‘Most rewarding’ gift is having baby

In the months since her daughter, Emerson, was born, Tiffany Cochran-Edwards has been the consummate parent.

She barely recalls what she did for fun or how she and husband, Javarro, both 39 and living in Stone Mountain, spent their time before their little girl arrived.

“This is the hardest job I’ve ever had,” the former WXIA-TV reporter and anchor said, “but by far the most rewarding.”

And after a year of stops and starts, it was also the most anticipated.

And so around the corner from where Emerson is the center of attention, Cochran-Edwards stole away to talk about the baby she almost didn’t have, the one she affectionately calls Lady Bug.

She always knew she wanted a baby, she began. The question was when and to a larger extent how. Cochran-Edwards had uterine fibroids, benign tumors that grow in the womb and can cause heavy bleeding, abdominal pain and in her case, infertility. It would have been easy to lose hope but prayer and the appearance of lady bugs every time she thought of her father, she said, sustained her.

Shortly after her marriage in August 2004, Cochran-Edwards’ father Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., who gained worldwide fame for his successful defense of NFL great O.J. Simpson, died of an inoperable brain tumor.

Family planning became secondary, but by 2006, the couple was ready to begin.

After six months of trying with no results, doctors suggested the couple see a fertility specialist.

That’s when a test revealed the fibriods had multiplied. You’re never going to get pregnant with these fibroids, Dr. Mark Perloe told her.

In all, 7.3 million Americans experience infertility, said Perloe, medical director at Georgia Reproductive Specialists, an infertility and in-vitro fertilization practice based in Atlanta. Of those, nearly 90 percent can be helped through treatment. In Cochran-Edwards’ case, Perloe said, getting rid of the fibroids was his first priority. That treatment isn’t right for everyone nor is the woman always the problem, he said. That’s why getting an evaluation is so important even for women.

In April 2007, doctors removed Cochran-Edwards’ fibroids but further tests revealed her hormone levels were low. Perloe then suggested in-vitro fertilization.

On Nov. 9, 2007, two months after starting the procedure, the couple learned they were pregnant.

Finally on July 10, Emerson made her debut, weighing 8 pounds, 9 ounces, 20 inches long. “We were so blessed,” said Cochran-Edwards.

HELPFUL WEB SITES
Georgia Reproductive Specialists www.ivf.com American Society for Reproductive Medicine, www.asrm.org
INFERTILITY FACTS • Infertility affects one in eight couples or 7.3 million people • If you are 35 or older, seek help from a reproductive endocrinologist • Nearly 90% of infertility cases are treatable Source: Georgia Reproductive Specialists