Selena Gomez Opens Up for the First Time About Her Plans for Motherhood

Selena Gomez is getting real about her plans for motherhood—and how her health issues will impact them.

In a new interview with Vanity Fair, the 32-year-old actress opened up about her plans for starting a family and having children, which she says she's always planned to do by the time she was 35. Although she's currently in a happy relationship with her boyfriend of more than a year, Benny Blanco, Gomez explained that starting a family in the next few years would be a top priority for her regardless of relationship status.

“Before I met my boyfriend, I was single for five years, with the exception of going on a few dates,” she told the magazine. “And I was like, ‘Okay, if this is the vibe, then what is the most important thing to me? Family.’"

The interview marked a big moment for Gomez, who decided to discuss publicly for the first time the way her health issues will affect what becoming a mother looks like for her (she was diagnosed with Lupus in 2013 and has been open about her battle with the autoimmune disease over the years, including receiving a kidney transplant and sharing her experiences with Lupus medication).

“I haven’t ever said this,” she explained, “but I unfortunately can’t carry my own children. I have a lot of medical issues that would put my life and the baby’s in jeopardy. That was something I had to grieve for a while.”

According to the Vanity Fair profile, Gomez spoke "calmly and without sentimentality" while discussing what her motherhood journey will look like, even as she explained that it required adjusting her vision of what becoming a mother would mean for her and looking to options like adoption and surrogacy.

“I thought it would happen the way it happens for everyone," she said during her candid discussion on the topic. "[But] I’m in a much better place with that. I find it a blessing that there are wonderful people willing to do surrogacy or adoption, which are both huge possibilities for me. It made me really thankful for the other outlets for people who are dying to be moms. I’m one of those people. I’m excited for what that journey will look like, but it’ll look a little different. At the end of the day, I don’t care. It’ll be mine. It’ll be my baby.”