Entertainment

Kristen Wiig Opens Up About Her 'Very Long Road' To Motherhood, Including IVF

by Julie Scagell
Kristen Wiig
Amy Sussman/Getty

In a rare interview, Kristen Wiig admitted feeling overwhelmed during the three-year process

Kristen Wiig was overjoyed to welcome twins via surrogate and is now opening up about the “very long road” she and fiancé Avi Rothman had to get there, including IVF.

The notoriously private Wiig recently sat down with InStyle magazine and talked about what she’s been up to during quarantine (hint: babies) and the emotional toll it took to welcome the new family members. “We’ve sort of been quarantining since January because of the babies. We’re nesting, and we’re tired,” Wiig said. “Having two 9-month-olds is a lot! But they’re growing, and I can’t wait to see them every morning. It’s not all just lying around and smiling at babies, though. It’s overwhelming to think about everyone else who’s struggling, and it’s hard to be good knowing that.”

Wiig said her fertility struggles and eventual surrogacy decision often felt isolating.

“We tried to keep the [surrogacy] process private for as long as possible, because it is a very private thing. Unfortunately, we were photographed with them — and, well, it’s out there! As private as I am and as sacred as this all is, what helped me was reading about other women who went through it and talking to those who have gone through IVF and fertility stuff,” she said. “It can be the most isolating experience.”

She also said she hopes to maintain their privacy but knows the importance of being a resource for others who have gone through similar situations.

“Emotionally, spiritually, and medically, it was probably the most difficult time in my life,” Wiig told the publication. “I wasn’t myself. There are so many emotions that go with it—you’re always waiting by the phone and getting test results, and it was just bad news after bad news. Occasionally there would be a good month, but then it was just more bad news. There was a lot of stress and heartache.”

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Wiig and Rothman have been together for five years and three of those were spent in a “in an IVF haze.”

“It was a long fucking time,” the Bridesmaids star said. “It got to the point where I just kind of stopped talking about it entirely, because I would get sad whenever someone asked. It was just part of my life.” Wiig also said she was initially against anything other than getting pregnant herself but once that became an impossibility, she was thrilled to find the “most amazing surrogate.”

Not withstanding, Wiig said the process was difficult at times even when she knew the babies were on the way. “I was over the moon feeling them kick for the first time, but then I would get in my head and ask myself all these questions, like, ‘Why couldn’t I do this?'” she said. “At the same time I would tell myself it didn’t matter. She was giving us the greatest gift, and I just wanted them to get here!”