Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt Reveal Cancer Crisis & Marriage Issues: Transgender Expert’s Advice On Shiloh Jolie-Pitt

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt aren’t known for giving interviews that focus on personal topics. But when the two make an exception, they produce headlines. Angelina recently joined her husband to discuss intimate details ranging from their marriage to the multiple surgeries Jolie endured to lower her risk of cancer, reported Today.

Brad and his actress wife have six children. Together for 10 years after his highly-publicized breakup with Jennifer Aniston, Pitt and Angelina have only had one year of marriage. But, Jolie emphasizes now, the health battle that she’s fought has brought the famous couple even closer together.

“I knew through the surgeries that he was on my side and that this wasn’t something where I was going to feel less of a woman, because my husband wasn’t going to let that happen,” said Angelina.

Brad steadfastly supported his now-wife when she had a double mastectomy in 2013. Jolie chose to have the surgery because of a test that came back positive for a gene that boosts the risk of breast cancer to 87 percent. In addition, her mother died from breast cancer, as did her aunt.

Pitt also supported his wife when she subsequently underwent surgery to have her ovaries taken out. Angelina chose to have that surgery because she was concerned about the risk that she faced of ovarian cancer. And to Brad, staying bonded with the woman he views as the love of his life never was a question.

“Support… Whatever’s got to be done to keep the family together, and keep the family together as long as possible is going to be done. This was her charge, no question. It’s a scary decision. There’s many things that can go wrong and go many different directions,” added Pitt.

Both Brad and Jolie emphasize that the key is being aware of your choices and then making the right ones.

“I made the choices I made because I believed they were right for me,” emphasized Angelina.

Pitt and Jolie star together in a movie entitled By the Sea, but the soothing sound of the film title hides the secret problems portrayed in the plot of a relationship that’s got a sea-storm of problems.

“I’m counting on the audience to know that if it was close to us at all, we could never make this film,” shared Angelina. “It’s because we’re actually very, very stable and these aren’t our issues.”

Jolie and Brad also had an unusual relationship in working together on the movie, because she directed Pitt. By the Sea premieres November 13.

In addition to talking about the health battles and their marriage, Pitt shared the depth of his feelings for Angelina in talking with Tom Brokaw.

Brad recalled how he felt when he learned that Jolie had the blood test revealing the first indications of early-stage ovarian cancer. The news that his wife had the signs of that dreaded disease hit Brad hard, he now admits.

“I was out in France, and Angie called me and I got straight on a plane to return,” shared Pitt. “Seeing my wife have to be her strongest and knowing that it’s the scariest news is terribly moving. And not being there is a horrible feeling.”

Brad takes pride in what he sees as his wife’s maturity in making the decisions she has.

“There was a strength in that. It was just another one of those things in life that makes you tighter, and she was doing it for the kids, and she was doing it for her family so we could be together.”

In turn, Angelina felt strong because she knew that Pitt was supporting her.

“This wasn’t something where I was gonna feel less of a woman because my husband wasn’t gonna let that happen,” added Jolie.

Just as Angelina and Brad bonded over her health battles, Jolie and Pitt have worked together as a couple to support their daughter, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, according to Radar Online.

Now 9, Shiloh prefers boyish clothes and hairstyles. Concerned about the possibility of having others bully her as well as how her own siblings might treat her, Angelina and Brad have sought advice, said a source.

“Brad and Angie have been doing everything possible to protect her from being bullied… They have also been gently setting the tone for how their five other children interact with Shiloh,” explained the insider.

Although Shiloh prefers to interact with her brothers, her parents initially were concerned about the best approach. The transgender expert advised them to let her choose her playmates and attire.

“After seeking out professional advice on how to help Shiloh, Brad and Angelina were told to let her dress however she wanted,” revealed the insider.

As for Shiloh’s desire to be referred to as John and put on boys’ clothing, the specialist also calmed Pitt and Jolie when it came to their worries that they did something “wrong” in raising her.

“It’s just the way Shiloh is, and there is nothing that they did wrong as parents. Angelina is very accepting of Shiloh’s choices, and Brad is as well,” added the source.

As the Inquisitr reported, Pitt and Angelina have been candid in discussing Shiloh.

Requesting to be called John, Shiloh also prefers short hair and boyish attire, said Jolie.

“She wants to be a boy,” Jolie revealed. “So we had to cut her hair. She likes to wear boys’ everything. She thinks she’s one of the brothers.”

Pitt shared that Shiloh’s desire to be called John began early in her young life.

“She only wants to be called John,” said Brad. “So we’ve got to call her John. ‘Shi, do you want…’ — ‘John. I’m John.’ And then I’ll say, ‘John, would you like some orange juice?’ And she goes, ‘No!’ ”

For parents who wonder whether the desire to wear boys’ attire and be called a boy’s name means that a daughter is transgender or has gender identity issues, clinical psychologist Linda Blair feels that the main goal of the parents is simply to avoid overreacting, reported the Telegraph.

“To explore what it means to be both genders is also totally normal,” explained Linda. “You can’t become what you are until you know what you’re not.”

Primarily, Blair urges acceptance.

“My reaction to a parent who’s saying ‘my girl’s in jeans and doesn’t act like a girl’, or ‘my boy’s in dresses’, is to say: Watch, accept and see,” said the psychologist. “If it’s exploration then they’ll have permission to do that. If it’s real, you’re giving them the time they need to make up their minds.”

[Photo by Frazer Harrison / Getty Images]