Pregnant Mandy Moore says she wishes medication 'was an option' for her second birth: 'I can climb that mountain again'
Mandy Moore shared that she has a medical issue that prevents her from having a medicated birth.
In a July 2022 interview with TODAY Parents, the pregnant This Is Us star explained that she lives with immune thrombocytopenic purpura, also known as ITP. The autoimmune disorder can cause a low blood platelet count and other health complications.
Moore, who gave birth to her son August in 2021, told TODAY that because her platelets are “too low for an epidural” she will have to endure an unmedicated birth for the second time.
“It was awful,” she said of giving birth to her first child with husband Taylor Goldsmith. “But I can do it one more time. I can climb that mountain again. I wish medication was an option — just the idea of it being on the table is so nice. But we’ll just push forth like we did last time.”
In June, Moore canceled the rest of her “In Real Life” tour to focus on her health and the health of her pregnancy.
“I know that I have to put my family and my health (and the health of my baby) first and the best place for me to be right now is at home,” she said in a statement.
In 2021, Moore was a guest on the Informed Pregnancy Podcast with Dr. Elliot Berlin. The A Walk to Remember star got candid about what it was like going into labor unmedicated, comparing it to an acid trip.
"It's like you're on this trip, you're on this acid trip or something,” she said. “I was in my own head, doing my own thing. I could hear people, I could hear suggestions and sometimes agree with them, sometimes I was like, no, no, no, no, I just have to stay the course of what's feeling good for me. But ultimately it was such an insular experience…my eyes were closed and I was on my own."
Moore said she remembers "moaning like an animal" through an "intense" labor, calling the experience "grueling."
The actress said she had prepared for labor by telling herself, "I know I'm tough, I know I'm strong, nothing's going to get me down.”
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