Mandy Moore will have to “push” without an epidural during the delivery of her second child due to an autoimmune disease.
“My platelets are too low for an epidural,” the 38-year-old actress told TODAY Parents on Friday, revealing she suffers from immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP).
Moore – who also gave birth to her 17-month-old son, Gus, without an epidural – described her first delivery as “terrible”.
“But I can do it again. I can climb that mountain again,” she told the outlet. “I wish medication was an option — just the idea of it being on the table is so nice. But we’ll just keep going like last time.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, ITP occurs when the immune system “attacks and destroys platelets.” If not taken seriously during pregnancy, it can lead to a “greater risk of heavy bleeding during delivery”.
In June, the “This Is Us” actress revealed that she and her husband, Taylor Goldsmith, will become parents again this fall.
“An incredibly groundbreaking chapter of my life has just ended,” the actress wrote via Instagram, referring to the NBC show’s finale in May after six seasons.
“The next one, as a mother of two, is about to begin… and we are so incredibly grateful and excited,” Moore continued. “Baby Boy Goldsmith #2 is coming this fall! Tour will be a little different than I expected, but I can’t wait.”
This isn’t the first complication Moore has faced during her second pregnancy.
Last month, she had to cancel the rest of her In Real Life Tour after struggling to balance life on the road during her pregnancy.
“When we booked these shows I wasn’t pregnant and although I really thought I would get through it, the way we travel (long hours on the bus and not enough rest) has caught up, taken its toll and made it feel like too challenging to continue,” she wrote on Instagram. “I know I have to put my family and my health (and my baby’s health) first and the best place to be right now is at home.”
While Moore – who married Goldsmith, 36, in 2018 – announced the news with a “heavy heart”, she assured fans that they would receive a full refund for the canceled tour dates.