Jamie Chung says she used a surrogate because she feared pregnancy would have stalled her career
Jamie Chung and her husband, actor Bryan Greenberg, are proud parents of healthy twin boys. While their birth last year was a pleasant surprise to fans, Chung is opening up about her choice to have the babies via surrogate instead of carrying them herself.
In a new interview on the Today show, the Dexter: New Blood star, 39, revealed she was “terrified” of becoming pregnant out of fear that it would compromise her career.
“I was terrified of putting my life on hold for two-plus years,” Chung said. “In my industry, it feels like you’re easily forgotten if you don’t work within the next month of your last job. Things are so quickly paced in what we do. So it’s a compromise that we made together as a couple.”
The actress, who shot to fame in 2004 as a cast member on MTV’s The Real World: San Diego before landing other major roles in the ABC Family miniseries Samurai Girl and ABC’s Once Upon a Time, noted that one of the reasons why she and Greenberg kept the pregnancy private was because of the stigma surrounding surrogacy.
“I think there’s a little bit of shame. It’s still not a very common thing and we weren’t ready for judgment,” she explained. “We really just did it to protect ourselves. We announced things when we were ready to."
“People probably think, 'Oh, she's so vain. She didn't want to get pregnant,' and it's much more complicated than that,” she added. “For me, personally, and I will leave it at this, it’s like, I worked my ass off my entire life to get where I am. I don’t want to lose opportunities. I don’t want to be resentful.”
Despite her having the twins via surrogacy, Chung says she still suffered with postpartum depression, telling Yahoo Life in January that it "comes in waves."
"I think some moments are really good and then there's other moments where I give in to the sadness and also the stress," she said at the time.
According to PostpartumDepression.org, while the symptoms of PD are typically linked to hormone fluctuations that come with pregnancy and birth, other parents — including fathers and those who adopt — can experience them as well. Chung was no different.
"I feel like there's a lot on our shoulders keeping these little babies alive and keeping them healthy: having to sacrifice and give all of yourself to your babies," she said. "I think I'm still going through [postpartum depression] to be honest. Some days — some moments — are really great and I try to focus on that. Talking to my friends is really helpful, talking to other parents is extremely helpful and so is staying in touch with therapy."
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