When a woman first learns she’s pregnant, she rarely expects the unthinkable to happen. A stillbirth occurs when a Fetus dies at or after 20-28 weeks of pregnancy, so usually when the mom-to-be is at least 5 months along. This type of pregnancy loss is in contrast to a miscarriage, which typically occurs early in the pregnancy, and a live birth, when the infant is born alive but dies shortly afterwards.

The exact causes of stillbirth are still unknown. Doctors have identified pregnancy complications including preeclampsia, infections like malaria, and birthing complications as possible contributing factors. They also suggest that poor health in the expectant mother may increase the risk of stillbirth. Other associated risk factors include smoking or substance abuse, the use of reproductive technology, if it’s the woman’s first pregnancy, or if the mother is over 35. Stillbirths are usually initially suspected when no fetal movement can be detected, and it can be confirmed by an ultrasound.

The celebrity mothers and fathers on this list all experienced devastating stillbirths at one time or another. Some of these stars have dealt with fertility issues for years, and the stillbirth was only one heart-wrenching struggle in their journey to parenthood. Other times, the stillbirth was completely unexpected. Either way, the impact it had on the parents-to-be is indescribable, and was in no way an easy thing to cope with.

Sharing stories of stillbirth and miscarriage still remain taboo in today’s modern society. Though it must be hard sharing their struggles, these celebrities are paving the way for more open discussion on these difficult topics. Stillbirth and other forms of pregnancy loss occur more often than we may expect, but it doesn’t make their impact any less heartbreaking to deal with.

15 Lily Allen

Lily Allen is a popular British musician and television presenter. You may recognize her as the talent behind singles like “Smile”, “The Fear”, and “Hard Out Here.” She’s also known for her witty sense of humour and “I don’t care” type of attitude. But what many people don’t know about the songstress is that she suffered a devastating stillbirth during the height of her career.

In 2010, Lily announced she was expecting her first child with her now-husband, Sam Cooper. But the musician began experiencing complications early on in her pregnancy, including a week of intensive and heavy bleeding. When she was six months into her pregnancy, Lily contracted a viral infection that caused her to have a stillbirth.

This wasn’t Lily’s first time losing a child. She had previously suffered a devastating miscarriage in 2008, with her then-boyfriend, Ed Simons of Chemical Brothers. Following the miscarriage, Lily was admitted to a psychiatric clinic for three weeks to address her depression. But this story has a happy ending. Lily has since welcomed two beautiful girls with her husband. She gave birth to Ethel Mary in 2011, and their second daughter, Marnie Rose, in 2013.

14 Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, the wife of late President John F. Kennedy, had a difficult road to motherhood, and her first successful pregnancy resulted in a stillbirth. Jackie had previously suffered a devastating miscarriage in 1955 when she became pregnant again in 1956. However, the couple’s daughter, Arabella, was born stillborn, even though Jackie believed she’d had an uncomplicated pregnancy until her delivery date.

Things began looking up when Jackie successfully delivered their daughter, Caroline, in 1957 through a Caesarean section. The couple also went on to welcome two sons, John Jr. in 1960 and Patrick in 1963. However, Patrick tragically died only two hours after his birth, which was also coincidentally a mere three months before JFK was assassinated. Jackie and John’s last surviving son, John Jr., passed away when he was 29 in 1990 during an airplane accident along with his wife and several other passengers.

13 T.I.

Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., better known by his stage name T.I., is a successful American rapper and hip hop artist. He’s released nine studio albums, and seven of them went on to place in the US Billboard 200 chart. He’s most recognizable for his songs like “Bring Em Out,” “Whatever You Like”, “Live Your Life” featuring Rihanna, and “Dead and Gone” featuring Justin Timberlake.

Unfortunately, his private life hasn’t been as positive as his musical career. In 2007, T.I.’s longtime lover, former Xscape member Tameka “Tiny” Cottle-Harris, suffered a stillbirth when she was only six months pregnant. The couple, who had been together since 2001, eventually married in 2010. Together, they have welcomed three more children: sons King and Major, and daughter Heiress. T.I. also has sons Messiah and Domani and daughter Deyjah from former relationships, while Tameka shares daughter Zonnique with a former partner. T.I. and Tameka filed for divorce in 2016, after 6 years of marriage.

12 Wendy Williams

Wendy Williams has gained fame for her talk show, The Wendy Williams Show, which has been on the air since 2008. She’s since become one of the most popular female talk show hosts on mainstream television. Before her break-through on TV, Wendy was also a radio DJ and host, and she even starred in her own reality TV show, The Wendy Williams Experience. She has also dabbled in writing, and has become a New York Times best-selling author.

Unfortunately, the TV personality has experienced two heartbreaking stillbirths over the years. Though she has been rather mum on the subject, it’s been revealed that Wendy delivered two stillborn babies on separate occasions, both times when she was only 5 months along. Previously, she had also experienced a miscarriage at only 7 weeks. Wendy currently shares one son, Kevin Jr., 17, with her husband Kevin Hunter, who she has been married to since 1997.

11 Linda Evangelista

Linda Evangelista is a famous Canadian supermodel, revered as one of the most successful and influential models of all time. Linda has posed for over 700 magazine covers, and currently holds the record for the most appearances in Vogue.

While the celebrity is usually quiet regarding her personal life, it has been revealed she once suffered a devastating stillbirth in the early 2000s. At the time, Linda was dating French soccer player Fabian Barthez, but she unfortunately delivered their child stillborn when she was only six months along. The couple ended up breaking up shortly afterwards in 2000. They reunited briefly in 2001, but officially ended their relationship in 2002.

In 2006, Linda gave birth to a health baby boy that she named Augustin. While she refused to name her son’s father at first, it was later revealed in a 2011 court battle for child support that he had been fathered by French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault. Pinault was already married to actress Salma Hayek at the time, and also had a daughter with her who was only a year younger than his child with Linda. In 2012, Linda and Pinault eventually reached a settlement outside of court.

10 Katey Sagal

Actress Katey Sagal is best known for her work on shows like Sons of Anarchy, Married… with Children, Futurama, and 8 Simple Rules. Unfortunately she is another popular celebrity who has suffered through a stillbirth.

In 1991, Katey discovered she was pregnant. The pregnancy was unplanned, so it had to be quickly written into the storyline of her show Married… with Children. However, at seven months pregnant, Katey was rushed to the hospital to have an emergency Caesarean section, but her daughter was stillborn. It's been revealed she named her stillborn daughter Ruby. On the show, her character’s pregnancy was explained away as a dream.

The actress went on to marry drummer Jack White in 1993, and the couple had two children: daughter Sarah Grace in 1994, and son Jackson James in 1996. Jack and Katey eventually divorced in 2000, and she went on to marry Kurt Sutter in 2004. They welcomed their daughter, Esme Louise, in 2007 via a surrogate.

9 Amanda Holden

Amanda Holden is a popular name in the reality TV world. She’s best known for her role as a judge on Britain’s Got Talent, as well for her acting roles on Wild at Heart and Thoroughly Modern Millie. This TV personality has had an exceptionally difficult road to motherhood.

In 2006, Amanda welcomed her first child, daughter Lexi, with her future-husband, Chris Hughes. The couple eventually married in 2008. In 2010, the TV personality revealed she had suffered a miscarriage that year. Yet, by late 2010, she announced she and her husband were expecting again. However, the unthinkable happened when Amanda delivered their son stillborn in 2011, at only 6 months pregnant.

The couple once again announced they were expecting in 2012. Despite various complications, Amanda gave birth to their second daughter, Hollie. During the birthing process, she suffered a huge amount of blood loss and spent three days in intensive care. In interviews after the experience, Amanda revealed she “came close to death.”

Since the experience, Amanda has revealed, “If I could, I would have more kids, but I can’t put my family through that again. Chris and I were talking about this the other day, saying how if we’d met earlier we’d have had more kids, but that you end up with the ones you’re meant to have. We’re incredibly lucky to have our girls.”

8 Kelly Brook

Kelly Brook is a popular British model, actress, and TV presenter. She’s best known to international audiences for her roles in 2010’s Piranha 3D and the NBC sitcom One Big Happy. In 2011, the starlet announced she was expecting a child with her then-boyfriend, Thom Evans. However, when she was almost 6 months along, she unexpectedly delivered her daughter stillborn.

She has opened up to the media about her difficulty coping with her loss, preferring to describe it as a miscarriage rather than a stillbirth. In an interview with Kicks Count, she revealed, “Because I was around the 6 month stage, everyone was torn between whether this should be seen as a miscarriage or stillbirth. In my mind it was a miscarriage. That was how I was going to deal with it. But the hospital were insisting otherwise.”

She also added, “If I’d had my miscarriage 2 weeks later I would have had to register the birth and death, which I thought was too much to handle. My mother and I were on the same page, this was a miscarriage. Looking back, I was trying to detach myself- with love- for my own sanity”

7 Michelle Duggar

Michelle Duggar and her husband, Jim Bob Duggar, have become household names thanks to their reality TV show 19 Kids & Counting, which followed their everyday lives. The couple are parents to an impressive brood of 19 children, all of whose names start with the letter “J.”

The Duggars have 10 sons: Joshua (1988), John-David (1990), Joseph (1995), Josiah (1996), Jedidiah (1998) Jeremiah (1998), Jason (2000), James (2001), Justin (2002), Jackson (2004). They also have 9 daughters: Jana (1990), Jill (1991), Jessa (1992), Jinger (1993), Joy-Anna (1997), Johannah (2005), Jennifer (2007), Jordyn (2008), and Josie (2009).

Unfortunately, Michelle’s last pregnancy resulted in a stillbirth. The couple’s daughter, Jubilee, was born stillborn at only 5 months in 2011. This was their 20^th child, and their 10^th daughter. The couple have discussed how any future pregnancies could be risky given Michelle’s age and the fact that she’s already gone through so many childbirths.

6 Keanu Reeves

Keanu Reeves is a Canadian actor best known for his recurring role in science-fiction-action trilogy The Matrix. But what most fans don’t know about the hunky actor is that he and his former girlfriend, Jennifer Syme, experienced a stillbirth in 2000, when she delivered their stillborn daughter eight months into her pregnancy. It has been revealed they named their child Ava Archer Syme-Reeves.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the end of the actor’s pain. The couple broke up several weeks after the stillbirth due to the strain it put on their relationship. However, only 18 months later, Jennifer was killed in a car accident when she had been driving alone on Los Angeles’ Cahuenga Boulevard. She reportedly sideswiped three parked cars and rolled over several times before being thrown from the car. She died instantaneously. Jennifer was reportedly being treated for depression and taking prescription drugs at the time of the incident.

5 Barbara Eden

Barbara Eden is a familiar face thanks to her iconic role on I Dream of Jeannie. She later became a semi-regular on The Johnny Carson Show in the 1950s, and also had appearances on shows such as I Love Lucy, The Tonight Show, and The Andy Griffith Show. She additionally starred in a plethora of feature films, making her a shining star in Hollywood for decades to come.

During her first marriage to Michael Ansara, Barbara suffered a devastating miscarriage. In 1971, she ended up carrying her baby boy for 8 months before he was born stillborn. The couple had previously welcomed son Mathew in 1965, but he unfortunately passed away in 2001 from a heroin overdose.

Barbara has revealed how much grief she experienced after the stillbirth led to the dissolution of her marriage. In a piece for The Sydney Morning Herald, she explained, “I met my first husband, Michael Ansara, via a blind date. He played Apache chief Cochise on the TV hit Broken Arrow. I fell madly in love, as he was a kind man and a wonderful actor. In 1958 we married and seven years later I gave birth to Matthew. Then, in 1971, I got pregnant with another son but the baby was stillborn. My deep depression destroyed our relationship and after 15 years together we divorced.”

4 Jane Pratt

Jane Pratt is the founding editor behind the two widely successful magazines Sassy and Jane, which so happens to be named after her. However, she and her husband, Andrew Shaifer, experienced a double tragedy in 2005 when she delivered stillborn twins at only 5 months pregnant. The couple are also parents to daughter Charlotte, who was born in December 2002.

Many readers of Jane’s magazines were anxiously awaiting new updates about her pregnancy before she announced the sad news. People revealed this statement that was sent to them by a contributing writer, which detailed Jane and her family’s loss. It read, “Friends and family of Jane magazine editor Jane Pratt are saddened and concerned for her after she miscarried the twins she was expecting this summer. The perky Pratt, who got her start at Sassy magazine, is beloved in the industry for her intelligent treatment of women’s subjects. A spokeswoman said, 'It’s a sad and private time for Jane and her family,' which includes her daughter, Charlotte, 2, and fiancé Andrew Shaifer.”

3 Gary Barlow

Gary Barlow is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He’s gained international fame as the lead singer of the British pop band Take That as well as for his work as a solo artist. He has also served as a celebrity judge on reality TV competitions including The X Factor UK and Let It Shine. It’s been reported he’s sold over 50 million records worldwide.

The musician has been married to Dawn Andrews, who was a dancer during his 1995 Nobody Else Tour, since 2000. In 2012, the couple announced they were pregnant for the fourth time, but unfortunately their daughter was born stillborn. They gave her the name Poppy, and released a statement shortly following their loss. In the statement, Gary said, "Dawn and I are devastated to announce that we've lost our baby. Our focus now is giving [Poppy] a beautiful funeral and loving our three children with all our hearts. We'd ask at this painful time that our privacy be respected".

The couple are also parents to three other children. Their son Daniel was born in 2000, and their daughters Emily and Daisy were born in 2002 and 2009 respectively.

2 Annie Lennox

Annie Lennox is a famous Scottish singer-songwriter, who has amassed an impressive collection of Grammys, Golden Globes, and even an Academy Award for her music. While she has had immense success in her professional career, she has gone through some deep struggles in her personal life. Annie is another celebrity who suffered a devastating stillbirth that most fans aren’t aware of.

The singer was briefly married to German Hare Krishna devotee, Radha Raman, from 1984-1985. After their split, she went on to marry Israeli film and record producer, Uri Fruchtmann. The two were married from 1988-2000. However, their marriage got off to a rough start. Their first child, son Daniel, was born stillborn in 1988. The couple eventually welcomed two more children, daughters Lola and Tali. Of the stillbirth, Annie has said, "It had an immense impact on me. It made me realize that the human condition is immensely fragile and strong at the same time."

1 Josephine Baker

Josephine Baker was a French actress and singer who appeared in films such as ZouZou, Princess Tam-Tam, and Siren of the Tropics. She was one of the world’s first international African-American film stars. Josephine was also a spy for France during World War II, and collected information about German troop locations from officials she met at parties.

The celebrity was married a total of four times, but she became pregnant in 1941 when she was briefly single. Josephine went into labour in a hospital in Casablanca, but unfortunately her baby boy was born stillborn. After her loss, Josephine began working with the Civil Rights movement, which inspired her to adopt in order to expand her family.

She ended up adopting 12 children in total, and often referred to her family as “The Rainbow Tribe.” She adopted her children from all over the world, once explaining that “children of different ethnicities and religions could still be brothers.” She adopted 10 sons in total: Jeannot, Akio, Luis, Jari, Jean-Claude, Noel, Moise, Brahim, Koffi, and Mara. She also adopted 2 daughters: Stellina and Marianne.

Sources; People.com, TinselTownMom.com, Ranker.com, DailyMail.co.uk, TheSydneyHerald.com