Elisabetta A. Villa/Getty ImagesElisabetta Canalis was expecting her first child with boyfriend Brian Perri. Sadly, that is no longer the case.
The Italian model and actress revealed several days ago that she recently suffered a miscarriage, writing on WhoSay that she chose to open up in order to lend support to other women who have gone through the same sorrowful situation.
"Unfortunately, life gives you...a reality that you do not expect, and that is very hard to accept, even if you think you are strong enough and prepared," she wrote, according to an English translation from the original Italian on the Daily Mail. "You're never really ready to be told that there is no more beating [heartbeat] and that it had already stopped long ago."
The European cover girl became a familiar face in the U.S. thanks to her 18-month relationship with George Clooney, which ended in 2011. Later that year she appeared on Dancing With the Stars and then dated Steve-O for a few months in 2012. Canalis also appeared on the TNT caper drama Leverage.
She continued in her post: "I just want to say to all those women who are going through it to stay strong because life goes on and it is nobody's fault and nature acts in incomprehensible ways.
"We can only accept it...We can't deny it, it's like an incessant sorrow you can't get rid of."
About Perri, Canalis wrote: "I know I'm lucky because I have a special man next to me that I wish all [could] have. The future is full of surprises and happiness and there's a lot of hope, I keep on believing in it."
Last week she posted an Instagram pic of herself with Perri and quoted lines from Céline Dion's "Because You Loved Me"—and her recent misfortune has not stopped her from going out of her way to help others.
Per her social media, the 35-year-old beauty jetted out of Milan yesterday and is currently in Beirut on her first mission as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, visiting Syrian children who escaped to Lebanon after violence erupted in their home country.