Jersey Shore star Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola reveals why she wanted to share her IVF journey in an attempt to become pregnant on the show during an exclusive interview with Life & Style.
“I couldn’t hide it. It was like, I just came back to the show, but I’m going through this and it was like, I don’t wanna leave the show again and step back from it when I just came back,” Sammi, 37, tells Life & Style when reflecting on her decision share her IVF experience in upcoming episodes of Jersey Shore: Family Vacation. “So it was actually a really hard decision to make.”
Sammi adds that she filmed the storyline without knowing if she would ultimately want it to air. “But I’ve learned through this whole process that by talking about it more, it makes it a little bit more easier to go through,” she shares. “Maybe [it] will help other people relate or maybe somebody else is going through a similar situation.”
“Maybe I can just help anybody with what I’m going through personally,” Sammi continues, adding that she “learned a lot” about IVF “through other people” via social media. “So maybe now I can just help other people with what I’m going through with my story,” she shares.
After acknowledging that “a lot of people keep private” about their struggles with fertility, Sammi says she has learned “that so many other people are actually going through the same thing.”
The longtime TV personality will open about her IVF journey as she tries to conceive a child with fiancé Justin May in upcoming episodes of Jersey Shore: Family Vacation when the show returns on Thursday, September 19.
Sammi and Justin, 36, got engaged in March, and revealed the happy news a few weeks later on April 1. “Life update: Fiancé. The easiest question I’ve ever answered … happiest & luckiest girl in the world. I’ll love you forever and then some,” Sammi wrote via Instagram at the time, alongside photos from the proposal and the hashtags “future wifey” and “engaged.” “Can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”
Justin also shared the news in an Instagram post of his own. “She said yes!” he wrote. “Can’t wait to Marry my best friend! Love you so much babe! Can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you!”
Sammi is clearly confident in her relationship with Justin, and she recently wished him a happy birthday in an Instagram tribute on September 5. “Happy Birthday to my love @j_may36!” the MTV personality wrote alongside two selfies of the pair. “Hope this birthday is your best one yet, love you so so much!”
While Sammi was among one of the original stars to appear on Jersey Shore when it first aired on MTV from 2009 until 2012, she opted not to return to the spinoff when it premiered in 2018. However, she confirmed her franchise comeback in March 2023 ahead of season 7.
Fans can watch Sammi’s IVF journey when Jersey Shore: Family Vacation airs on MTV Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET.
