Posted by
American Sweetheart on Wednesday, February 04, 2009 8:46:00 PM
I am appalled by this woman. Children are a miracle and I honestly feel heartache for couples that need to resort to fertility treatments to have children. I cannot imagine the expense, levels of disappointment when treatments don't work, and just the general stress that women and men that are infertile go through when all they want to do is bring a healthy, happy child into this world. But this is an entirely different case.
This woman, Nadya Doud, is 33 and has 14 children. The first 6 (also each conceived via in vitro fertilization), are ranging between the ages of 2 and 7. The two year olds are twins.
Neighbors speculate that this woman is a good mother. While I do not doubt her love for these children, there is more to being a good mother than love. Anyone can love a child. But it takes a strong, responsible adult to CARE for a child. That is a completely separate part of being a parent. Being able to provide the medical and financial care for one child can be a struggle, even on what most would consider a good salary. Caring for 14, half of which are pre-maturely born newborns though is an astronomical cost that even the most well-to-do couple would struggle with on top of their normal bills and expenses.
Some people are saying that we should leave Ms. Doud be because this is none of the public's business. The problem with that statement is that her inability to provide for all of these children automatically MAKES this the business of the public.
Let's look at this realistically.
A case of diapers costs roughly $27.99. That is for around 116 diapers for a size 3 (probably closer to 140 for size newborn if I remember correctly from a year ago). Add in that if you want to be cost efficient on wipes, you will purchase refill packs of 3 rather than single dispenser boxes that run around $3-4 each. (3 refill packs are about $4.00 if you get the Target or Wal Mart brands). Now add in a can of formula, averaging around $24 for the large powder mix or $14 for the standard 12-14 oz. (I cannot imagine that she could POSSIBLY produce enough milk to feed 8 children, as most women that feed twins will spend approximately 12 hours a day just feeding). Now add in clothing. One pack of onesies (about 3 or 4 to a pack) runs around $8-10. Sleepers you can get for about $6 at Target. Bottles, you can get a 3 pack of the generic Target brand for $6, but that does not mean that the baby will take that bottle. I had to try 2 or 3 types of different nipple flows just to get Jordan to take a bottle that he was comfortable with. Pediatrician visits, you may have an average $15 co-pay for one child. So 8 infants that will be seen at 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 1 year...$960 in copays for the regular check ups. Now what if those children become ill? Separate doctor visits, more co-pays, plus antibiotics, also factor in that out of 8 children, probably at least 1 of them is likely to need to visit a specialist for something like being suceptible to ear infections, maybe bad allergies, bad case of eczema, poor eyesight, etc.
Do we see the point here? That is all for 8 infants. Ms. Doud has 6 other children all under the age of 8 that are not exempt from falling off a bicycle and breaking an arm or getting chicken pox from a class mate and spreading it to the other siblings (imagine 14 children at home with chicken pox).
Ms. Pilchman in the video is wrong. Plain and simple. This is an extreme case of selfishness. Like O'Reilly I want to know what would have possessed a doctor to implant 8 embryos into a woman that already has 6 children and has obviously not had an issue with the in vitro method of conception.
Ms. Doud may love being a parent, but these children are living in a 3 bedroom home. She is relying on the kindness of others to help with her children, however it is not her friend's responsibility to care for these children. People can be kind and helpful and I believe in helping your neighbor, but your neighbor cannot raise your children.
What about the other 6 children? What kind of attention will she be able to give them with 8 newborns to care for? No husband to help. I know personally how hard it can be to take care of 1 infant without the help of a husband. It is not easy. I am currently listening to my 1 year old crying in his crib while I write this because we are on day 2 of tough love, he has to learn to put himself to sleep at bedtime in his crib instead of sleep with mommy. I could never do 8 babies plus putting 6 other kids to bed. I don't know many that could.
At this time, Ms. Doud's employment is in question. She has a degree in child and adolescent development from California State University and is reported to have a psychiatric technicians license.
This is the public's business because WE are going to be paying for these children. The kindness and generosity of others will not be enough for one to successfully raise 14 children. It will not be enough to cloth them, take them to appointments, help them with their homework, feed them.
This is an outrage. The American people should be livid. I question this woman's state of mind. I question anyone that would be possessed to do something like this.
And we can all thank Ms. Doud when we receive the bill for their healthcare and food.