“You could go through this whole experience and get absolutely nothing out of it — that’s the crazy part,” Erin Andrews said after her seventh IVF attempt failed. After years of trying to have a child, she and her husband, Jarret Stoll, had gone through countless rounds of IVF. Each one left them emotionally drained, but they kept pushing, hoping one day it would finally work.
By the time they reached their seventh IVF, they were beyond frustrated. Every attempt had its setbacks—bad egg quality, failed embryo transfers, and endless waiting. “It’s a ton of money, it’s a ton of time, it’s a ton of mental and physical anguish. And more times than not, they’re unsuccessful,” she continued. Despite their struggles to have a baby, Erin and Jarret kept their hopes high, but the toll was real.
The idea of becoming parents felt further away, even as they’d spent years fighting for it. But finally, back in June 2023, the couple became parents when their son, Mack, was born via surrogacy. But the struggles persisted. This time, not because of failed IVF attempts or failed embryos. Nope.
In fact, it was due to insecurities faced by Erin and her husband because Erin didn’t actually carry the baby. And she just opened up about her insecurities on the Calm Down Podcast with her close friend and co-host Charissa Thompson. “It was a beautiful thing, I am so grateful that way,” Erin shared with Charissa. “But yeah, there’s a whole like insecurity, there’s a whole kind of doubt you have that I didn’t carry this baby.”
“I don’t have the connection. I need to be told certain things because I’m learning to be a mother, and I will tell you that I did not trust my gut for a while with some childcare. And I learned a lot about myself. I think my husband did as well.” Even though Erin and Jarrett had their son via surrogacy after a long, tough journey, that didn’t erase the emotional conundrum of not being able to carry him herself.
Because no doubt, it’s actually a pretty common feeling for parents who go through surrogacy to feel a little disconnected at first. But let’s be real—it’s not about loving your child any less. It’s more about finding your own way to build that bond, especially when it’s not the typical journey you might have imagined.
However, the interesting part here is how Erin’s perspective on motherhood evolved after Mack was born. At the earliest, she kept mentioning that she was feeling like she wasn’t doing enough parenting. Especially during the NFL season, when work kept her away. But things changed when a fellow passenger on the plane shared her own IVF struggles with Erin, and suddenly, it reminded her to cut herself some slack.
Fast forward to now, and the 47-year-old sportscaster is a proud mom. Sure, there were struggles prior to Mack’s birth, and after that as well, but it’s okay to feel mix of emotions along the way.
Erin Andrews’ journey to become a proud mom
Erin Andrews and Jerrett Stoll tied the knot back in 2017 after dating for five years. And ever since then, the couple had been open about their fertility journey before welcoming Mack via surrogacy a couple of years back. Prior to Mack’s birth, Erin underwent a 10-year IVF process. Amid all this, she also got diagnosed with cervical cancer and underwent a successful surgery.
And get this, Erin and Jarrett weren’t married at that time. However, before undergoing surgery, she had already frozen embryos with Stoll at the time of her diagnosis. “It definitely took a serious turn for us,” she told Health in 2017. ” I’m not young, we don’t know when we’re gonna have a baby, we don’t know if this is going to come back. One thing I love my future husband for is that our oncologist said the smart thing to do would be to have some insurance waiting—so we have frozen embryos because we’ve taken the steps.”
After everything Erin had already been through—her surgery, all those failed IVF rounds—she and Jarret finally decided to try starting their family through surrogacy. And you’d think, okay, maybe this is where things start to turn around for them. But nope. Their first try with a surrogate ended in heartbreak too—twins, and sadly, neither made it.
Erin and Jarrett then restarted the process, which Andrews described as their “last hope.” Fortunately, the final transfer worked. And back in 2023, the couple welcomed their son, Mack. “I keep staring at him, I want to study everything about him. I want to make up for lost time,” Erin Andrews said after Mack’s birth. And just like that, Erin and Jarrett are now proud parents to Mack, who’s about to turn two years old next month.
The post “I Didn’t Carry This Baby”: NFL Reporter Erin Andrews Shares Doubts & Insecurities She’s Faced in Motherhood appeared first on EssentiallySports.