, it dies."
In August 2015, Eva Amurri Martino revealed she had suffered a miscarriage at nine weeks in a heartfelt post her blog Happily Eva After."I am sharing in the hopes that we can be a light for people going through similar circumstances, and to remind myself and others that there is no shame in voicing our heartbreaks and allowing others to comfort us," she wrote."What was so shocking to me is how common miscarriages are, versus how little I hear them talked about," she continued. "I'm not sure if this is because people are ashamed to suffer this loss, or whether the loss is simply too painful to share (I can see how this could be the case also)."
During a 2010 episode of "The View," Lisa Ling spoke about her first pregnancy, which ended in miscarriage. "I felt more like a failure than I'd felt in a very long time," she said. "We actually [hadn't] been trying that long," she added. "I don't know that I took it as seriously as I should have because it happened so fast. But then when I heard the doctor say there was no heartbeat it was like bam, like a knife through the heart."
Sharon Stone told AARP magazine that she suffered three miscarriages before adopting her children."The last time I lost the baby, I went into 36 hours of labor," she recalled. While we were at the hospital, our adoption attorney called."
In her memoir, icon Sophia Loren opened up about her two miscarriages. Recalling her doctor's cold response to her loss, she wrote, "His scathing words dashed all my hopes, making me feel powerless, barren and deeply inadequate."
Before adopting her daughter Jacqueline, Barbara Walters had multiple experiences with pregnancy loss.“I had had several miscarriages,” she told NBC's Jane Pauley. “And when I did, they were never reported. And I would take a couple of days off then, and go back to work.
Valerie Bertinelli suffered a miscarriage in 1987. That year, she spoke about the experience in an interview with People. "I'm still not over that one," she said, later adding, "It hurt so badly when I miscarried. I think about it often and get down."