Elisabeth Rohm discusses her struggle with infertility
(CBS News) Despite years in the spotlight, actress Elisabeth Rohm, best known for her role on "Law and Order," kept her struggle with infertility private, until now. The actress-turned-author is out with a new book called "Baby Steps: Having the Child I Always Wanted (Just Not as I Expected)."
The book catalogs her unexpected and lifelong journey to be a mother. Rohm said on "CBS This Morning: Saturday" that she wanted to share her story in order to help other people struggling with similar issues.
"I decided to write about my fertility struggles because I felt I had never had those moments with women where they had been forthcoming with me and said, 'Well, I have this beautiful child, but I did five rounds of IVF,'" she said, referring to in-vitro fertilization. "So, as I went through it, it was like I was side-blinded. I never expected that at 34 I was never going to be able to have a child naturally."
She wants women who are struggling with infertility issues to know that they are not alone. Rohm says it's important to just speak about the topic openly so people know what they're dealing with.
In-vitro fertilization allows grandmother to give birth to grandchild
"I'd like women to know that the statistics get really scary once you reach 35 and even scarier once you reach 40 and that 70 million to 80 million people suffer from fertility issues in the world and that it's not something to be ashamed of," she said. "If men struggle with fertility, if women struggle with fertility, you're not less than, you know, someone else who doesn't."
Outside of her new book, Rohm just joined the cast of a new David O. Russell film alongside Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner and Amy Davis.
For the entire discussion with Elisabeth Rohm, watch the video in the player above.