Five Babies for a Surrogate Mother

On the news yesterday was a story about an Arizona lady who is giving up the $15000 contracted fee for being a surrogate mother for a couple childless for nine years. She seems like a hero at first glance. Teresa Anderson says she realized how much it was going to cost the childless couple to raise the FIVE BABIES SHE IS CARRYING. Quints are definitely rare, but not so unusual these days because of the fertility drugs. There are some real problems with her situation as pointed out in an Arizona newspaper's recent article.

I am not so much concerned about the number of children she is carrying. What bothers me is how disconnected from the lives of these babies she portrays herself to be. She says that when the doctors discovered how many there were, the doctors asked her about "selective reduction" - (a.k.a. selective fetal homicide). She was willing to do whatever the Gonzalezes wanted to do. They were obviously reluctant to tell her that she had to keep all five, but thankfully, that is the conclusion to which they all came. Teresa now admits that this pregnancy is keeping her from being able to focus on her own two children. Obviously, the biology belongs to the Gonzalez couple, but the hormones, pain, and stress mostly belong to Teresa.

It is big of her to forego the money and give up her livelihood for several months - no doubt. However, the nice parts of this story are covering up another confusing tragedy in which these children will just change hands without their mother seeming to have any emotional attachment.