Former NBC Anchor Reveals She Underwent a Hysterectomy

Jenna Wolfe, former anchor for NBC, recently revealed she had to undergo a hysterectomy. Sharing pictures of her stay in the hospital for the procedure, the former Today show correspondent wrote about her experience on Instagram back in March and revealed that she would undergo another surgery in two weeks.

“You know, for a long time, my approach to life was always: if you stumble, make it part of the dance. And until recently, I managed to stumble/dance/stumble/dance my way through everything… network television, personal training, parenting. Then I hit a pretty bumpy stretch, the most recent of which I wanted to share with you,” wrote Wolfe, 49. “About a month ago, I tested positive for the BRCA-1 breast cancer gene (meaning my chances of getting breast and ovarian cancer are… well… really high), leaving me little wiggle room to ‘mull over my choices,’ ” she explained. “So without a ton of options, I stared down my fears, took a deep breath and opted for two pretty big surgeries.”

“My hysterectomy is the first. It’s not fun, not easy, not at all pleasant (I’m terrified of needles) but it’s something I need to do,” Wolfe continued. “The second surgery, the bigger one, will be in 2 weeks. Happy to share more with anyone going through something similar.” According to the Office on Women’s Health (.gov), a hysterectomy “is a surgery to remove a woman’s uterus” through an incision in the abdomen. “Something like this spins your head a few whirls. Am I going to be ok? Will I heal? Will I ever have the drive I once had?” the personal trainer shared. She added, “I mean, a big chunk of my life is based around fitness and wellness. . I know I make it all look ‘cute’ on social media… but we all know it’s usually far from cute. Especially with kids. “Half the time, I’m up at 4:30am, sneaking in a quick workout before the kids get up, grabbing anything edible, racing to school, often times half dressed, most of the time half-witted.”

Wolfe and her partner Stephanie Gosk welcomed their daughters Harper Estelle, nine years old, in August 2013 and Quinn Lily, eight years old, in February 2015. She continued, “I’ll admit I’m a little scared. (About a lot of things in my life right now.) But I also know I have to let myself be scared sometimes to learn how to overcome it. “It’s easy to ignore the hard things and opt for the comforts of safety. But safety never challenged anyone or scared anyone or pushed anyone down or pulled anyone up. Safety just sort of sits there, keeps you from moving… from growing, from thriving.” Wolfe wrote, “These two surgeries are just the latest in what has been… let’s call it a challenging two years for me. But with anything in life, the only way is through. And I’m going through. She concluded by writing, “I realize everyone has a story. This is mine. (Well, it’s part of mine). As I embark on it, I’ll be thinking about you and yours.”