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Nadya Suleman

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Nadya Suleman
Born
Natalie Denise Suleman

(1975-07-11) July 11, 1975 (age 48)
Fullerton, California
Known forSuleman Octuplets
SpouseMarcos Gutierrez (1996–2008)
ChildrenFour daughters, ten sons

Nadya Denise Doud-Suleman Gutierrez (born Natalie Denise Suleman; July 11, 1975),[1] known as Octomom in the media, is an American woman who came to international attention when she gave birth to octuplets in January 2009.[2][3] The Suleman octuplets are only the second full set of octuplets to be born alive in the United States and, one week after their birth, surpassed the previous worldwide survival rate for a complete set of octuplets set by the Chukwu octuplets in 1998. The circumstances of their high order multiple birth have led to controversy in the field of assisted reproductive technology as well as an investigation by the Medical Board of California of the fertility specialist involved.[4] Public reaction turned negative when it was discovered that the single mother already had six other young children and was unemployed and on public assistance programs. She conceived the octuplets and her six older children via in vitro fertilisation (IVF).[5]

Early life and education

Suleman was born in Fullerton, California[6] as the only child of Edward and Angela Doud. Her parents married in Las Vegas in 1974, and divorced in 1999.[7][8]

She held a psychiatric technician license, and worked as a psychiatric technician at Metropolitan State Hospital, where her back was injured while at work. After graduating from Nogales High School in 1993, she attended California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) and received a Bachelor of Science degree in child and adolescent development in 2006. Suleman returned to CSUF to pursue a master's degree in counseling, leaving the program in 2008.[9]

Marriage and divorce

Suleman married Marcos Gutierrez in 1996. According to Gutierrez, they separated in 2000 because they could not conceive children together. Gutierrez filed for divorce in November 2006 and the divorce was finalized in January 2008.[10] Despite their divorce, in an interview with People Weekly, he spoke highly of her and expressed that he wishes her the best.[11]

Children

Suleman began IVF treatments in 1997.[12] The treatments were carried out by Dr. Michael Kamrava, who was expelled from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in October 2009.[13][14][15] In 2001, Suleman gave birth to her first child, a son named Elijah. After the birth of her first daughter Amerah in 2002, Suleman suffered from stress, mood swings, and low feelings.

Octuplets

Main article: Suleman octuplets

Suleman has stated that in 2008 she had six embryos left over from her previous in-vitro fertilization treatments. She stated at the time that she requested that all of the remaining embryos be implanted, despite the norm for a woman her age being two or three implanted at the most.[4] Suleman states that part of her reasoning for attempting a sixth pregnancy was so that the frozen embryos would not be destroyed. Supposedly, the six remaining embryos were implanted and two of the embryos split into twins, resulting in a total of eight embryos. However, time has shown that there are no identical sets of twins in the group. In fact, Dr. Kamrava stated recently that she insisted on all 'fresh' cycles, and in fact she still has embryos stored with Dr. Kamrava.[16] Since her medical records are confidential, the public does not know how many embryos she had transferred during the IVF. Five fetuses were evident after just one month and when offered the option of selective reduction, Suleman declined.[17]

News of the octuplets caused an international media sensation.[18] Public response was largely negative and even included death threats.[19] There has been much public discussion about Suleman's decision to have the octuplets, including a minor protest outside the Suleman home.[20] Many expressed concern that Suleman's decision for more children would burden taxpayers via public support.[21][22][23]

As of March 2009, Suleman bought a new house in La Habra,[24] and many stories questioned that the octuplets would be released from the hospital, while Suleman expressed concern about losing custody of them.[25] In the early morning hours of April 1, the day she would bring the seventh octuplet home, vandals threw a baby seat through the back window of her Toyota minivan.[26][27][28] As of April 14, 2009, all of the children are home with their mother and grandmother, although public outrage has not subsided.

The octuplets celebrated their first birthday on January 26, 2010. Suleman told People Magazine, "I don't get much sleep, about two or three hours a night. But I'm continuing to move forward with my life and trying to be the best mother I can be." She added that the family ate birthday cake and pizza in celebration.[29]

Public profile

Suleman quickly captured the public eye with the birth of octuplets. Within the first week, the media had coined her the nickname of "Octomom". Suleman hired the Killeen Furtney Group as her initial public relations company, with Wes Yoder providing a small amount of pro bono advice. Both groups soon ended their involvement after receiving death threats.[30] Her next spokesman was Victor Munoz,[31] who quit on March 6, 2009.[32]

On February 5, 2009, Suleman granted a television interview to NBC's Ann Curry. Suleman rejected suggestions that her decisions have been selfish or that she may not be able to care for her children, stating, "I know I'll be able to afford them when I'm done with my schooling. If I were just sitting down, watching TV and not being as determined as I am to succeed and provide a better future for my children, I believe that would be considered to a certainly degree selfish". She added that she felt society is unfairly judging her because she is a single mother and plans to get by with the help of family, friends, and her church.[33]

In February 2009, Vivid Entertainment offered Suleman one million dollars to star in a pornographic movie.[34] Suleman has declined their offer.[35]

On March 25, 2009, Suleman and Gloria Allred appeared together on the Dr. Phil show. Allred had a list of criticisms regarding Suleman's performance as mother and homemaker.[36]

On April 16, 2009, Suleman revealed she has struck a deal for a reality TV show in the UK, though the Hollywood Reporter said some U.S. networks were reluctant to pick up the show.[37] Suleman signed an agreement with the Los Angeles Superior Court on July 24 to have each of her children earn $250 a day to star in a reality show; filming was set to begin on September 1.[38] On May 4, 2009, it was announced that Allred had filed a case with Orange County Superior Court requesting that a guardian be appointed to protect the rights of the infants.[39]

On August 10, 2009, Fox announced a two-hour special entitled, "Octo-Mom: The Incredible Unseen Footage", which aired on August 19.[40]

She was featured in the February 2010 issue of Star Magazine, which included an interview and pictorials. Both focused mainly on her rapid and effective weight loss since delivering the octuplets an entire year prior.[40]

Suleman appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and Idol Gives Back in April 2010.[41] She denied claims that she had received plastic surgery and stated that she refused to star in pornographic movies. She also added that she has severely rethought her decision to give birth to and raise her children, along with mentioning that she hopes to become a teacher one day.[42]

Extended family

Before knowledge of the octuplets became public, Suleman had been living with her six older children and mother in a small three-bedroom house in Whittier, California. Property records show the Suleman house in mortgage default, scheduled to be sold at auction in May 2009.[43] Suleman's parents filed for bankruptcy in 2008, citing nearly $1 million in liabilities.[44] In March of 2010 it was reported that Suleman's own La Habra house was facing foreclosure.[45]. On March 22, 2010, the adult entertainment company Vivid Entertainment contacted her, offering to pay off the debt of approximately $460,000 on her house, if she agreed to appear in porn movies for them.[46]

Suleman's father, Edward Doud Suleman (b. 1942),[47] identified himself as a former Iraqi military man and said he would be returning to his native Iraq as a translator and driver in order to financially support his daughter and her fourteen children.[48] Suleman's mother, Angela Victoria Suleman (b. 1940), a retired high school teacher, has helped to look after the first six children. She has indicated that she is overwhelmed looking after them, and has been critical of her daughter in her earlier public statements. Amongst similar interviews, she revealed that her daughter never expected to give birth to the large number of children, nor did she expect to be unemployed and use public assistance.[49]

References

  1. ^ According to Family Tree Legends she was born in Orange County which supports Fullerton as her place of birth vs. Bellflower (Los Angeles County) which is sometimes reported. Natalie D. Suleman
  2. ^ Octuplets' mom: 'I'm not being selfish', MSNBC.com, February 11, 2009
  3. ^ Nadya Suleman High School Yearbook Picture
  4. ^ a b Octuplets' mom says she had 6 embryos implanted, Associated Press, February 6, 2009
  5. ^ Egg on his face: Fertility Doc ripped by Octomom's Dad New York Post, February 11, 2009
  6. ^ Curry, Ann (2009-02-10). "Her side of the story". Dateline NBC. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
  7. ^ Tracy Connor (02/05/2009). "Octuplet mom Nadya Suleman released from hospital - to what kind of future?". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2009-03-20. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ 'All I wanted was children', Telegraph.co.uk, February 7, 2009.
  9. ^ Garrison, Jessica; Yoshino, Kimi (2009-01-31). "Octuplets' mom was hoping for 'just one more girl,' grandmother says". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 19, 2010.
  10. ^ Powers, Lindsay (TUESDAY MARCH 3, 2009). "Octuplet Mom's Ex: We Split Because We Couldn't Have Kids" (HTML). usmagazine.com. Us Weekly. Retrieved 2009-03-04. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Dodd, Johnny (Tuesday March 03, 2009). "Octuplets' Mom's Ex: Those Aren't My Kids" (HTML). people.com. People Weekly. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ Los Angeles Times http://www.latimes.com/includes/misc/kamravaaccusation.pdf?loc=interstitialskip. Retrieved May 19, 2010. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  13. ^ Duke, Alan, "Medical society boots doctor who did IVF in Suleman octuplets case" CNN (October 19, 2009)
  14. ^ Rubin, Rita (2009-10-19). "'Octomom' doctor expelled from fertility group". USA Today. USA Today. Retrieved 2009-10-29. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  15. ^ Medical society probes octuplets’ conception, MSNBC, February 10, 2009
  16. ^ [1] Kamrava Accusation
  17. ^ The Octuplet Mom Speaks, and the Questions Grow February 7, 2009
  18. ^ Veil about to be lifted on octuplets' mystery mom, Associated Press, February 5, 2009
  19. ^ Threats send California octuplets mom into hiding Reuters, February 11, 2009
  20. ^ Octuplets' birth spawns outrage from public, Los Angeles Times, February 7, 2009
  21. ^ Yoshino, Kimi (2009-02-11). "Octuplets could be costly for taxpayers". latimes.com. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2009-03-08. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ MOHAJER, SHAYA TAYEFE (2009-02-11). "Taxpayers may have to cover octuplet mom's costs". Associated Press. Retrieved 2009-03-08.
  23. ^ Bryant, Carleton (2009-02-11). "Report: Octuplets likely to cost taxpayers millions". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2009-03-08.
  24. ^ I wanted a huge family to make up for my lonely childhood: Mother of octuplets speaks for the first time MailOnline February 7, 2009
  25. ^ Hospital may not release octuplets to mom February 25, 2009
  26. ^ "Octo Mom Brings Seventh Baby Home from Hospital". omg! news on Yahoo!. April 1, 2009.
  27. ^ "One to Go: Octo-Mom's 7th Baby Home". NBC San Diego. April 2, 2009. {{cite news}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |authors= (help)
  28. ^ "Octomom's van smashed with baby seat". The Daily Breeze.
  29. ^ "Nadya Suleman's Octuplets Turn 1!". People Magazine. January 26, 2010.
  30. ^ Publicists for octuplets' mother quit over death threats, Los Angeles Times, February 15, 2009
  31. ^ California octuplets mom passes on offer of 24-hour nursing care, The Canadian Press, February 28, 2009
  32. ^ http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/Story?id=7034980&page=1
  33. ^ Octuplets' mom: 'All I ever wanted', CNN, February 6, 2009
  34. ^ "Octomom Gets $1 Million Porn Offer From Vivid Entertainment". Fox News. February 25, 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
  35. ^ Octomom Nadya Suleman nixes porn offer – for her 14 kids' sake Retrieved on 2009-03-17.
  36. ^ Suleman, Allred, nurses wage war of words KABC, March 25, 2009
  37. ^ Octomom reality show reports; some networks reluctant The Live Feed
  38. ^ "Nadya Suleman and octuplets to star in reality show". The Times of London. 2009-07-26. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
  39. ^ "New Legal Challenge for Nadya Suleman". People. May 4, 2009. Retrieved January 28, 2010.
  40. ^ a b "Fox to air two-hour 'Octomom' special". MSNBC. August 10, 2009. Retrieved August 10, 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help) Cite error: The named reference "Fox_Octo_Special" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  41. ^ "Octomom Nadya Suleman to Appear on Oprah, Idol Gives Back". TVGuide.com. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  42. ^ "Octomom to Oprah: Angelina Who?". E! April 20, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  43. ^ Records: Home of octuplets' grandmother in default, Associated Press, February 18, 2009
  44. ^ Octuplets' Family Has Bankruptcy History, ABC News, January 30, 2009
  45. ^ "Octomom House Slips Into Foreclosure?". National Ledger. Mar 19, 2010. Retrieved Mar 24, 2010.
  46. ^ "Octomom Avoids Foreclosure if the Porn Is Right". Retrieved 03-25-2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  47. ^ "Questions over octuplets". The Sun. 2009-01-31.
  48. ^ Octuplets' Family Filed For Bankruptcy, CBS News, January 30, 2009
  49. ^ Octuplet Grandma Calls Daughter 'Unconscionable', ABC News, February 9, 2009
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