NATALIE Suleman made headlines in 2009 after she gave birth to octuplets, earning her the nickname “Octomom.”
Now, over a decade later Suleman is speaking out once more, this time for a new six-part docuseries titled Confessions of Octomom.
What is Natalie Suleman doing now?
Suleman is known as a mother of 14 children, all of whom she welcomed via in-vitro fertilization (IVF).
She gained attention for a groundbreaking achievement: being the first person ever to give birth to octuplets who all survived. Their names are Noah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Jonah, Josiah, Makai, Maliyah, and Nariyah.
At first, there was widespread shock and concern about how she would care for such a large family. Criticism mounted when she resorted to exotic dancing to make ends meet, a job she left a year later.
While she tends to stay out of the spotlight as much as possible, she is now speaking out again.
Aside from raising her bustling family, Suleman altered her name from Nadya to Natalie and occasionally offers a rare peek into her life for her supporters.
In 2018, she told the New York Times: “I was pretending to be a fake, a caricature, which is something I’m not, and I was doing it out of desperation and scarcity so I could provide for my family.
”I’ve been hiding from the real world all my life.”
Family life
Suleman has 14 children – her first six children were conceived via a “platonic friend donor”, while she used a “frozen anonymous donor” for the octuplets.
Suleman’s children include Elijah, Amerah, Joshua, Aiden, Calyssa, Caleb, Nariyah, Isaiah, Maliyah, Jeremiah, Noah, Josiah, Jonah, and Makai.
On January 27, 2025, she was seen posting about her eight youngest on their sweet 16th.
A post shared to Instagram read: ”Happy Sweet 16th birthday to Noah, Isaiah, Nariyah, Maliyah, Jeremiah, Josiah, Jonah, and Makai!
”You are loved, valued, and appreciated more than words can express!
The post continued: ”I am so blessed to have you all in my life, and excited and grateful for the journey we are about to embark.Â
”God has loved and protected you all for the past 16 years, and has great plans for each and every one of you!
”I’ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always, as long as I’m living, my babies you’ll be.”
IVF doctor
Dr. Michael Kamrava supervised all of Suleman’s IVF treatments but following the birth of her octuplets, his career took a turn for the worse.
Despite telling Suleman he had implanted only six embryos, the now-disgraced specialist actually implanted 12 well above the standard practice of two.
At the time of the treatment, Suleman was already a mother of six and was hoping for just one more baby.
Recalling that time in her life, she said: ”I do regret not suing the infertility doctor.”
She continued: ”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.
”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.”
Although Kamrava did not have to pay for his negligence, he did have his medical license revoked.
At the time, the Medical Board of California ruled that it was necessary to take away his license to protect the public.
“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),” the board said in its decision, via to CBS News.
During Kamrava’s hearing, he claimed that Suleman insisted on the procedure and had consented to undergo fetal reduction if too many of the babies became viable.
The board ultimately responded by saying: “A fetal reduction procedure has risks, including the loss of all pregnancy, and to assign even a scintilla of responsibility to a patient who becomes pregnant and then elects not to follow through with a procedure that may jeopardize her (and possibly her family’s) prized objective is troubling and telling.”
Suleman did however take legal action against the hospital where she gave birth ”because they breached HIPAA” by sharing her name and medical information with the media.
How to watch Confessions of Octomom
Confessions of Octomom is a six-part series that lands on Lifetime on Monday, March 10 at 10pm.
In a trailer shared ahead of the show, Suleman can be heard saying: ”I’ve been waiting a very long time to tell my story, and I believe the world is ready to hear it.”
Viewers can also watch the docuseries on streaming services that include Lifetime, such as Fubo, Philo, DirecTV Stream, or Sling.
