Im the surrogate mother trying to save a babys life but the biological parents wanted an abortion
Surrogate mother McKenna West was horrified when the parents of the baby she was carrying ordered her to abort the child over a birth defect.West moved to Texas and gave birth, with the biological parents taking the child.
With the two sides still locked in a legal battle, West tells The Post the only thing she wants:I’m a mom and cardiac nurse from Alaska, and I’ve spent my career keeping people alive.Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I’d spend this year fighting in courtrooms in three states to preserve the heartbeat of a baby I delivered myself.Due to the onslaught of media coverage about my case — some true, some not — I’d like to set the record straight on what happened and why I’m fighting for this precious baby boy.Last year, I agreed to be a surrogate for a couple in California.
In April, when I was 20 weeks pregnant with the child, a routine ultrasound revealed the reason I now find myself embroiled in multiple bitter legal battles: The baby I carried had hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a serious, but treatable, congenital heart defect.To treat a baby with HLHS, surgeons perform a staged repair, beginning with the Norwood procedure shortly after birth, followed by two more surgeries.This medical treatment gives children a high chance of going on to live full lives.Yet when the contracting couple heard about the HLHS diagnosis, my worst fears came true: They ordered me to terminate the pregnancy.
They wanted me to abort the precious child I was carrying.No woman should be forced to kill the baby inside her.Most importantly, every child deserves a chance to live.As a cardiac nurse, I knew this little one had a great shot at survival if given the opportunity to receive the necessary treatment.After I communicated to the contracting couple that I could not end this baby’s life, their lawyer and my own former lawyer sent me letters threatening six-figure penalties if I didn’t comply with their demand to terminate.
The contracting co...