One woman made the selfless decision to assist others by becoming a surrogate mother in the state of California. Jessica Allen already had a wonderful family of her own, consisting of her husband and their two children. As a result, she made the decision that she wanted to contribute to the happiness of other couples who either could not conceive on their own or chose not to do so. She successfully had an embryo implanted after deciding to become a surrogate mother and being connected with another couple. However, a few weeks later, she had a peculiar event that would alter the course of her life in an irreversible manner.

In 2016, it was discovered that Allen was unexpectedly expecting a pair of children at the same time. She was already being compensated by the family for whom she was acting as a surrogate, but after they found out they were going to have two kids instead of just one, they doubled the amount. Allen joyfully went through with the surrogacy and gave birth to both children through cesarean section on December 12, 2016, at Riverside Community Hospital in Riverside, California. After just one month had passed, she was confronted with yet another unexpected turn in the plot when she got some news that she had not been expecting.

It was discovered that the other couple was only biologically responsible for one of the infants in the litter. Allen and her husband Wardell Jasper had had another kid together while she was pregnant as a surrogate, which means that the second baby was biologically hers. While she was carrying the child for another couple, Allen and Wardell Jasper had conceived another child. She had been mistakenly led to think that she was the mother of a pair of twins when in reality, she was the mother of two distinct newborns who shared no DNA. Allen immediately began working on getting her biological kid back home and completing her lovely family, and shortly afterwards, a custody dispute sprang out between the two parties.

Allen discussed the day that she gave birth to what she believed to be a pair of identical twins during an interview with the New York Post. She also discussed the numerous turns and issues that followed after the delivery of her children. “It was specified in my contract for $35,000 that I was permitted one hour with the newborns before they were released from the maternity section,” Allen said. “This was the only time I could spend with them before they left the maternity unit.” However, the biological parents for whom she had served as a surrogate would not consent to it, and she was only given a photograph of the children she had carried. At this point, Allen became aware of the striking similarities and differences between them.

It was discovered that the disparities between them extended much beyond their superficial features. According to an article published in the New York Post, the two infants in question were not in fact identical twins but rather two infants who shared neither their DNA nor their parents. Allen and Jasper were the biological parents of one of the babies, while the other baby was the biological offspring of the other couple.

Allen became pregnant with the other couple’s kid via the process of in vitro fertilization, but she also conceived her own child through natural means at the same time. According to an article that was published by Good Morning America, this extremely uncommon occurrence is known as superfetation. Superfetation is said to take place when a woman continues to ovulate after becoming pregnant, which results in two babies having different sets of parents and different gestational ages.

Allen shared his sad story with Good Morning America, telling them, “I carried my own kid and I didn’t know he was mine.” Allen started the legal process to get custody of one of the children since he was her biological child and she wanted him to return with her to their house. According to News24, the mother gave the other pair a “compensation” amounting to anywhere between $18,000 and $22,000 so that she could acquire full legal custody of her kid in February of 2017. This allowed her family to be reunited after having been broken apart for so long.

Even before Allen was awarded custody of her kid, she gave the following interview to CBC News:

“This is a form of anguish that you are never going to get over because they took something from me that I will never get back,” said the person.

Allen reportedly even changed her son’s name after she eventually obtained custody of him again, as reported by the New York Post.

“As a result, on February 5, I finally met a caseworker from Omega in the parking lot of a Starbucks in Menifee, California. She handed us our boy, whom we have now christened Malachi,”

As soon as Allen was reunited with her kid, she had a flood of strong emotions. In her words:

“The situation was really upsetting, and I immediately began comforting my son by giving him hugs and kisses. Malachi has been with us for almost to nine months, and since then, he has been doing very well. He is quite attractive. He has a humorous personality in addition to being in good physical shape. He adores his older brothers, is just beginning to talk, and is working on his walking skills.”

Allen continued to explain how she and her husband did not genuinely intend to have another child, as she said in an interview with the New York Post:

“After getting married in April, Wardell and I hadn’t intended to have a family quite so quickly, but the addition of Malachi has completely changed our perspectives. I don’t have any regrets about being a surrogate mother because if I did, it would indicate that I regretted having a child. I really want other ladies who are contemplating surrogacy to take something from from my experience. And that some higher and more important good will emerge from this nightmare.”

Legalize Surrogacy reports that the complaint has the following to say about the circumstances involved in the case:

“The defendants have already caused the harm that has to be repaired, and Jessica, Wardell, and most crucially Malachi are now forced to deal with the long-lasting effects of the wrongs that the defendants committed against them.”