Woman gives birth to her grandson to help daughter who can't conceive

Friday, November 25, 2016 by: J. D. Heyes
Tags: surrogacy, infertility, women''s health

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(NaturalNews) It may seem odd to some folks, but to 48-year-old mother Megan Barker and her daughter, Maddie, it's a huge positive.

You see, recently Megan gave birth to her grandson.

Clutching baby Gus in a maternity ward in Chico, Calif., Megan admitted that she was exhausted after the labor, but she was also ecstatic, the UK's Daily Mail reported.

Why the role-reversal? When Maddie was 14, she was diagnosed with a condition known as Mayer Rokitansky Kuster Hauser Syndrome. That meant that her cervix and uterus did not fully develop as she grew, meaning that she would never be able to carry and bear children.

As they left the appointment at Stanford Hospital in tears, Megan promised her teenage daughter that she would carry her child if and when she eventually wanted to start a family. And she kept her word when, a decade later – on Oct. 22 of this year, at 7 pounds 7 ounces – Megan delivered her grandson, Maddie's son and first child with her husband Tyler Coleman, who was conceived through in-vitro fertilization.

A little weird at first

In an interview with People magazine, Maddie said, "My mom was with me at the appointment and we were both crushed. We cried and held each other as we walked to the car. But she stopped me, looked me in the eyes and said, 'When you get older and want a child, I'll carry your baby.'"

Being a teenager at the time, Maddie said she remembers thinking that would very strange and even a bit weird.

But last year, when doctors discovered a tumor on one over her ovaries, she decided to take her mother up on the promise made a decade earlier.

Before having the tumor removed in June, doctors told Maddie that she should consider fertility treatment because the surgery might make her menopausal. At that, she decided to have her eggs frozen, and then approached her mother after talking it over with her husband first.

Maddie said the couple had looked at surrogacy but, at about $75,000, it was prohibitively expensive. And, she said, "At first, I couldn't wrap my mind around the idea of mom carrying our baby." However, after taking some time to get a mental grip on the idea she overcame her hesitation, and was "mostly excited and so grateful" to her mother.

When Maddie asked, Megan readily agreed to carry her grandchild. She said she understood how important it was for her daughter to become a mother, and though there were other choices – like adoption – she "wanted her to know a biological baby was a viable option," she told People.

The surrogate grandmother said she was incredibly fortunate to be able to give her daughter and son-in-law the chance to have their own biological baby, and that the IVF treatment worked the first time.

Ready to do it again

"It's the greatest gift," Megan said.

"She's my mom, and she's my best friend," said Maddie. "I think it's amazing that a mother would do this for her child."

Megan said she was advised that because she was the physical "mother," she could develop some strong emotional ties to the baby. But she said that fortunately that never occurred because she knew from the outset that biologically speaking, the baby was not actually part of her. "I was just a deluxe Easy-Bake Oven," she told CBS affiliate WAFB.

"When I see Maddie and Tyler holding him and feeding him and being the mommy and daddy, it's the best thing," she said.

And Megan admitted that she isn't done being a surrogate mom – that is, if her daughter and son-on-law want another child.

For now, the young couple says, they are happy with little Gus.

Sources:

DailyMail.co.uk

People.com

WAFB.com