In a recent interview with Ann Curry, Nadya Suleman, the woman who gave birth to octuplets, claimed that she feels judged and misunderstood (www.nbcnewyork.com) Pinning the negative feedback on the fact that she is a single mother, Suleman stated that she did what couples struggling to have kids do all the time, and it’s not “as controversial because they are couples.”

Uh….no. In my opinion, whether you are a couple or a single mom is really  besides the point.

Yes, Ms. Suleman is a single mother, but her story doesn’t stop there. She also has six other children, one with autism and all conceived via IVF. She is unemployed, and she lives with her parents in a three-bedroom bungalow. Certainly, these issues would be considered red flags regardless of one’s marital status.

Unfortunately, Ms. Suleman does not stand alone in her responsibility. The fact that she made this choice with medical assistance, and that doctors chose to transfer six embryos rather than the two embryos recommended under industry guidelines, is a sad example of the medical system gone awry.

A recent editorial in the Orlando Sentinel put it this way:

“…Ms. Suleman forged ahead, recklessly…and may have set a new standard for crossing the line….IVF has proven a miracle for so many. Perhaps the saddest part of all is to see it so flippantly abused.”

Marina Lombardo