Mother of Octuplets Raises Questions About Parental Responsibility

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

Will it be Oprah, Diane Sawyer, or Barbara Walters?

According to news reports, Nadya Suleman, the California woman who gave birth to eight babies last week, is currently deciding which big name TV interviewer she'll sit down and chat with.

Meanwhile, another report claims that the 33-year-old single mother of 14 is seeking $2 million from commercial sponsorship (she reportedly wants to hook up with Pampers) and other media interviews to help defray the cost of raising her eight babies and the other six children (all under the age of eight) that she already has.

No doubt Nadya is going to need the money given that her mom (who has been caring for her daughter's six children, including Nadya's autistic son and twin 2 year olds) recently told news reporters that she plans to move out of the 1,550-square-foot home in Whittier that they share to rejoin her husband who has been working in Iraq as a translator to help support the family.

Angela Suleman said she warned her daughter that when she gets home from the hospital, "I'm going to be gone."

Not exactly the welcome home Nadya was hoping for, but can you really blame Angela?

What started out as a joyous news event has spiraled into a media frenzy and sparked an ethical debate. Medical experts have been speaking out about their concerns that Nadya was implanted with so many embryos. Though, Angela now contends that her daughter was implanted with far fewer than eight embryos, but they multiplied. Doctors say this could be possible since Nadya's system has "likely been hyperstimulated for years with fertilization treatments and drugs."

Be that as it may, in my opinion, the most disturbing part of this entire real-life drama is the fact that Nadya reportedly went in for IVF treatments in order to get "just one more girl."

"And look what happened. Octuplets. Dear God," Angela told reporters.

According to Nadya's mother, her daughter is "obsessed with children, but obviously she overdid herself."

Adding to this twisted tale is the fact that Nadya's ex-husband fathered none of the children. Rather, reports say all of the children are from the same sperm donor-- allegedly a guy who Nadya worked with at a fertility clinic prior to enrolling in college. (She is currently unemployed.)

According to Nadya's mom, her daughter dreamed of becoming a mother at a very young age, but a problem with her fallopian tubes prevented her from conceiving naturally. At that point she reportedly turned to IVF and never looked back.

In all of the interviews I've read, Angela constantly repeats that her daughter just "loves children" and that she wanted to have kids more than anything in the world.

Hmmm... I absolutely adore chocolate cream puffs, but I certainly wouldn't consider driving to my local bakery and having eight of them implanted in my mouth.

A number of doctors have weighed in with their opinions on Nadya's state of mind saying that she has an "unhealthy preoccupation" with being pregnant and giving birth.

So was parental responsibility completely disregarded in this case, or is there more to this story than we're being told?

Related Articles:

Will the mom of the new Octuplets Homeschool?

Becoming the Mom You Never Thought You'd Be

News Flash: Moms Work Hard

Stay-at-Home-Mom Says Record Game Show Win "Lessens Guilt"

Sarah Palin: Supermom or In Way Over Her Head?

What's a Parent to Do?

Has Becoming a Parent Made You a Better Person?

Moms Sacrifice for Kids

There's a Lesson in Here Somewhere

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger