Bishop TD Jakes' Oldest Daughter Reveals Struggles With Infertility, Adoption
Cora Coleman, oldest daughter of Bishop T.D. Jakes, is opening up about her battle with infertility and her decision to become a foster mother.
Coleman, married for almost two years, has documented her journey of infertility on her blog "Fertility Faith" since January 2012.
"I am glad that you are joining me. This is my journey of life and infertility. I decided to share it with you guys so that you may be able to not feel so lonely. I pray this is a safe place where you too can share your struggles with infertility, and life issues. You are not alone. I am holding your hand and so is God," she wrote in her Jan. 14 entry.
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Coleman suffers from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), which causes small cysts to form on the ovaries and can possibly lead to the inability to conceive without medical assistance. PCOS is a common hormonal disorder among women of reproductive age. According to the University of Chicago Medicine, PCOS is estimated to affect between 5 and 10 percent of women.
In understanding the heartache that young women with PCOS endure, Coleman uses her blog to serve as a source of inspiration and encouragement. "It can be a very long road, and you can feel like no one understands. I went through one failed In-vitro Fertilization cycle, but I am not giving up, and neither should you," she writes.
Just as her sister Sarah Jakes has utilized her blog as a platform to share her pain after a divorce, Coleman's blog serves as a testimony full of honest experiences and raw roller coaster emotion as she shares her quest for motherhood. "I also get that it's hard to remain faithful when friends are becoming pregnant at the blink of an eye, and you must go through medication after medication and things aren't working out. I know all about the desire to be there for your best friend that is pregnant, and bury the painful feeling that is too strong to even put in words that your heart feels on the inside."
Through the difficult process of infertility, Coleman has not allowed it to steal her dreams of becoming a mother. She and husband, Richard, are in the final stages of adopting a little girl who they have been foster parents to for almost a year. The Colemans also care for two other foster children in their home, which Cora has admitted is "a lot."
Coleman views the victory of adoption as a closer step to God fulfilling His promise that she will conceive. In her Feb. 11 entry titled "I Already Have It," she wrote, "My journey of infertility has been an uphill climb. My body is healed, and I can try to get pregnant without any help. My husband and I are working on getting our bodies healthy, and getting ready for this to be the year of the promise."
