PLAN B?

Pop Icon, 41, Shares Surprise Pregnancy Twist After Failed IVF Journey

The former teen idol revealed her fertility took a “surprising” turn.

Former teen-pop star Mandy Moore spent thousands of dollars trying to have a third child through IVF—only for the universe to have other plans.

Speaking on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast on Tuesday, the This Is Us actress opened up about the winding road that led to the arrival of her 1-year-old daughter Louise “Lou” Goldsmith after an “unsuccessful” fertility treatment left Moore believing her family expansion plans had reached a dead end.

Moore, 41, said she and her husband, musician Taylor Goldsmith, had always been open to the idea of a third child after welcoming sons Gus, 5, and Ozzie, 3.

“I think in the back of my mind, I always knew being one of three that I was very open to that possibility,” Moore said.

But as she moved further into her late thirties, the actress said she began thinking more seriously about her reproductive timeline.

After discussing the possibility of another child, the couple decided to pursue IVF treatments in what Moore described as an “insurance policy”—hoping to freeze embryos in case conceiving naturally became more difficult.

Instead, that backup plan delivered disappointing news.

“We didn’t get any viable eggs, no embryos,” Moore said of the costly process, which can run couples upwards of $10,000 to $12,000.

In vitro fertilization, commonly known as IVF, is a fertility treatment in which eggs are retrieved from the ovaries and fertilized with sperm in a laboratory before an embryo is transferred into the uterus. Success rates vary widely based on factors including age, egg quality, and overall reproductive health.

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Women over 35 can face additional fertility challenges because both egg quantity and egg quality naturally decline with age, reducing the likelihood that retrieved eggs will develop into viable embryos.

Rather than dwell on the setback, Moore said she made peace with the outcome.

“OK, well, this just settles that,” she recalled thinking. “If this is something that’s meant to be, it will happen naturally. Otherwise, I am so grateful and so happy with these two guys, and our family will be complete.”

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Then came the plot twist.

Just 23 months after welcoming Ozzie, Moore learned she was pregnant again.

Moore described the revelation as “very, very surprising,” explaining that she and Goldsmith “were not trying, but obviously we were open to it.”

While grateful for the unexpected addition, Moore admitted the timing was not exactly what she envisioned. Had the IVF cycle produced embryos, they could have remained frozen indefinitely, allowing the couple to wait longer before growing their family.

Instead, Moore welcomed three children in roughly 3.5 years.

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“Emotionally, I feel like I’m still recovering,” she said.

Her third pregnancy also proved more challenging than her first two.

Moore revealed she developed thrombocytopenia, a condition marked by low blood platelet levels, which in severe cases can cause the mother to bleed out during childbirth. To prepare for delivery, she said doctors placed her on steroids during the final week of her pregnancy.

Despite the complications, Moore said the birth itself was remarkably smooth.

“I had an epidural with her, and it was a dream,” she said. “I was like, ‘Oh, this is like—she just sort of flew out.’”

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Tamilore OshikanluContributor

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