Savannah Guthrie’s Ups and Downs Over the Years: Vocal Cord Surgery, Missing Mom and More

Credit: Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock

Savannah Guthrie's Ups and Downs Over the Years: Vocal Cord Surgery, Missing Mom and More

Along with her incredible success as the cohost of Today, Savannah Guthrie has also had her fair share of hardships throughout the years. Guthrie — who shares daughter Vale and son Charley, named after her father, with husband Michael Feldman — has been candid about the pregnancy loss she suffered after giving birth to Vale in 2014. "I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I just tried to tell myself that it would be OK if it didn’t happen: Maybe it’s not meant for me, and that’s OK because I’ve already been blessed so much in my life. I’m not entitled to have a baby too,” Guthrie told Good Housekeeping in March 2022. “Looking back, that mindset was probably a self-defense mechanism.” Guthrie decided to undergo in-vitro fertilization (IVF) in order to have a second child. Throughout her parenthood journey, Guthrie has reflected on the lessons she's learned from her own mom, Nancy. [ami-related id="4240002" pwaid="4240002" url="https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/savannah-guthries-family-guide-details-about-mom-nancy-and-more/" title="‘Today’ Anchor Savannah Guthrie’s Family Guide: Meet Mom Nancy and More" hiddentitle="‘Today’ Anchor Savannah Guthrie’s Family Guide: Meet Mom Nancy, Husband Michael and More" target="" thumb="true" imgsrc="" imgid="" format="standard" flag="" channel="1" showpromotitle="true" source_type="" source_by="246"] News broke in February 2026 that Nancy was reported missing in Arizona. Guthrie addressed her family's situation in a statement shared on the Today show by cohosts Sheinelle Jones and Craig Melvin. "On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support. Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom," the statement read. "We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900." Keep scrolling to see Guthrie’s ups and downs through the years:

Credit: Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock

Savannah Guthrie's Ups and Downs Over the Years: Vocal Cord Surgery, Missing Mom and More

Along with her incredible success as the cohost of Today, Savannah Guthrie has also had her fair share of hardships throughout the years. Guthrie — who shares daughter Vale and son Charley, named after her father, with husband Michael Feldman — has been candid about the pregnancy loss she suffered after giving birth to Vale in 2014. "I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I just tried to tell myself that it would be OK if it didn’t happen: Maybe it’s not meant for me, and that’s OK because I’ve already been blessed so much in my life. I’m not entitled to have a baby too,” Guthrie told Good Housekeeping in March 2022. “Looking back, that mindset was probably a self-defense mechanism.” Guthrie decided to undergo in-vitro fertilization (IVF) in order to have a second child. Throughout her parenthood journey, Guthrie has reflected on the lessons she's learned from her own mom, Nancy. [ami-related id="4240002" pwaid="4240002" url="https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/savannah-guthries-family-guide-details-about-mom-nancy-and-more/" title="‘Today’ Anchor Savannah Guthrie’s Family Guide: Meet Mom Nancy and More" hiddentitle="‘Today’ Anchor Savannah Guthrie’s Family Guide: Meet Mom Nancy, Husband Michael and More" target="" thumb="true" imgsrc="" imgid="" format="standard" flag="" channel="1" showpromotitle="true" source_type="" source_by="246"] News broke in February 2026 that Nancy was reported missing in Arizona. Guthrie addressed her family's situation in a statement shared on the Today show by cohosts Sheinelle Jones and Craig Melvin. "On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support. Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom," the statement read. "We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900." Keep scrolling to see Guthrie’s ups and downs through the years:

Credit: Mediapunch/Shutterstock

1988

Guthrie has often spoken about her late dad, who died in 1988 when she was 16 years old.

“To me, at 16, it felt like a betrayal of everything I’d believed in,” she later recalled in an essay for Guideposts. “How could God let this happen to my dad—a good man who was only in his 40s? How could he do this to our family?”

Credit: Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock

2002

One decade before joining the Today show as a news anchor, Guthrie graduated from Georgetown University Law Center with her Juris Doctor degree.

Credit: Andrew Toth/Starpix/Shutterstock

2005 to 2009

Prior to finding love with Feldman, Guthrie was married to her first husband, Marc Orchard. She and the former BBC journalist divorced four years after they tied the knot.

Credit: Amanda Schwab/Starpix/Shutterstock

2009

"I met a man named Mike Feldman at a party, a political consultant who made me laugh. We fell in love,” Guthrie penned to Guideposts about her late 2009 meet-cute with her now-husband.

Credit: Amanda Schwab/Starpix/Shutterstock

2011

Guthrie officially joined the Today show as part of its third-hour in June 2011. One year later, she was promoted to co-anchor alongside Matt Lauer (who later exited his tenure from the morning show amid sexual harassment allegations).

In 2021, Guthrie gushed about her time on the show with her colleagues. “I can't believe it's been 10 years! I feel so much gratitude."

Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock

2013 to 2014

In 2019, Guthrie revealed on Today that she and Feldman were at a crossroads in their relationship when he ultimately decided to propose while on vacation in Turks and Caicos in 2013. "I was like, 'Sweetie, I love you so much, but if we can't decide [to stay together or break up], then I think we've decided,' " she later recalled. Little did the Georgetown grad know that Feldman had already bought a ring and was about to pop the question.

"That night, the sun was going down, and he was like, 'Let's open that champagne they sent us,' " Guthrie remembered, adding that’s when he asked her to marry him — and she said yes. They wed in March 2014.

Credit: Courtesy of Savannah Guthrie/Instagram

August 2014

Several months after their nuptials, Guthrie gave birth to their first child at 42 years old, she announced on the Today show.

“Every new parent must want to shout their happy news to the world. So lucky we got to do it on @TODAYshow! We are bursting with joy. #Vale … Vale, on the other hand, slept through the whole thing,” she joked via social media after the exciting announcement.

Credit: Courtesy of Savannah Guthrie/Instagram

December 2016

Guthrie and Feldman welcomed their second child, son Charley, in December 2016.

"I would say Vale was a miracle, and Charley was a medical miracle," she told Health magazine in 2019 when discussing how she underwent IVF treatments to bring him into the world.

Credit: Virginia Sherwood/NBC

January 2022

Guthrie, who received the COVID-19 vaccine, was first diagnosed with the virus at the beginning of 2022. At the time, she had a “little sniffles and not much more than that.”

Credit: TODAY

March 2022

Guthrie revealed that she suffered a pregnancy loss after giving birth to daughter Vale.

"I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I just tried to tell myself that it would be OK if it didn’t happen: Maybe it’s not meant for me, and that’s OK because I’ve already been blessed so much in my life. I’m not entitled to have a baby too. Looking back, that mindset was probably a self-defense mechanism,” Guthrie told Good Housekeeping at the time.

She added: “Going through what we did, it makes you realize that everything has to go just right to have a healthy baby. I really feel for so many women who are struggling and wishing and wondering, 'When’s it gonna be my turn?' I know. And I understand."

Credit: Courtesy of Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb

May 2022

Guthrie once again tested positive for COVID-19 — just in time for Mother’s Day. “So this happened — again!" she captioned wrote via Instagram at the time. “Covid +, air filter on 'turbo' and it will be an isolating Mother's Day for this mama!!!" Fortunately, she added, “I feel fine, just slight cold so far. Thankful to be vaccinated!"

Credit: Nathan Congleton/NBC

February 2023

Guthrie contracted the virus for a third time in early 2023.

“Savannah left early, she wasn’t feeling great, so she took a COVID test. It came back positive,” Jones told Today viewers after her coanchor disappeared during the episode. “So of course as soon as we found out, she rushed home to rest up. So Savannah, we love you, wishing you a speedy recovery.”

Credit: Courtesy of Savannah Guthrie/Instagram

July 2024

Guthrie was thrilled to be part of the NBC team covering the 2024 Paris Olympics, and she even got to bring along her husband and kids to France. "Too wonderful for words … thank you, Paris and @nbcolympics," she captioned several family photos from the trip abroad via Instagram.

Credit: John Nacion/Getty Images

October 2024

Guthrie dressed up as Elle Woods for a Today broadcast, and she got Legally Blonde star Reese Witherspoon's attention. "Approved 💅💕🎀," Witherspoon commented via Instagram.

"!!! Love you @reesewitherspoon 💕," Guthrie replied.

Credit: Savannah Guthrie/Instagram

December 2025

Guthrie announced that she would be absent from the Today show for several weeks as she required surgery to remove nodules and a polyp from her vocal cords. 

When she returned to the morning show in January 2026, Guthrie shared how she knew it was time to have the operation. "What I thought was just normal aging and wear and tear got much more noticeable, and this past year, much worse," she explained. "Sometimes, it was hard to get through a sentence."

Guthrie added that she was "speechless" when she heard her "new" voice for the first time after surgery. "It sounds so good, I could cry," she said.

Credit: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for SiriusXM

February 2026

News broke that Guthrie's mom, Nancy, was reported missing in Arizona after last being seen on January 31, 2026. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos addressed the situation as a search was launched, noting that Nancy's disappearance was "very concerning."

According to the sheriff, foul play could not immediately be ruled out. 

Guthrie did not appear on the Today show after her mom was reported missing, but she provided a statement on behalf of her family, thanking fans and colleagues for their "thoughts, prayers and messages of support."

"Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom," the statement continued. "We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900."