Chrissy Teigen’s Pregnancy Announcement Is A Must-Read For All Trying Couples

Chrissy Teigen is pregnant! The model announced on Instagram that she's expecting her fourth child with her husband, John Legend, sharing two pictures of her growing belly in a mirror selfie. Fans and fellow celebrities left hundreds of congratulatory messages, celebrating the announcement with the mama-to-be. However, the caption Chrissy wrote along with her adorable photos hit at a silent struggle so many people experience after a devastating loss.

Chrissy's pregnancy announcement comes two years after the loss of her son Jack. He was born early at 20 weeks gestation following a complicated pregnancy. It's hard to describe how heavy a loss like that can be.

But Chrissy let people in. And in doing so, she gave her large circle of influence a small glimpse into how devastating it can be giving birth to a baby she didn't get to bring home. It's heavy and isolating — an experience most families feel they must carry on their own.

In the two years since her son died, Chrissy has been generous in showing how she navigates grief. She spoke about coming to terms with her postpartum body when she had no baby to hold. Chrissy also shared how she and John helped their two kids, Luna and Miles, work through their grief and how scary it can be to try and enter the pregnancy phase again.

It's been a gift to watch from this side of things; seeing someone openly discuss the challenges of navigating life after such loss isn't something we see often. Importantly, it could have helped other families on a similar path. And Chrissy's pregnancy announcement is another example of her showing up for the community of parents who have experienced this kind of loss.

"The last few years have been a blur of emotions to say the least, but joy has filled our home and hearts again," Chrissy wrote. "1 billion shots later (in the leg lately, as u can see!) we have another on the way. Every appointment I've said to myself, 'OK if it's healthy today I'll announce' but then I breathe a sigh of relief to hear a heartbeat and decide I'm just too nervous still.”

"I don't think I'll ever walk out of an appointment with more excitement than nerves but so far, everything is perfect and beautiful and I'm feeling hopeful and amazing," she added. "OK phew it's been very hard keeping this in for so long!"

Pregnancy after losing a baby is different. The innocence of pregnancy is gone, and the hard truth is that sometimes you can do everything "right" and still "loss" replaces it. It's hard not to feel guilty when you're filled with more fear than joy at becoming pregnant again. And it's even more challenging to say that out loud to so many people.

But Chrissy isn't alone. Because she’s being so open to sharing the vulnerabilities of pregnancy after loss, millions of other parents trying to navigate pregnancy can also see themselves in her story. And that's powerful.