Jennifer Aniston Slams Claim Being “Selfish” Kept Her From Having Kids

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Jennifer Aniston is standing up for herself.

I’ve been hearing a lot of talk over the years about why I didn’t have children, and I wanted to clear things up. There’s been this idea floating around that I prioritized my career, especially after my divorce from Brad in 2005, and that’s just not the full story. I want people to understand it wasn’t a decision based on work.

Jennifer explained to *Harper’s Bazaar U.K.* that people weren’t aware of her twenty-year journey to start a family, or the personal struggles she faced, because she keeps those medical details private. As she put it, “That’s not anybody’s business.”

You know, as someone who talks about living your best life, I have to be real – it really gets to me when I hear the constant chatter about whether or not I’ll have a family. People love to label you – ‘selfish,’ ‘too focused on work’ – and honestly, it stings. At the end of the day, I’m just a person, and those kinds of comments do affect me, just like they would anyone else.

After years of struggling with in-vitro fertilization (IVF), the 56-year-old woman wrote an opinion piece for HuffPost in 2016 criticizing how the media often treats women with a lack of sensitivity.

She remembered thinking, ‘Why not?’ when she decided to write the essay. Many of her friends were going through fertility treatments like IVF at the time, so she felt it was important not just for her to share her story, but for all women facing similar challenges.

Jennifer, who quietly began dating hypnotherapist Jim Curtis last month, noted that the old practice of public shaming for relationships is becoming less common.

The star of *The Morning Show* has spoken about the long time she kept her struggles with getting pregnant private.

She shared with *Allure* in November 2022 that she had been trying to have a baby, and it hadn’t been easy.

Looking back on all the years I spent hoping and trying… it was incredibly difficult,” she said. “I tried everything to get pregnant – IVF, herbal teas, you name it. I wish someone had just told me to freeze my eggs. It never even crossed my mind. And now, here I am – it’s too late.

Even though Jennifer and her partner were unable to have a child, she feels at peace with their efforts. She explained that she now feels a sense of relief, saying she no longer has to wonder ‘what if’ or dwell on the possibility of getting pregnant.

For more celebs who’ve spoken about their fertility journey, keep reading.

The star of *Duck Dynasty* and her husband, Jacob Mayo, have publicly discussed why they’re sharing their experiences with fertility challenges on their family’s new reality show.

Bella and Jacob recently shared in an interview with *Us Weekly* that they’ve been dealing with infertility, something they hadn’t previously discussed publicly. Bella explained that it’s easy to assume everyone else has a perfect life when you only see them on social media, but you never truly know what struggles people are facing behind the scenes.

They felt it was a good fit, and it let them be genuine and true to themselves on the new show.

Two years before the former Miss Universe and Christian McCaffrey announced they were expecting a baby, she had spoken about how her endometriosis might make it difficult to get pregnant in the future.

Olivia Culpo has spoken about her concerns regarding having children. After being diagnosed with endometriosis in 2020 and undergoing surgery, she shared on her show, *The Culpo Sisters*, that it might be difficult for her to get pregnant.

Endometriosis can impact fertility in several ways,” she explained. “It can cause tissue to grow around or on the ovaries, potentially lower egg quality, and even lead to scarring of the fallopian tubes.”

Caelynn, known from Bachelor Nation, recently opened up about the challenges she and her husband, Dean Bell, have faced trying to have a baby since they got married in 2023.

In a YouTube video from March 2025, Caelynn shared that she was taking a more relaxed approach. ‘It’s tough,’ she said, ‘but I’m not stressing myself out as much as I did when I first started trying.’

Even though it’s been a difficult time emotionally, Caelynn is staying optimistic while she and her husband undergo medical tests to understand what’s happening with their health.

The cohost of *Dancing With the Stars* has publicly discussed her battle with endometriosis, a condition affecting women’s reproductive health, and is taking steps to protect her ability to have children when she’s ready.

In June 2025, she shared that she froze her eggs for the third time.

After having her son, Sonny, with husband Tim Rosenman in 2017, the former star of *The Hills* has openly shared the challenges she faced trying to become a mother. This included two miscarriages of her own and two miscarriages experienced by her surrogate.

In July 2024, Whitney confirmed she’s preparing for a second egg retrieval. 

I’m feeling much better than before, because I have a better idea of what to expect this time around, and I completely trust my doctor’s guidance.

Whitney has consistently expressed that her family of three is already complete and fulfilling, regardless of whether or not they decide to have another child.

In a heartfelt birthday message to her son on his 7th birthday in July 2024, she shared that they feel complete as a family, especially as they begin trying for another child. She called him a blessing and expressed their joy in watching him grow, noting how easygoing he is.

Michelle Yeoh, known for her role in *Everything Everywhere All At Once*, has spoken about the difficulties she faced when trying to get pregnant with her first husband, Dickson Poon. She married Jean Todt in 2023 after being engaged for 19 years.

Michelle revealed in a November 2024 podcast interview that she always dreamed of having children and underwent fertility treatments to try and make it happen. She described the monthly emotional toll as incredibly difficult, saying it felt like a personal failure each time.

She explained that eventually, you need to stop blaming yourself. Sometimes, our bodies simply don’t work as expected, and that’s okay. The key is to accept it and keep moving forward.

The rapper, who has a son named Wilde with her husband Maximillion Cooper, previously revealed she suffered a devastating miscarriage caused by an ectopic pregnancy while working on her show, *Eve*.

In her memoir, *Who’s That Girl?*, Eve revealed that she discovered she was pregnant in 2006. This led to emergency surgery and a two-week break from filming. She admits she doesn’t understand why she told everyone on set she had appendicitis, suggesting she might have been in denial about the pregnancy itself.

She explained that if she lost her baby, she wasn’t sure two weeks would be enough time to recover emotionally. Ultimately, even that short time wasn’t quite enough for her body to heal physically before she had to return to work. She’d lost a lot of weight from the surgery and was very weak.

Selling Sunset star Maya Vander has openly shared her experiences with getting pregnant, including the birth of her son, Austin, when she was 15, and the fertility challenges she and her husband, Romain Bonnet, have faced.

In September 2024, she told TopMob News that she wasn’t sure how things would turn out and was just dealing with things as they happened. She explained she’s been very busy with her book and the current season, and doesn’t want to add any stress to her plate, believing that things won’t work out if she’s overwhelmed.

Mary shared that she had surgery to correct a condition where her uterus was divided by a membrane. She and Romain aren’t in a hurry to make any big decisions right now and are content enjoying life with their dog.

The real estate agent also mentioned their cat, Thor, saying Romaine is completely devoted to him. Even if the sale doesn’t go through, Romaine is content because of his beloved pet, and they’ll be alright. They believe everything happens for a reason.

NFL sportscaster Erin Andrews and her husband, Jarret Stoll, became parents to their son, Mack, in July 2023. Their path to parenthood hasn’t always been easy, as they previously faced a challenge when Erin was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2017.

After freezing her eggs before starting cancer treatment, she used IVF to get pregnant and decided to share her journey publicly.

She explained that she finally felt ready to speak up after years of silence. Sharing her experiences in a 2021 essay was a relief, as going through it had been incredibly difficult and emotionally draining. She described feeling detached and as if she were simply going through the motions, constantly bracing for bad news on a frustrating and uneven path.

She explained that she’s comfortable speaking openly and honestly about how difficult the experience was, and that she understands how many couples and families struggle with trying to have a child.

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2025-10-09 17:19