Octomom Natalie 'Nadya' Suleman Opens Up About 'Profoundly Autistic' Son Aidan: 'I Knew When He Was Born' (Exclusive)

Yahoo

10-03-2025

Natalie 'Nadya' Suleman's son Aidan has a special place in her heart.
"He's the light of my life and I love him," says Suleman of her adult son who has autism and is non-verbal. Aidan along with his 13 siblings will be featured in Lifetime's upcoming docuseries Confessions of Octomom, premiering March 10.
"He's the biggest blessing of my life," she says. He's also the child who has needed her the most. "I'd say the greatest struggle for me, and it always will be a struggle, is caring for my son, Aidan. He's profoundly autistic, he's total care."
One of her six older children who she welcomed via IVF prior to welcoming her octuplets, Aidan was diagnosed early on. But when it comes to Suleman, "I knew when he was born, mom's intuition," she says. And, "because he never made eye contact. He never achieved the milestones that babies do in child development, and he never crawled. He scooted on his butt. There was holes in all the bottoms of his pants."
Related: No Meat, No Phones, No Social Media: Inside Octomom Natalie 'Nadya' Suleman's Strict Rules for Teen Octuplets (Exclusive)
Furthermore, she describes, "His first words were not words. They were babbling, and they never changed. So immediately, he was maybe 15 months, I started taking him right away to get assessed he got diagnosed by 17 months with autism."
Years later, after she welcomed the octuplets, "he was just like one of the eight, and I would just have him more with me than anyone," she says. "The kids would always be around him, and he wouldn't require too much. His diaper, he had a bottle when he was younger, feeding him. And I would talk to him, sing to him all the time."
But, she says, "Now he's big, so he requires a lot more. I'm very fortunate, actually that he's not violent. There's some kids that are adults that are really violent and they're dangerous. Poor Aidan, he's actually been bitten by kids that were more severe at his school. But he'd never hurt a fly, so that's really, really a blessing."
Back in 2013 Suleman left the spotlight and returned to work as a counselor. But in 2018, "I had to leave my job," says Suleman. "Aidan's needs were becoming overwhelming. He's like a full-time job for four people. I've always been his only provider, but I never got paid. So in 2018, that's when I started to get actually paid." She adds, "It's decent money, but it's still nothing compared to what we need to make to be comfortable in life."
Related: Octomom Natalie 'Nadya' Suleman Reveals Why She Disappeared from the Public Eye in 2013 (Exclusive)
But when it comes to caring for Aidan, Suleman isn't alone. "The kids all look out for him," she says of her 13 other children.
Especially, her youngest octuplet, 16-year-old son Makai. "I really love my brother Aidan and I especially love helping with feeding him and giving him water," he tells PEOPLE. Adds his mom, "You'll hear him singing to him and teaching him or showing him his iPad and all that. Aidan is like our baby."
"But," says Makai, "still he's very smart."
I Was Octomom premiered March 8, while Confessions of Octomom premieres March 10, both on Lifetime.
Read the original article on People