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Topics: Parenting, TV And Film, Real Life
Lucy Devine
Topics: Parenting, TV And Film, Real Life
Natalie Suleman - also known as 'Octomum' - has revealed her biggest regret after giving birth to 14 children.
Around 16 years ago, Natalie gave birth to the world's first surviving octuplets but decided to step away from the spotlight in 2013.
Over a decade on and Natalie has a new film, I was Octomum, set to air on Lifetime, as well as a follow-up documentary titled Confessions of Octomum which will see Natalie open up about her journey and her 14 children, born via IVF.
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You can watch the trailer below. Please note, this trailer discusses suicide.
Ahead of the shows, Natalie has spoken about her experience and why she decided to have such a big family.
"Natalie Suleman is just a mom of many and she is very, very, very grateful," she told People.
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"We are a loving family and we're there for each other. All of my kids are just very humble, grounded, kind people with good hearts.
"I wasn't happy as an only child, and clearly I projected my dream onto my kids and wanting a big, well, not this big of a family, but I did want seven kids.
"But it's not enough to say I wanted a big family because I was lonely. There is an amalgamation of factors. I wanted kids to create maybe a safe and predictable little world that I lacked growing up. So then of course, I projected onto my future family."
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Natalie explained that although she never planned to have 14, once she set her mind to something, she worked 'relentlessly'.
"When I set my mind to achieving a goal, I am laser focused and then I hyper-focus, and then I work relentlessly to achieve the goal," she explained.
"But in retrospect, I may have possibly overachieved with kids. I didn't intend on having this many."
Natalie was under the medical care of Dr Michael Kamrava, who admitted to implanting her with 12 embryos, despite Natalie claiming he had told her he had implanted six.
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"I'm sorry for what happened. When I look back, I wish I had never done it," said Kamrava at his hearing in 2011.
"It's a very risky, unhealthy pregnancy. She's lucky she made it through, both for the babies and her."
He was stripped of his medical license, with the medical board explaining: "While the evidence did not establish (Kamrava) as a maverick or deviant physician, oblivious to standards of care in IVF practice, it certainly demonstrated that he did not exercise sound judgment in the transfer of twelve embryos to (Suleman)."
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But Natalie says she regrets not suing the doctor.
"I do regret not suing the infertility doctor. I definitely regret that because his insurance would've been the one paying, and it would've been some millions, and it would've been helpful for my family," she said.
"I regret that I kind of threw myself under the bus to cover for him, and I shouldn't have but I was grateful. I wouldn't have had any of my kids if it weren't for his innovative technique. No one else in the world did this type of procedure so I didn't have it in my heart to sue him."
Tyla has contacted Kamrava for comment.