Shay Mitchell tearfully admits feeling ‘blindsided’ by miscarriage
Shay Mitchell is officially pregnant with a beautiful rainbow baby, but she will never forget the emotional turmoil she experienced after suffering a miscarriage last year.
The actress experienced the loss 14 weeks into her pregnancy, and admits being "completely blindsided" by grief. Six months later, Shay is pregnant again and couldn't be happier.
The Pretty Little Liars and You star is now bravely sharing her story with fans in her new YouTube series, Almost Ready.
At the beginning of 2019, Mitchell wrote a message to her followers, writing;
"The support and affection that so many of you show me lifts me up during even my darkest days, one of which happened last year after I miscarried and lost the child of my hopes and dreams."
In the first episode of her new series, Keeping a Secret, Shay discusses her relationship with boyfriend Matte Babel, who she insists will be "a great dad".
"Matt and I started quietly dating about three years ago," Mitchell says. "I guess you could say we're best friends now."
The actress later explains why she chose to bide her time before announcing her current pregnancy.
"I chose to hold on until I announced because of the first time," Mitchell says. "It didn't go as I had hoped for, and it was extremely difficult."
"The first time that I was pregnant last year, Matt and I hadn't been planning, it happened and we were really excited about it," she shares.
"I was like 14 weeks, at that point, I had no idea the percentage of miscarriages. When it happened I was just, completely blindsided by it."
In the video, Shay can't hold back the tears as she says she still has the ultrasound photos on her phone and footage of her visits to the doctor.
"And it's weird because, I haven't looked at them, obviously," Shay says as she wipes away tears. "But, it's not like I forgot about that happening, so of course I'm like super happy, but I still feel for that one that I lost."
The difficulty of being pregnant in the public eye is undeniable, especially when an expectant mum is keeping the news a secret.
The actress gives a tour of the baby's room in her YouTube series, which isn't decorated yet. Shay explained that she wants to wait "as late as possible" to prepare the room for her first child due to her miscarriage experience.
Mitchell also illustrated that experiencing a miscarriage is "really tough because you feel broken as a woman".
"It really sort of messed me up a little bit," Mitchell stated, regarding her lack of social life after the experience.
Mitchell said hadn't been previously aware of the percentage of pregnancies that end in miscarriage, which is around one-in-four according to the Miscarriage Association.
Feature image: YouTube/Almost Ready/Shay Mitchell
