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How Alanis Morissette Kept ‘Hope’ Alive Following a ‘Bunch of Miscarriages’

Keeping spirits high. Alanis Morissette revealed she’s a “cynical optimist” who never gave up hope of having more children after numerous miscarriages.

Related: Stars Who Struggled to Conceive Children

“Well not all of it was the ideal situation,” Morissette, 46, told Dax Shepard on the Friday, June 12, episode of “Armchair Expert” when explaining the age differences between her three children. “I had a bunch of miscarriages.”

The “Jagged Little Pill” singer and husband Mario “Souleye” Treadway welcomed their third child, son Winter, in August 2019, three years after daughter Onyx was born in June 2016. Their oldest son, Ever, was born in 2010, six years ahead of his first sibling.

Alanis Morissette Miscarriages Purple Jacket Polka Dots
Alanis Morissette. Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock

“We were chasing and just showing up and then surprises and then devastations and all of it,” the Canada native recalled of the process to expand her family. “But, I mean, I do trust, I have this trust pilot light thing that keeps cooking along — even when there’s a torrential downpour it’s still flickering — of hope and faith and vision for something to workout, whatever it is.”

The “Ironic” singer’s journey to being a mother of three had its ups and downs, but her positive outlook on it all kept the dream of a bigger family alive.

“I’m an optimist who will get depressed and cry, but at the end of the day there’s still that little light,” she explained. “That little star of Bethlehem keeps dangling over there.”

Related: Stars Who Welcomed Babies Later in Life

The fight to survive and live another day has bubbled over to Morissette’s love life as well. “One of the theories in relationships is that conflict is growth trying to happen,” she told Shepard, 45.

Alanis Morissette Miscarriages Armchair Expert
Alanis Morissette on ‘Armchair Expert.’ Courtesy of Dax Shepard/Instagram

Morissette joked that the extended time at home amid the coronavirus quarantine, however, has brought into question whether or not she and her husband will make it to their next year of marriage.

“Yeah you know, a lot of divorces happening now. You know what because those of us who want to exit, those of us who are flight-ers, we can’t flight,” she explained. “So what are you gonna do, go into the next room and brood I guess for a while? I’m laughing but it’s not funny.”

The “You Oughta Know” artist added that her house has had some added tension due to her “postpartum activity” following Winter’s birth.

She revealed that she usually tries to give her husband and kids a heads up when needs her space. “So I just kind of announce lovingly as best as possible when I go into a room,” she explained, saying she tells everyone, “I’m cranky mom right now.”

The musician previously opened up about battling postpartum depression in October, writing on her blog, “There is so much more support this time.”

Related: Celebrity Moms Sharing Their Postpartum Depression Experiences

Morissette, who had PPD with her two other children as well, added: “The other side is greater than my PPD-riddled-temporarily-adjusted-brain could have ever imagined: as a mom, as an artist, as a wife, as a friend, as a collaborator, as a leader, as a boss, as an activist. I saw how things got richer after I came through it the last two times. I have my eye on that prize again even as I drag my ass through the molasses.”

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