A grandmother has gone through the ultimate labor of love - acting as a gestational carrier for her daughter and giving birth to her own twin granddaughters.
Susie Kozisek, from Iowa, gave birth to Hallee and Hadlee in July, because her daughter, Ashley Larkin, has pulmonary hypertension and cannot get pregnant.
The 53-year-old was also the gestational carrier for Mrs Larkin's older daughter, Harper, born in June 2011.
Special bond: Susie Kozisek, from Iowa, gave birth to Hallee and Hadlee in July, because her daughter, Ashley Larkin, has pulmonary hypertension and cannot get pregnant
'I heard about the procedure on a talk show and decided to check out the possibility of me doing this for them so they could have kids of their own if they wanted,' Ms Kozisek told ABC News.
A gestational carrier will carry the carry a pregnancy for another woman who cannot carry a pregnancy for herself.
After successful in vitro fertilization, the resulting embryo is then implanted into a gestational carrier's uterus.
The Larkin twins' embryos were kept in storage after an in vitro fertilization took place in October 2010 at the Mayo Clinic. They were the implanted in Ms Kozisek's uterus in November 2012.
'I've always been close with my mom even before this so that hasn't changed and I'm grateful she will have such a special bond with her grandkids,' Mrs Larkin said.
Happy family: The Larkin twins' embryos were kept in storage after an in vitro fertilization took place in October 2010 at the Mayo Clinic. They were the implanted in Ms Kozisek's uterus in November 2012
Ms Kozisek said said she stayed healthy throughout both gestational pregnancies and continued her job as a legal secretary.
While the ordeal seems relatively straightforward, the Mayo Clinic's Dr. Jani Jensen, who performed the in vitro fertilizations, said it is extremely uncommon 'for a mother to act as a gestational carrier for her own child.'
But even though Ms Kozisek is on the older end of a pregnancy spectrum, Dr Jensen said she 'was a good candidate because she'd carried previous pregnancies successfully and was in excellent health.'
She added: 'They are a testament to the profound love a mother can have for her child. It is an incredible thing this mother did so her daughter could have children.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2393532/Now-thats-labor-love-Woman-gives-birth-twin-grandchildren-volunteering-gestational-carrier-daughter.html#ixzz2c3WuZnmM
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