Nadya Suleman

Nadya Denise Doud-Suleman (born Natalie Denise Suleman; July 11, 1975) known as Octomom in the media, is an American woman who came to international attention when she gave birth to octuplets in January 2009. The Suleman octuplets are only the second full set of octuplets to be born alive in the United States. One week after their birth, they 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. 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 denies ever having used public assistance. She conceived the octuplets and her six older children via in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Marriage and divorce


In 1996, Suleman married Marco Gutierrez. They separated in 2000. Gutierrez filed for divorce in November 2006, which was finalized in January 2008. In an interview with Inside Edition Gutierrez explained their divorce was due to failed attempts to have children. Suleman was desperate and wanted to try in-vitro fertilization, but he disliked the idea of test tube babies and refused. Gutierrez said he is not the father of any of Suleman's children and that he wishes his ex-wife the best.
Gutierrez later remarried and has two biological children.


Children


Suleman began IVF treatments in 1997, when she was 21 years old, under the supervision of Dr. Michael Kamrava, who was expelled from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in October 2009. In 2001, Suleman gave birth to her first child, a son named Elijah. After her first daughter, Amerah, was born in 2002, she received additional IVF treatments, which resulted in three additional consecutive pregnancies (including one set of fraternal twins) and a total of six children (four sons, two daughters).


Suleman quickly captured the public eye with the birth of octuplets. Within the first week, the media dubbed her "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.Her next spokesman was Victor Munoz, who quit on March 6, 2009.
Suleman has appeared on many television shows, starting with a February 2009 interview with 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". Suleman would later make another appearance later in March on Dr. Phil alongside fellow guest Gloria Allred. Allred had a list of criticisms regarding Suleman's performance as mother and homemaker. She has also said on many occasions she wished these kids would hurry and get a job. She says the whole reason for having the kids was so she wouldnt have to work.
On April 16, 2009, Suleman revealed she struck a deal for a reality TV show in the UK, though The Hollywood Reporter said some US networks were reluctant to pick up the show. 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. 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. Later Fox aired their own two-hour special titled, Octo-Mom: The Incredible Unseen Footage, aired on August 19. There were many parodies and other media events based on the story, including a 2009 musical performed in Los Angeles, although she was not involved in its production.


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. Suleman's parents filed for bankruptcy in 2008, citing nearly $1 million in liabilities. In March 2010 it was reported that Suleman's own La Habra house was facing foreclosure.

Suleman's father, Edward Doud Suleman, 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. Suleman's mother, Angela Victoria Suleman, 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. ABC News, February 9, 2009