As Shawn Johnson anxiously awaits the arrival of her and Andrew East’s “rainbow baby,” the Olympic gymnast is opening up about her 2017 miscarriage.
“2 years ago today our world was turned upside down when we lost our first pregnancy,” Johnson, 27, wrote on Instagram on Monday, October 21, posting a screenshot of her 2017 “Pregnancy + Heartbreak” YouTube video.
She continued: “2 years later we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our rainbow baby. Baby East, we can’t wait to meet you and pray for your safe delivery and arrival into our arms.”
In her caption, the gold medalist also praised her husband of three years. “@andrewdeast thank you for being my rock through it all,” she wrote. “You’re going to be the greatest daddy ever.”
Two years ago, Johnson and East learned she was miscarrying just after finding out about the pregnancy. “So, it’s been a roller coaster of a few days,” Johnson told YouTube followers at the time. “We just got back from the doctor and I’m no longer pregnant. Somehow, I lost the pregnancy already. It sucks. It’s definitely no fun, guys … and having a doctor confirm that we miscarried doesn’t feel good. … I’ve cried enough today, I don’t need to cry anymore.”
In January, the Dancing With the Stars alum revealed on Instagram that babies were one of the couple’s “#goals” for 2019, and she and the former college football star announced their second pregnancy in April. “Baby East… we cannot WAIT to welcome you to the world and shower you with love,” Johnson wrote on Instagram at the time. “@andreweast WE DID IT! #pregnant.”
Johnson opened up about feeling “guarded” but “excited” about her second pregnancy later that month. “When we went to the first ultrasound and got to see the baby move, it just kind of hit home,” she exclusively told Us. “I went into, like, protective mom, like, take care of my body. He went into protective dad, protective husband, just making sure everything’s OK.”
During the same interview, she delved into the shame that often surrounds fertility struggles. “I feel like with a lot of miscarriages, women feel very, very guilty, like they didn’t eat the right things or they were around the wrong environment, and if you actually read into the science of it, that’s not true,” she said. “[Have] people reiterate that to you and that it happened on its own and it’s OK.”
