Savannah Guthrie Opens Up About Her Fertility Struggles

It's refreshing when women share their stories about the challenges of pregnancy and childrearing, especially at a later age. Whether coming from well-loved celebrities like Chrissy Tiegen, or oft-maligned spokespeople like Meghan McCain, it's important to remove the stigma and mystery around fertility struggles by hearing more people with a platform discuss it openly. The latest to come forward is Savannah Guthrie.

After focusing on her career and finally landing the co-anchor position of NBC's "Today" at age 40, Guthrie married husband Michael Feldman two years later. She was four months pregnant at her 2014 wedding, per the Daily Mail, and gave birth to daughter Vale that same year. "Having kids later in life wasn't so much a choice — it was just the way life happened for me," she told Health in 2020. She also knew "it was the winning lottery ticket to have one child," particularly at age 42. "So I never dreamed that I would have two," she said, referring to her son Charley, born in 2016, after two IVF treatments. "Going through what we did, it makes you realize that everything has to go just right to have a healthy baby. I really feel for so many women who are struggling and wishing and wondering, 'When's it gonna be my turn?' I know. And I understand."

In a new interview published March 21, Guthrie opened up to Good Housekeeping about her challenges with fertility, particularly as an older mom.

Now that Savannah Guthrie is 50, she's gracing the April cover of Good Housekeeping and speaking honestly about her pregnancy journey in her forties. "I stopped even letting myself hope or believe I could [get pregnant], because the years were getting on," she said. "It wasn't that I thought it was impossible; I just thought it wasn't likely. I didn't want to get my hopes up. I just tried to tell myself that it would be OK if it didn't happen." Guthrie added, "I'm not entitled to have a baby too. Looking back, that mindset was probably a self-defense mechanism."

Guthrie also admitted she'd had a miscarriage sometime after daughter Vale was born, and she and husband Michael Feldman did in vitro fertilization (IVF) to conceive her rainbow baby. "With Charley, I did do IVF," Guthrie told Health in 2020. "So I would say Vale was a miracle, and Charley was a medical miracle."

Guthrie also credits her mom for helping her "[get] through the personal trials of my 30s," as she told GH. "It was great to have her, because she was just always so certain. She'd say, 'Well, of course you're going to have your family, Savannah!' It felt good." The co-host is also glad to have had her kids at an older age. "I'm glad my kids don't have the stressed, anxious, and insecure 30-year-old version of me. The peace and calmness that comes with age is a great thing for kids to see in action."