Upamanyu Biswas
Lifetime’s ‘I Was Octomom: The Natalie Suleman Story’ uncovers the true story of Natalie Suleman, a woman who was branded as Octomom by the media after she gave birth to the first surviving octuplet in 2009. The biopic film delves into the challenges Natalie faced as she tried to juggle her parental responsibilities with an increased public interest in her personal life. As the story progresses, the anxieties and fears begin to overwhelm the protagonist as she struggles to take care of her fourteen children as a single mom. Subsequently, she is provided help by a rehab center known as the Morrison House, which becomes an integral part of the narrative. Although her stay at the center is brief, it provides her a haven in a critical moment of her life and hope for a brighter future.
Morrison House is a Fictional Rehab Center With Some Ties to Reality
Although ‘I Was Octomom: The Natalie Suleman Story’ is largely based on Natalie Suleman’s motherhood challenges, the film fictionalizes certain elements, including some character details, places, and events. This extends to the Morrison House rehab center depicted in the Lifetime project. It is a fictional institution crafted by the film’s scriptwriter, Kelly Fullerton. After years of struggling through her different jobs and role as a mother, Natalie, also known as Nadya, ends up being admitted to Morrison House in the movie to deal directly with a lot of her issues and battle against her substance abuse. While the facility is fictional, it is likely a stand-in for Chapman House Treatment Center, a mental health rehab center in Orange County, California, where the real-life Nadya checked herself in around 2012.
After constantly taking care of her fourteen children and numerous jobs, Nadya was struggling with a host of internal problems that were taking a toll on her psychologically, such as anxiety, stress, and exhaustion. As a result, she was admitted into Chapman House to finally alleviate a list of growing issues. She checked herself in for a rough treatment period of around 28 days. At the time, her doctor had reportedly prescribed her Xanax for her troubles. Not long after her rehab treatment, she pulled away from her Octomom celebrity persona and adopted a more private life away from the media’s glare. It allegedly helped her recalibrate her life to an extent. In a 2018 report, Nadya stated that she also began working as a full-time counselor, which allowed her more leeway financially.
In the movie, Nadya also leaves her Octomom avatar behind after seeing the disruption it causes to her life as a mom. Like her real-life counterpart, Nadya becomes a counselor in the aftermath, gaining a spot at Morrison House itself. Thus, the fictional facility ends up playing a vital role in transforming the protagonist’s life after years of toil, self-proclaimed mistakes, and constant parental duties. She also gets a new house to live in courtesy of the work package Morrison House offers. Indirectly, the rehab center plays the most crucial role in Nadya’s life, impacting it profoundly and offering her a new lease on her identity. Still, its narrative prominence does not change the fact that it remains a fictional location that cannot be found in reality.
Read More: I Was Octomom The Natalie Suleman Story: Filming Locations and Cast Details
