Anne Hathaway Shares Painful Memories of Losing an Unborn Baby

Anne Hathaway reflects on her challenging journey to motherhood and the heartfelt influence her openness about her experience has had over the years.

Siegfried Nacion/STAR MAX/IPx/Associated Press/East News

Oscar-winning actress Anne Hathaway, who is a mother to sons Jonathan, 8, and Jack, 4, with her husband Adam Shulman, recently looked back on her challenging journey to motherhood. She shared how she faced a miscarriage while performing in the Off-Broadway play Grounded for nearly six weeks in 2015.

Reflecting on her experience, she told in a cover story published on March 25, «The first time it didn’t work out for me. I was doing a play and I had to give birth onstage every night.»

© annehathaway / Instagram

During that time, she felt that «it was too much to keep it in when I was onstage pretending everything was fine,» and chose to be honest about her struggles with her friends and family. «I had to keep it real otherwise.»

Later on, she extended this same openness to the public when announcing her pregnancy. She explained, «When it did go well for me, having been on the other side of it — where you have to have the grace to be happy for someone — I wanted to let my sisters know, ’You don’t have to always be graceful. I see you, and I’ve been you.’»

© annehathaway / Instagram

«It’s really hard to want something so much and to wonder if you’re doing something wrong,» she added. The Oscar winner further recalled her shock at learning how many pregnancies end in miscarriage. According to the Mayo Clinic, 10% to 20% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage, though the actual number is likely higher. She wished that this information was more widely disseminated.

Anne continued, «I thought, ’Where is this information? Why are we feeling so unnecessarily isolated?’ That’s where we take on damage. So I decided that I was going to talk about it.»

© annehathaway / Instagram

When Anne Hathaway announced her second pregnancy on Instagram in 2019, she accompanied it with a powerful caption.

«It’s not for a movie…» Hathaway wrote, referring to her baby bump. «All kidding aside, for everyone going through infertility and conception hell, please know it was not a straight line to either of my pregnancies. Sending you extra love.»

Reflecting on the impact of her candid post, she shared, «The thing that broke my heart, blew my mind, and gave me hope was that for three years after, almost daily, a woman came up to me in tears and I would just hold her, because she was carrying this (pain) around, and suddenly it wasn’t all hers anymore.»

Reflecting on her experience, she shared that given «the pain I felt while trying to get pregnant, it would’ve felt disingenuous to post something all the way happy when I know the story is much more nuanced than that for everyone.»

Recently another actress, Nicole Kidman, also shared her struggles having children.

My MIL Demanded I Give Back My Engagement Ring Because It ‘Belonged to Her Side of the Family’

When my husband proposed, he gave me a beautiful vintage ring that had been in his family for generations. But his mother decided it wasn’t mine to keep. She demanded it back, and I handed it over, too stunned to argue. I thought that was the end of it… I was wrong.

When Adam proposed with the most beautiful vintage ring I’d ever seen, I thought I was living in a fairytale. The delicate gold band, the deep blue sapphire, and the tiny diamonds framing it perfectly made it stunning, timeless, and absolutely mine… until his mother demanded I give it back because it “belonged to her family.”

A stunning ring in a box | Source: Midjourney

A stunning ring in a box | Source: Midjourney

Adam and I had been married for six months, and life felt good. Our small apartment was slowly becoming a home, and we fell into a comfortable rhythm together.

Every morning, I caught the sunlight hitting my ring as I made coffee, and I smiled, remembering the day he nervously got down on one knee. It was magical.

So, one pleasant Friday night, we went to his parents’ house for dinner. I wore the ring, as I always did. The moment we walked through the door, I noticed my mother-in-law Diane staring at my hand, her eyes narrowing slightly.

Close-up shot of a woman wearing a sapphire ring | Source: Pixabay

Close-up shot of a woman wearing a sapphire ring | Source: Pixabay

I squeezed Adam’s hand and whispered, “Your mom seems off tonight.”

“She’s fine,” he said, kissing my cheek. “Dad made her favorite roast. She’s probably just hungry.”

But I felt her eyes on me throughout the evening, following my left hand whenever I reached for my water glass or gestured during the conversation.

A senior woman grimly staring at someone | Source: Midjourney

A senior woman grimly staring at someone | Source: Midjourney

Halfway through dinner, Adam and his father Peter got up to check on the roast in the oven. As soon as they were out of earshot, Diane leaned across the table toward me.

“Enjoying that ring, are you?” Her voice was sweet, but her eyes were cold.

I blinked, confused by the sudden question. “Sure… Adam gave it to me.”

A puzzled woman | Source: Midjourney

A puzzled woman | Source: Midjourney

She gave me this tight, pitying smile that made my stomach clench. “Oh, sweetheart. He did. But that ring has been in our family for generations. My grandmother’s. It’s not some little trinket meant to end up on the hand of… well, someone like YOU.”

My face burned as if she’d slapped me. “Someone like ME?”

“Let’s be honest,” she continued, folding her napkin precisely. “Your side of the family doesn’t exactly have heirlooms. You’re not… well, you’re not exactly the kind of woman who passes things like this down. It belongs with us. Where it actually matters.”

A frustrated woman scowling | Source: Midjourney

A frustrated woman scowling | Source: Midjourney

I sat frozen, the words hitting me like tiny darts. Then, as casually as if she were asking me to pass the salt, she extended her hand.

“Go ahead and give it back now. I’ll keep it safe.”

I didn’t know what to say, and I didn’t want a scene. The way she said it — like it was just obvious I didn’t deserve it — made me feel small and insignificant.

So I slid the ring off my finger, placed it on the table, and excused myself to the bathroom before anyone saw the tears welling up.

A ring placed on the table | Source: Midjourney

A ring placed on the table | Source: Midjourney

“Don’t mention this to Adam,” she called after me. “It would only upset him, and there’s no need for that.”

I stayed in that bathroom for what felt like forever, staring at my reflection in the mirror. The bare spot on my finger felt wrong, like a missing tooth you can’t stop running your tongue over.

“Pull yourself together,” I whispered to my reflection. My eyes were red, but I splashed cold water on my face until I looked somewhat normal.

An emotional woman in a bathroom | Source: Midjourney

An emotional woman in a bathroom | Source: Midjourney

When I returned to the dining room, Adam shot me a concerned look.

“Everything okay?” he asked, reaching for my hand under the table.

I nodded, carefully keeping my left hand hidden in my lap. “Just a headache.”

Diane smiled at me from across the table, the ring nowhere in sight. “Poor dear. Would you like some aspirin?”

“No thank you,” I said, forcing a smile. “I’ll be fine.”

A smiling man seated at a dining table | Source: Midjourney

A smiling man seated at a dining table | Source: Midjourney

Dinner continued as if nothing had happened. Peter talked about his golf game. Adam discussed a project at work. I pushed the food around my plate, barely tasting anything.

On the drive home, Adam kept glancing at me. “You’re quiet tonight.”

“Just tired,” I said, staring out the window, my left hand tucked beneath my right.

“Mom seemed to be on her best behavior for once,” he said with a chuckle. “Usually she finds something to criticize about everyone.”

I bit my lip hard. “Yeah. She always has… something.”

A disheartened woman sitting in a car | Source: Midjourney

A disheartened woman sitting in a car | Source: Midjourney

When we returned home, I headed straight to bed, claiming exhaustion. As Adam retreated to watch soccer on TV, I curled up under the covers, staring at my bare finger where the ring once sat.

Tears slid silently down my cheeks. What would I tell Adam if he asked about the ring? How could I complain about his mother to him?

I didn’t want her to blame me for more drama or accuse me of driving a wedge between mother and son. I was trapped and miserable.

A sad woman lost in deep thought | Source: Midjourney

A sad woman lost in deep thought | Source: Midjourney

The mattress dipped as Adam climbed onto the bed hours later. He wrapped an arm around me, and I pretended to be asleep, afraid he might notice my ringless finger.

“Love you,” he murmured against my hair.

I lay awake most of the night, wondering how something so small could make me feel so worthless.

The following morning, I went downstairs and found a sticky note on the fridge from Adam: “Urgent work. See you! Love you.”

A sticky note stuck onto a regrigerator | Source: Midjourney

A sticky note stuck onto a regrigerator | Source: Midjourney

I sighed with relief. At least I didn’t have to mention the ring that morning and spoil his mood.

But what would I say when he eventually noticed? That I lost it? That it slipped off? The thought of lying to him made me sick, but the thought of telling him the truth was worse.

All day, I moved through the house like a ghost, rehearsing explanations in my head, each one sounding more pathetic than the last. As evening approached, I heard a car door slam outside. My heart raced.

A car on the driveway | Source: Unsplash

A car on the driveway | Source: Unsplash

When I opened the door, my husband wasn’t alone. Standing next to him was his father, Peter. And in Peter’s hand was a small velvet ring box.

My heart jumped to my throat.

“Can we come in?” Adam asked, his expression unreadable.

They both entered, and Peter set the box on the coffee table like it weighed a 100 pounds.

A velvet box on a table | Source: Midjourney

A velvet box on a table | Source: Midjourney

No one spoke for a long moment. Then Peter cleared his throat.

“I saw the ring in Diane’s hand last night and knew exactly what she was pulling,” he said, his normally jovial face serious. “And I wasn’t having it. I called Adam this morning.”

Adam’s jaw tightened. “Dad told me everything. Why didn’t you say something, Mia?”

I looked down at my hands. “I didn’t want to cause problems. She made me feel like… like I didn’t deserve it.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Adam said, his voice rising. “I gave you that ring because I love you. It’s yours.”

An annoyed man | Source: Midjourney

An annoyed man | Source: Midjourney

Peter nodded. “After you two left, I confronted Diane. She admitted to cornering you and making you give the ring back.” His face darkened. “She didn’t think you should have something so ‘valuable’ considering ‘where you came from.'”

My cheeks burned with the remembered humiliation.

“But I wasn’t having any of it,” Peter continued. “That ring was meant for you. Adam wanted you to have it. It’s yours. Diane won’t be bothering you again. I made sure of that.”

A stern older man | Source: Midjourney

A stern older man | Source: Midjourney

Adam took the velvet box from the table and knelt down in front of me, his eyes shining with emotion.

“Let’s try this again,” he said, opening the box to reveal the sapphire ring. “Marry me… again?”

I laughed through my tears, holding out my shaking left hand. “Yes. Always yes.”

He slid the ring back on my finger, where it belonged and where it would stay.

Close-up shot of a man holding a woman's hand | Source: Pexels

Close-up shot of a man holding a woman’s hand | Source: Pexels

“I’m sorry,” Adam whispered, pressing his forehead against mine. “I had no idea she would do something like this.”

“It’s not your fault,” I said, gripping his hands tightly. “But thank you for standing up for me.”

Peter watched us with a satisfied smile. “Family means accepting people for who they are, not where they come from. Diane will come around eventually, but until then…”

“Until then, we have each other,” Adam finished, making me laugh.

An emotional woman laughing | Source: Midjourney

An emotional woman laughing | Source: Midjourney

Two weeks later, we had dinner at Adam’s parents’ house again. I almost refused to go, but Adam insisted.

“We can’t avoid them forever,” he said as we pulled into the driveway. “Besides, Dad says Mom has something to say to you.”

My stomach knotted as we walked to the door, the ring heavy on my finger. Peter answered, giving me a warm hug.

“She’s in the kitchen,” he said. “Go easy on her. She’s been practicing her apology all day.”

Close-up shot of a woman wearing a stunning sapphire ring | Source: Midjourney

Close-up shot of a woman wearing a stunning sapphire ring | Source: Midjourney

I found Diane arranging flowers at the counter, her back to me. When she turned and saw me, her eyes immediately went to the ring on my finger.

“It looks good on you,” she said after a long pause.

I didn’t respond.

She sighed, setting down her scissors. “I was wrong, Mia. What I did was… it was unforgivable.”

“Then why did you do it?”

Her shoulders slumped. “Because I was selfish. Because I thought that ring belonged in our family, and I…” She trailed off, looking embarrassed.

A guilty older woman | Source: Midjourney

A guilty older woman | Source: Midjourney

“And you didn’t think I was family,” I finished for her.

She nodded, tears in her eyes. “I was wrong. Peter hasn’t spoken to me properly in two weeks, and Adam… well, the way he looked at me when he found out…” She shook her head. “I don’t expect you to forgive me right away. Maybe ever. But I’m sorry.”

I studied her face, looking for any hint of insincerity. “I’m not giving the ring back.”

She gave a watery laugh. “I wouldn’t dream of asking. It’s yours, fair and square.” She hesitated, then added, “And so is your place in this family.”

A relieved older woman laughing | Source: Midjourney

A relieved older woman laughing | Source: Midjourney

At dinner, the tension gradually eased. Diane made a visible effort to include me in the conversation, asking about my work and my parents. Later, as we helped clear the table, she paused beside me.

“I was thinking,” she said, her voice low so only I could hear, “maybe you’d like to see some of the other family pieces someday. There’s a beautiful necklace that would match your eyes.”

I raised an eyebrow, surprised. “Maybe someday. When we both mean it.”

She nodded, understanding the boundary I set. “Whenever you’re ready.”

A diamond necklace on a table | Source: Pexels

A diamond necklace on a table | Source: Pexels

Diane hasn’t so much as glanced at my ring since that night. And as for Peter, he’s definitely my favorite in-law now.

Last week, he gave me an old photo album, filled with Adam’s childhood photos and pictures of the ring on the fingers of women throughout the family history.

“For your children someday,” he said with a wink. “So they’ll know where it came from.”

A woman looking at family photos in an album | Source: Pexels

A woman looking at family photos in an album | Source: Pexels

I added my own photo to the collection — a close-up shot of my hand holding Adam’s, the sapphire catching the light.

This ring belongs to me. Not because someone decided I was worthy enough to wear it, but because love made it mine. The same way love, not blood, makes a family.

A man holding a woman's hand | Source: Pexels

A man holding a woman’s hand | Source: Pexels

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