Sara Bareilles opens up about 'trying' to have kids for 2 years through IVF in 'Good Grief' documentary
Los Angeles, June 5
Sara Bareilles shared one of the most personal chapters of her life, as she revealed her new documentary Good Grief that she and husband Joe Tippett have been trying to have children for the past two years, according to PEOPLE.
The documentary, which premiered at the Tribeca Festival on June 4, follows the Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter as she creates her first album in seven years while navidgating different forms of loss and personal change. Among the most emotional moments is Bareilles' candid discussion about her fertility journey.
According to the publication, the 46-year-old singer, during a conversation with a collaborator who has also faced fertility challenges, revealed that she and Tippett have been attempting to start a family. She further revealed that she tried IVF "a few times."
"I'm in the same boat," she says to her collaborator, who has also been struggling with fertility issues. "We've been trying for two years."
"But I think the next phase is egg donor," the "Love Song" hitmaker says, becoming emotional. "For some reason, I'm not making the appointment. I really had to grieve that...that it won't be mine."
The singer describes having to grieve that loss while working toward a broader understanding of what parenthood and family can look like. She shares that meditation has helped her rethink the meaning of love, saying she has been exploring the idea that love can take many forms and does not depend on a child arriving in one specific way.
"The idea that love is just big enough to hold a lot of shapes and sizes and ways things come. The idea that I could only love a child if it shows up in this one way," she said in the documentary.
In October 2025, Bareilles announced that she and actor Joe Tippett had married, sharing wedding photos on social media and expressing gratitude for the community that supported them. According to PEOPLE, the couple first met in 2015 while working on the Broadway musical Waitress and publicly confirmed their relationship two years later. Bareilles announced their engagement on New Year's Day in 2023.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Honestly, I think it's a bit too personal to put in a documentary. Not everything needs to be public fodder. But I respect her honesty, and I hope she finds peace with whatever path she takes. Parenthood isn't just about biology.
As someone who has seen relatives go through IVF in India, this hits close to home. The physical and emotional toll is immense. But her statement about 'love being big enough to hold many shapes' is beautiful. So many Indian couples adopt or use donors, and it's just as valid. Solidarity from Bangalore! 🌸
I'm glad she's speaking about the grief of not being able to conceive 'biologically'—it's real. But I wish more people would normalize egg donation and adoption without making it sound like a 'plan B.' Family is about love, not DNA.
The Indian aunties would have a field day with this! 😅 But seriously, it's refreshing to see a celebrity be this vulnerable. In our culture, there's so much pressure on women to have kids, and if you can't, you're often pitied. Her meditation and reframing of love is something we all need to learn.
Two years of trying and IVF—that's exhausting. But I appreciate that she's not sugarcoating it. And the line about 'grieving that it won't be mine' is so raw. Whether she ends up with a biological child, adopted child, or no child at all, I hope she finds fulfillment. Her music has helped so many people through loss; hope she finds peace in return.