Addison Forbes Montgomery

"Then slowly, over time, everything changes. And you're no longer this young thing, and you don't believe in fairytales and "perfect" isn't in your vocabulary. And then suddenly, here is this man and he becomes so familiar to you that one day you find yourself looking at him thinking I could love this person for the rest of my life."

- Addison Montgomery

Addison Adrianne Forbes Montgomery (formerly Montgomery-Shepherd) is a board certified OB/GYN, subspecializing in maternal-fetal medicine/fetal surgery, a neonatal surgeon (one of the foremost in the country) and a medical geneticist at the Seaside Health and Wellness. She is married to Jake Reilly and mother to Henry Montgomery.

Early Life
Addison was born in Connecticut in 1967 into a wealthy background with her brother Archer, father "The Captain" and mother Bizzy.

When she was seven, she fell off her bike in the vineyard while going downhill because her tire came off. She flipped over the handlebars and scraped her face, but Archer picked her up, told her it was going to be okay, and carried her the half a mile back home. This is how Addison has always seen her brother, as the big brother who carried her home.

From the age of eight, Addison was mixing her father, The Captain's drinks.

When she was 10, Addison also had to deny her father's affair with his secretary, waiting for "daddy" while he was having sex in his office, and then pretending she had fun getting ice-cream with her father. Her father also had affairs with (among others) 3 maids, 4 of Addison's nannies, Jolene her French tutor and the chef. She only discovered in adulthood that it was her mother cheated first, with a woman but chose to stay married because she already had a family. Captain knew but also stayed with her, in love, and had affairs with other women.

When she went to prom in high school, it was with Skippy Gold. Addison was a band geek with braces and a lisp, and she was forced to talk about Star Wars the whole night.

Addison attended medical school in New York where she met her future husband, Derek Shepherd. In addition, she also met Sam Bennett, her future on and off boyfriend; Mark Sloan, her future lover; and her best friend, Naomi Bennett.

Addison is entitled to a twenty five million dollar trust fund and owns three properties: a New York brownstone, a house in The Hamptons, and a house at Santa Monica. She now lives beside a beach in Malibu next door to an old friend, Sam Bennett.

Marriage Problems with Derek
Addison cheated on her husband of over 10 years, Derek with his best friend Mark Sloan. Prior to this, Addison and Derek's marriage had been an unhappy one, as Derek had been putting in little effort. Derek even mentioned that the demise of their marriage was not her fault alone.They each owned their own respective practices, putting a strain on their marriage. When he found Mark and Addison in bed together, he simply walked away.

Derek then picked up his life in New York, sold his private practice, and relocated to Seattle. This is where he began his legendary relationship with Meredith Grey. Upon Richard's request to help out with a patient, Addison visited Seattle. When she arrived at the hospital, she noticed her husband, Derek talking to Meredith. She walked over and while he saw her doing so, Derek apologized to Meredith for what was to come. Addison then introduced herself as Derek's wife, about whom Meredith knew nothing. ("Who's Zoomin' Who?")

Later, Addison moved into Derek's trailer, and the two tried to reconcile. Addison asked Derek if they were even after she got poison oak from walking Meredith's dog in the woods. The two laughed over the incident. However, Addison knew Derek cared more for Meredith, and eventually decided to get a divorce.

After the divorce, Addison had to put Derek in a tiny box and make him petty and insignificant in order to get up in the morning.

Relocating to Los Angeles
Addison had very little in Seattle after she and Derek divorced. Her marriage with Derek was over, her relationship with Mark had completely vanished, and her attempt at a relationship with Alex Karev failed. She visited Los Angeles to see her friends Naomi and Sam Bennett. Naomi offered her a position at Oceanside Wellness Group and she accepted, thus relocating to Los Angeles.

First Return to Seattle
Later, Addison returned to Seattle Grace Hospital to treat a pregnant woman suffering from ectopia cordis, in which the fetus's heart was growing outside of the body. Although she seemed somewhat happy to be back in Seattle, she made it clear that the visit wasn't permanent and she had every intention of returning to Oceanside Wellness Group. Addison also showed that the history between her, Meredith, and Derek was in the past as she was able to hug Meredith and be genuinely happy for them, unaware that they had broken up.

During her stay, in which the surgeries on both mother and child were successful due to Addison, Mark, and Erica's expertise, Addison was forced to realize that a lot had changed in her absence (particularly the breakdown of Callie and George's marriage, Meredith and Derek's break up, and his relationship with Rose, as well as Bailey and Tucker's marital issues.)

When the chief approached her and attempted to persuade her to stay at Seattle Grace, Addison told him that she now knew it was the right thing to leave and told him to fill her position. Before returning to Los Angeles, however, Addison went to Joe's bar and warned Meredith that, even though she was now zen, she wanted to "kick her ass" for not fighting for Derek and allowing his new girlfriend to have the happily ever after that she deserved. ("Piece of My Heart")

Relationship Woes and Trouble at the Practice
Addison's status in the dating world remained uncertain as she had been stood up by Kevin after she went to find him at the station, and remained unaware that Pete had gone to her house the same night. Some time later, Addison and Naomi found themselves at odds regarding Naomi allowing a couple to conceive a child through Naomi's fertility treatment who would act as an organ donor for their ill child. When the parents demanded Addison birth their child three months premature, an ethical debate raged between Addison and Naomi. Addison eventually learned Naomi agreed to help the couple due to the practice's financial trouble that she was concealing from the group. Despite Naomi's pleas, Addison told Sam that the practice was in trouble. At the same time, Kevin returned for Addison to tell her that he stood her up to train for the SWAT team and the two flirted, leaving their future ambiguous. ("A Family Thing")

Armed with the knowledge of the practice's struggles, Sam and Addison formed a hostile takeover of leadership of the practice and each doctor worked to save the practice from extinction. Addison and Naomi's friendship, however, couldn't stand what Naomi saw to be a betrayal and Naomi cut her best friend out of her personal life, leaving only professional ties. ("Equal and Opposite")

With her 'family' at the practice in disaray, Addison took Charlotte's offer to do some surgeries for St. Ambrose, in order for her to relieve her frustrations which she claimed 'fall away' when she holds a scalpel. However, rushed off her feet and desperate to do nothing but cut Addison spent no time conversing with her patients and getting to know them. When a stressed and worried husband of a pregnant patient asked her what his wife's name was, and she was unable to answer, she realized that she had become the one who wasn't talking and decided to return to family at the practice for good, refuting Charlotte's offer to work at St. Ambrose full-time. This persuaded her to move forward with Kevin as well as attempting to repair her friendship with Naomi. ("Nothing to Talk About")

Archer's Hospitalization
Having landed in Seattle, a worried Addison was greeted by Richard and Derek as Archer was prepared for a diagnosis. Derek discovered eight cysts caused by the parasites and, having consulted specialists, revealed that they were inoperable as surgery would cause more harm than good. A reluctant Addison refused to give up on Archer and told Derek that she needed him to be a God. As she attempted to pray in the hospital chapel, Addison confessed to Callie that she didn't believe God knew who she was, and so praying for a miracle was worthless. Her old friend then reminded her that she saves babies, and God knows who she is because of it. Having received the push from Sam, Derek decided to do the surgery. Addison watched on tenderhooks as Derek attempted to remove the parasitic cysts. When removing the eighth and final one, it ruptured, allowing the parasite dig further into his brain. Addison, however, faced much relief when the parasite was caught, extracted and Archer stabilized. To celebrate Derek's success the old friends visited the Emerald City Bar, where they reminised about Derek's love song to Addison. Addison however, recognized that Derek was in her past, and, despite her gratitude she had to once again make him petty and insignificant in order to move on with her life. ("Before and After")

Sloan Riley's Surgery
As Mark wanted the best care possible for his daughter Sloan and was unsure of Elizabeth Chen's abilities, he had Addison fly in for the surgery. When Addison was operating, she realized it would be riskier than she thought. She was confident she could continue successfully, but Mark insisted that she stop. However, he later traveled with Sloan to Los Angeles so Addison could perform it. She did so successfully.

Wanting a Baby
Addison first left Seattle to visit an old friend, Naomi Bennett, in Los Angeles. It was revealed that Naomi is not only Addison's best friend from medical school, but also a fertility specialist. Addison visited Naomi's practice, Oceanside Wellness Group, to try to get pregnant. However, Addison's dream of having a baby was shattered when she was told that she had barely any eggs left (and was essentially infertile). Addison left L.A. and returns to Seattle and Seattle Grace Hospital.

Addison returned to Los Angeles not long after that, taking Oceanside Wellness up on their job offer at their practice. One day, Addison searched through Naomi's files at the practice to read her own file, and found that her chances of becoming pregnant were worse than she'd previously imagined. She learned that her egg count was a mere two, and was heartbroken.

After Violet was attacked and gave her baby to Pete, Addison became one of the principle caregivers to Lucas. She filled the void left by his birth mother and was overjoyed at the prospect of having a baby of her own. However, after Violet recuperated, Addison told Pete to go back to her, and subsequently lost touch with Lucas. She was, once again, left without a child of her own.

After Naomi left the practice for New York, Addison decided to try IVF treatments. With the help of her doctor, Jake Reilly, she went through the IVF process twice. However, she failed to become pregnant both times. As a result, Jake suggested she choose a surrogate to carry her baby, but Addison didn't approve of any of the candidates. Eventually, she told Jake that she needed a break from the baby drama.

Callie's Car Accident
Since Callie and Addison were close friends, Addison flew back to Seattle, at Richard's request after hearing that Callie had been in a car accident. She later performed an emergency C-section on Callie and delivered her daughter, Sofia Robbin Sloan Torres, prematurely.

Alternate Reality
In Meredith's dream, Derek and Addison are still in an unhappy marriage and Addison is pregnant with their child, though the child is later revealed to be Mark's. Also, Addison is still part of the surgical staff at Seattle Grace Hospital, and remains the OB/GYN and neonatal head.

Adopting Henry
Mere hours after delivering a baby at St. Ambrose Hospital, Addison got a call from her social worker saying that a birth mom had chosen her. She returned to the hospital, shocked to find that it was Judi, the same woman whose baby she had delivered. Judi had decided she couldn't find a better mom for the baby, and that it must have been fate since Addison was the one who delivered the baby boy. Addison named him Henry Montgomery.

Personality
Addison is a very confident, smart, and poised woman. She can be described as cold and unforgiving, however she is also quite warm and kind. She is also very concentrated and dedicated to her work, as she is considered the best in her field. Addison is sometimes difficult and uncompromising but she can be very kind and accepting.

Addison describes herself as a worrier; she constantly worries about about what's happening and what's not happening. Professionally, she is very confident, but not personally. She likes to think that worrying prepares her for whatever may happen.

Derek Shepherd


Although she herself occasionally tended to do so, Miranda Bailey told Addison that she should not define herself by the men in her life.

Addison met her future husband, Derek Shepherd, in medical school in the summer. Their relationship grew and they eventually married. Derek once wrote a song for her.

After medical school, Addison and Derek became extremely successful in their respective fields and each began their own practice in New York. However, this strained their marriage.

Addison was married to Derek Shepherd for eleven years before eventually sleeping with Derek's best friend, a plastic surgeon Mark Sloan, which prompted Derek to leave New York for Seattle at the request of their old friend and mentor, Richard Webber.

After she and Derek initially separated, she tried to get over him, even hoping that dying her hair blond would help. She remained in New York and lived with Mark for two months, during which she became pregnant with Mark's child but she chose to have an abortion. The relationship ended when Mark cheated on Addison and Richard Webber brought her to Seattle Grace for a consult on a difficult case.

After a period of antagonism between her and Derek (in which he continually referred to her as "Satan"), Addison decided to stay on as the Head of Neonatal Surgery and Head of OB/GYN at Seattle Grace, signing a two-year contract after she and Derek decided to make an effort to work things out. Unfortunately, he still had feelings for Meredith.

When Addison discovered that her husband slept with Meredith at the hospital-sponsored prom, Addison (in a drunken haze) called Mark Sloan to Seattle. She and Derek agreed that their marriage was over and started divorce proceedings. She asked Mark to go back to New York, but he stayed, expressing his desire to continue their relationship.

When the divorce was finalized, Addison dropped the "Shepherd" from her last name. Wanting to make a fresh start, Derek happily relinquished most of their shared properties (their Brownstone in Manhattan and a residence in The Hamptons) to her believing that she deserved it as his initial impression was that she had only had a one-night stand with Mark while he carried on an affair with Meredith.

Alex Karev
She stayed in Seattle for a long while after and a possibility of a relationship between her and Alex Karev was hinted at when they kissed in Joe's bar. She felt it was too strange though and he said he didn't care so the relationship was not brought ahead any further.

During the 60 days that Mark and Addison were trying to remain celibate to give themselves a chance, she slept with Alex. However, despite Addison wanting more, he wasn't ready for that.

Mark Sloan
The two originally met in med school. She cheated on her husband, Derek, with him. After Derek left for Seattle, Addison and Mark lived together for two months, during which time she became pregnant. She had an abortion, and Mark eventually cheated on her.

After finding out Meredith and Derek slept together at the prom, she called Mark over to Seattle and slept with him again. Mark decided to move to Seattle in hopes of pursuing a relationship with Addison.

On the one-year anniversary of the day she discovered she was pregnant, Addison and Mark made a deal. If they both could abstain from sex for 60 days she would be willing to try a real relationship with him. She doesn't hold up her end of the bargain when she engaged in a sexual encounter with Alex at the hospital. Mark learned of this after witnessing them stumbling out of an on-call room. She was spared from confessing, however, when Mark selflessly lied to her by telling her he had broken their promise long before. He felt that although he had feelings for her, she shouldn't have to feel guilty.

Mark visited Addison in LA when his daughter, Sloan Riley, needed surgery. They had sex several times, which prompted Addison to ask Mark if he truly wanted to have a relationship with her, because she could make it work. However, Mark was still in love with Lexie, so he apologized to Addison and turned her down.

Pete Wilder
When she left Seattle Grace Hospital for a private practice in L.A, she had a brief interest in her co-worker Pete (whom she kissed), but gave up on any potential romance between the two after Pete stood her up for a date.

Later in the show, Pete and Addison reconnect at a hospital event and go back to her house to have pizza and watch lame TV shows, and

end up having sex. They start a relationship that they describe as "helping each other" and Addison decides to move on from Sam and since he is seemingly happy with his new girlfriend, making them officially a couple.

When Pete was sick and Addison was looking after Lucas, Pete said "I love you, Violet" to Addison while on fever medication, leading Addison to confront Pete 6 weeks later. Pete states that he will always love Violet as she is the mother of his child, but he wants to be with Addison.

Violet returns from Costa Rica and Addison tells her that Pete will pick her because she is Lucas' mother.

Later on the porch, Sam tells Addison he is sick of doing the right thing and should do the wrong thing, and then kisses her as Pete walks in.

Kevin Nelson
She then directed her attention to Kevin Nelson, a police officer who had asked her out previously. Unfortunately, her trust issues interfered with her and Kevin; issues that resulted in her jealously following Kevin after she thought he was having an affair and ending with her arrest by the SWAT team. Nonetheless, she confessed her issues to Kevin and they resumed to their relationship.



But more troubles came when Addison's brother came to visit, and told Kevin that she was just "enjoying him". When he hadn't called Addison back; she had thought he was avoiding her, but would find out he had been shot. When her brother left; Kevin moved in with her while he was recovering. While Addison now had to deal with Charlotte who was opening up a competing practice on the fourth floor, she was more annoyed by Dr. Wyatt Lockhart, a doctor working for Charlotte's practice who steals a patient of Addison's and convinces Naomi to work for her. In the midst of this Addison, and Kevin's different life styles get in the way of their relationship leading to him moving out. But Addison later calls him telling him she misses him, and they make up.

However, Addison kisses Wyatt after seeing him for who he really is, not the arrogant, headline grabber she thought he was. Kevin repeatedly questions her where she was that night and believes she's lying, Addison claims she was working, and just as Kevin was finally able to drop the questioning, she admits she kissed another man, and they break up. As Addison goes to Wyatt to try a new relationship, she catches Naomi having sex with Archer instead.

Noah Barnes
Noah and Addison frequently met in the scrub room over the period of the 3 months that Finishing took place, one of them always finishing surgery and scrubbing out and one scrubbing in, leading to their greeting of "Finishing or starting?". They both continued to flirt, not knowing each other's names, and eventually meet in the doctor's lounge where Noah asks for her name. Looking shocked, he quickly leaves.

Addison later meets him as the husband of one of her pregnant patients, Morgan Gellman. Upon this discovery, Addison quickly removed herself from Morgan's case, as she was not comfortable with her feelings for Noah while she treated his wife, feelings which Noah reciprocates. Addison, decides not to make a move in their relationship, refusing to be a home wrecker, after her past mistakes with her ex-husband and his best friend. Noah, however, asks her not to leave the case, as she is the best in her field and Morgan cannot lose another child (she had a string of miscarriages prior to seeing Addison), and he will keep his feelings for Addison in check. However, Noah cannot help the way he feels, and Morgan realizes her marriage is in jeopardy, asking Addison to save her child, as that is all that is keeping her and Noah together. She says she sees it in Noah's eyes, he's there, but he's not quite there. When Addison has to perform surgery on Morgan, Noah is not there for her and Morgan is willing to put off the surgery to have Addison find Noah and he eventually does go into the OR to be there for Morgan, with a push from Addison.

Sam Bennett
Sam asked Addison out when they were in med school, but Addison declined because Naomi was in love with him. When Addison moved to LA, she bought the house next door to Sam, leading to their developing friendship.

Addison and Sam kissed after a hiking experience gone wrong, while discussing what would have happened had Addison said yes to Sam in med school. They kissed twice more and Sam propositioned Addison to develop their relationship, but Addison said no because Naomi was her best friend.

Sam dated another Neonatal surgeon, leading Addison to date Pete, although she still loved Sam, and she is seen constantly talking about him to Pete. Sam and Addison had an off and on relationship for a long time.

The main reason for their relationship troubles was that Addison wanted a child, but Sam had Maya, and Maya's daughter, and didn't want more kids. After Addison adopted Henry, Sam seemingly accepted Henry. He even asked her to marry him after Addison and Jake had had sex.

Jake Reilly
When Addison's therapist told her to make a change in her life, she met Jake and they flirted over pineapples at the grocery store. They started seeing each other at a coffee shop. However, they both agreed to keep their identities in secret. Jake was going on vacation to Fiji and he asked Addison to come with him. She eventually accepted, but when at the airport, she realized it wasn't right to try to avoid Sam and the problems the practice was suffering.

Later on, Addison started her fertility treatment only to find out her doctor was Jake. He admitted he never left for Fiji. Addison, humiliated, left the office.

When Jake interviewed for the fertility specialist opening at Oceanside Wellness, Addison was horrified because she recognized him as her former doctor. She was strongly opposed to the practice hiring him, but she ran out of excuses not to, as he was the perfect candidate for the job. Jake began working at the practice.

Addison began fertility treatments with Jake as her doctor. He helped her through her two failed IVFs and also to try to find a surrogate.

She once threw herself at him at an OB/GYN convention in Palm Springs. She was extremely drunk and stumbled into his hotel room, where she asked him if he wanted to sleep with her. He turned her down, saying that it was the alcohol talking and that she would regret it in the morning. When Addison woke the following morning, she remembered what had happened and was thoroughly embarrassed.

Jake once asked her if their relationship was purely physical, because he cared about her, but she was sending him mixed signals. Addison confirmed that it was not just physical, but also emotional. Their relationship grew over time.

They later got married.

Friendships
Since arriving at Seattle Grace Hospital, Addison has made many friendships with other hospital staff, most notably Callie Torres and Miranda Bailey (Miranda's reasons being that Addison smells nice, she's polite, and she saves babies). Her friendship with the two ladies has often been based on the fact that they act as each other's confidantes. Callie and Addison often discuss their current relationships and love lives, which has ultimately led to a very close friendship between the two. Addison is also very good friends with fellow attending, Preston Burke, and her ex-husband, Derek Shepherd. She still has a friendship with Mark Sloan and a father-daughter bond with Richard Webber, and is often portrayed to be very close to him. The only intern that Addison really bonded with was Alex Karev but she had no grudges against any of the interns and even hugged Meredith as a sign of acceptance of her relationship with Derek. She helped inspire Izzie to become a fighter again.

Addison is believed to have had a good relationship with the Shepherd family, in particular Nancy Shepherd, but, pending Derek's revelation of the true extent of Addison/Mark's relationship, her closeness to the Shepherds is in doubt.



After moving to L.A., Addison returned to Seattle Grace Hospital to help with a patient whose fetus’s heart was growing out of its body. Upon her return, Addison didn't expect much change; but soon learned that since her departure a lot had changed - for example, the break up of Meredith and Derek and his relationship with Rose, Callie's divorce and the breakdown of Bailey's marriage. During her stay there she met Callie's new friend Erica Hahn and mistakenly interpreted their friendship as a relationship. The mother and child both survived the surgery and Addison prepared to leave Seattle and return to L.A, telling Richard that she needed to come back to see how much she liked her new life. She left, but not before finding Meredith and telling her that she wasn't allowed to let Derek get away.

Addison betrayed Naomi by confronting Sam with something about the practice. Naomi dropped her friendship with Addison and refused to talk to her. Eventually, she and Naomi began to mend their friendship and at last came back to being best friends. Addison (despite her rocky start) got on well with her new colleagues and friendships were rekindled (as she was friends with Naomi and Sam years ago), friendships were started (Violet, Dell, and Coop) and even a short time relationship occurred (with her now friend, Pete).

Career
Addison is considered one of the best surgeons in her field in the world, having patients travel across the country to receive medical and surgical care from her, helped by her excellent bedside manner, but with her relocation to Los Angeles her surgical practice has become limited, with her practice being mostly obstetric work and occasionally genetic counseling with Naomi, however she does have privileges at St. Ambrose Hospital, allowing her to conduct her own surgeries, which is a right she exercises frequently. Charlotte King also calls on Addison to consult and take on complex medical cases from the hospital, also adding her to her work load and increasing her OR time.



She completed her surgical residency under the supervision of her now good friend, Dr. Richard Webber (the same place she first met her future husband, Derek Shepherd). During her residency, Richard gave Addison a patient who would not survive, to teach Addison to not get too emotionally involved with her patients, as a result, Addison avoided Richard for almost a year. As an attending, she repeated the same trick with Izzie Stevens and one of the quintuplets the hospital was taking care of.

During her OB/GYN residency, Addison was mentored by Dr. Vivian Carlsmith, a world-renowned OB/GYN and pioneer in maternal-fetal medicine. Addison was Vivian's smartest student, eventually surpassing Vivian's skill.

Addison's training also encompasses why she is regarded as one of the best surgeons in her field: she is board certified in obstetrics and gynecology with her sub-specialty in maternal-fetal medicine, board certified in neonatal surgery, and has completed a fellowship in medical genetics, specializing in cystic fibrosis. She is very open about her credentials, and has relayed them to patients, co-workers, and subordinates that have doubted her abilities.

Surgically, she is highly skilled in complex, often laproscopic and open, obstetrical, gynecological, neonatal and fetal surgeries. She is one of the only surgeons in the world who can separate fetal blood vessels and correct Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome

She was formerly the attending surgeon in charge of a world-class NICU and state-of-the-art OB/GYN wing at Seattle Grace Hospital. Although highly successful and well paid job, Addison left Seattle to got to L.A to join a private practice.



When she arrived at the practice she was surprised to discover that Naomi, who gave her the job offer, didn't tell the rest of the staff about Addison. The other doctors showed Addison that she was clearly not welcome. On her first day in the practice she performed surgery in an unsterilized delivery room only with the help of Alternative Medicine Specialist, Pete. On the end of the same day, they decided to vote on whether Addison should join the practice or not but Addison put her foot down and told them that she was going to stay even if they wanted her gone. Everyone was impressed by her speech and they decided not to vote after all.

When Richard Webber asked Addison to return for a complex surgery, she agreed, and at the end of the day, Richard attempts to get her back and letting her start the next morning. Addison declined the offer, being sure that leaving was the right thing to do. Similarly, when Naomi would not speak to Addison, Addison took a number of surgeries at St. Ambrose to relieve her frustrations. Charlotte tried to woo her to the hospital with the surgeries but Addison declared the practice as her 'home'.

Not long after moving to Los Angeles, Addison learned that the practice was failing financially so confronted Sam and the two formed a hostile take-over. In a bid to get the practice back to how it used to be Addison accidentally prompted a vote between Sam and Naomi, but was stunned when she was elected to lead the practice as Addison's leadership shone through.

Later, Addison dissolved the practice, funded the change, and renamed it to Seaside Health and Wellness.

Notes and Trivia

 * She is 39 in the season 3 finale of Grey's Anatomy.
 * In the back-door pilot episode of Private Practice it was revealed that Addison could no longer conceive, as her antral follicle count was only two.
 * When Derek left her in New York, Addison dyed her hair blonde.
 * Since moving to L.A, Addison describes herself as very zen. She buys aroma therapy candles and takes walks on beaches.
 * When she worked for Seattle Grace Hospital, Richard Webber was paying a salary that made her one of the highest paid surgeons in Northwestern United States.
 * She has special expertise in Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS).
 * Addison performs abortions. She believes life only begins when the baby can survive outside the mother's body, thus at birth.
 * During her education, Addison's always hated neuro anatomy.
 * Addison's SGH ID badge stated her departments were Obstetrics and Gynecology and Neonatology.
 * Despite the fact that she has not been a series regular since the third season of Grey's Anatomy, she has made a guest appearance in most subsequent seasons, until her final one in season 8:
 * ​Season 4: Piece of My Heart
 * Season 5: Before and After and An Honest Mistake
 * Season 6: Blink
 * Season 7: Song Beneath the Song
 * Season 8: If/Then
 * Addison sometimes wears reading glasses.
 * She has her own lucky scrub cap.
 * Before she was officially a part of the Seattle Grace Hospital attending staff, she wore salmon scrubs. Whether or not she owned these scrubs or if she was wearing the uniform color of OB/GYNs remains unclear. Kate Walsh stated in an interview that it was decided to let Addison wear the navy blue scrubs to make her more part of the attendings group.
 * Whenever Addison wants to tell something that she cannot tell, she stares at the person she wants to tell.
 * Addison and her family are WASPs - they only go to Church on Christmas, and she does not know how to pray.
 * In the episode In Which We Meet Addison, a Nice Girl From Somewhere Else, Addison tells Sam that 11 men have seen her naked (12 including him). Three of them are Derek Shepherd, Mark Sloan, and Alex Karev.
 * It has been noted that Addison's qualifications are unrealistic for a practicing doctor in her late-30s/early-40s, as she has already gained a highly-regarded reputation at her character's introduction to the series. Since Derek and she attended medical school together and were both educated by Richard Webber, it is likely she completed a 5 year residency in general surgery followed by a 2 year fellowship in pediatric surgery focusing on neonatal and fetal surgical procedures, returning to complete a 4 year residency in obstetrics and gynecology followed by a 3 year fellowship in maternal-fetal medicine, with her (likely to be) 2 year fellowship in medical genetics following everything else. In reality, under best circumstances, would make Addison a minimum of 40 years old.
 * It has been indicated throughout seasons five and six of Private Practice that Addison first completed a residency in OB/GYN. This would mean that she followed up with fellowships in maternal-fetal medicine and medical genetics, then completed a general surgery residency and finished with a pediatric surgery fellowship focusing on neonatal and fetal surgeries. If this is indeed the case, this creates a continuity-error with her being mentored by Richard, as stated in Grey's Anatomy, as OB/GYN residents do not rotate in other surgical departments; this would be plausible if Richard were somehow involved in Addison's OB/GYN residency.
 * Addison appeared in every single episode of Private Practice, except for Two Steps Back and The Hardest Part.
 * Although incorrect, Dr. Jake Reilly referred to Addison as a neonatologist in 5x07.
 * Addison is the first and last character to be seen on Private Practice. The last scene of the show is the group talking in the kitchen in the practice, and her face is the last one to be seen from inside the elevator before its doors close completely.
 * She's one of only eight people in the world who can perform OB/GYN, perinatology, and neonatal surgery on a world-class level.
 * Addison is considered "the Meryl Streep of Maternal-Fetal Medicine."
 * Before Izzie returned to Seattle Grace, she asked Addison how does the guilty feeling of being rich wear off, saying that the name Addison Forbes Montgomery-Shepherd sounds wealthy.
 * She loves bacon cheeseburgers.
 * She has a cat named Milo, formerly owned by her patient Lillie Jordan.
 * Her fortune is about 30 million dollars. Archer Montgomery said that once to Kevin Nelson, the SWAT guy in season 2.

Notable Episodes
These episodes are Addison-centric or otherwise very informative about her life.
 * The Other Side of This Life, Part 1
 * The Other Side of This Life, Part 2
 * In Which We Meet Addison, a Nice Girl From Somewhere Else
 * In Which Addison Finds the Magic
 * In Which Addison Has a Very Casual Get Together
 * In Which Addison Finds a Showerhead
 * Apron Strings
 * In Which We Say Goodbye

Memorable Quotes
(to Jake Reilly) I love you. And you're the last man I want to say that to. Let's get married.

Appearances
Addison Montgomery Addison Montgomery-Shepherd