Women Shouldn’t Be Shamed For Fertility Struggles – Chimamanda

Renowned Nigerian author, Chimamanda Adichie, has opened up about her personal journey to motherhood, revealing why she chose to go public about welcoming her twin boys through surrogacy.

Speaking during the debut live edition of the #WithChude talk show on Sunday, the 47-year-old author explained that she hoped her openness would ease the societal pressure many women face regarding fertility.

“I felt that there were many women who would then be pressured by people saying, ‘look, Chimamanda is 47 and she had kids at that age, what about you?’” she said.

The award-winning writer, who is married to a medical doctor, Ivara Esege, stressed the need to dismantle the culture of shame that surrounds women’s reproductive health and fertility challenges.

“There is so much shame around issues of fertility, and I just think it’s too much of a burden for women,” she said. “Women are ashamed when they have fibroids, women are ashamed when they have issues getting pregnant – and I don’t believe in that sort of shame.”

The ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ author added that while she had some initial regrets about revealing the details of her children’s birth, her hope was that her honesty would help normalise conversations around non-traditional paths to motherhood.

“My boys are so precious to me,” she said. “And I hated that anything about them would become politicised. So, on the one hand, I thought, ‘I wish I hadn’t talked about it,’ but on the other hand, there is no way I am going to lie about the process of birthing them.

“I am hoping that if anything good comes out of this, it would be that more women are less ashamed of talking about reaching motherhood through non-traditional means. Our society is so judgemental, and I don’t think that is good for anybody.”

Adichie revealed the birth of her twins earlier in February but had chosen to keep their identities private to shield them from public attention.

She also noted that many Nigerians were unaware that she had married in 2019, attributing this to her preference for keeping her private life away from public scrutiny.

Despite some negative online feedback, Adichie reiterated that she had no regrets about her journey or her decision to speak out.

“My daughter and my babies are the greatest gift I’ve been given,” she said. “So, zero regrets.”

Known globally for her advocacy on gender equality, Adichie used the platform to call for empathy and understanding, encouraging society to allow women make reproductive choices without judgement or societal pressure.