Florida woman who was switched at birth opens up about divorcing her biological parents, blowing her million-dollar settlement and being a mom to six children by four different fathers 

• Kimberly Mays and Arlena Twigg were switched at birth in 1979, something that came to light after Arlena had a blood test as a child
• The hospital eventually settled with the Twiggs for $7million and Kimberly and her father for $6.6million 
• The Twiggs set out to find Kimberly after Arlena died of a congenital heart disease, and when she was 11 began to visit with the girl
• After Kimberly's father Robert Mays cancelled the visitations, the Twiggs sought full custody of Kimberly 
• Kimberly responded by suing the Twiggs to terminate their parental rights, winning her case
• She would eventually split her time between both families even after the case, and married when she was 18
• Kimberly, 36, now has six children by four fathers, has worked as a stripper and was homeless for a few months of her life 

By CHRIS SPARGO FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

PUBLISHED: 13:46 EST, 30 November 2015 | UPDATED: 17:18 EST, 30 November 2015

A Florida woman who learned she had been switched at birth when she was still a child is opening up about her tumultuous teenage years and her life now as a 36-year-old mother of six children.

Kimberly Mays made national headlines in 1988 when it was revealed that she and another girl, Arlena Twigg, had been given to the wrong parents.

This was revealed after Arlena - who died of a genetic heart defect at 9-years-old - had a blood test which showed that Ernest and Regina Twigg were not her biological parents, and that it was Robert Mays and his late-wife Barbara who were her parents.

Over the course of the next 10 years Kimberly would move in with the Twiggs, divorce the Twiggs and move back in with Robert, run away multiple times and eventually marry her high school boyfriend and give birth to a son Devin. 

She has avoided the spotlight for years, but is now speaking about her life with Barbara Walters for an episode of Barbra Walters Presents American Scandals airing Monday night on Investigation Discovery.

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Switched at birth: Kimberly Mays (above) became the focus of national media attention as a teenager when it was revealed she had been switched at birth

 

 

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Wrong mom: Kimberly had been given to Barbara Mays (above) who was not her biological mother

 

 

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Wrong mom too: Barbara's daughter was given to Regina Twigg, who named the girl Arlena (above)

Kimberly was born on November 29, 1978 at Hardee Memorial Hospital in Wauchula, Florida. Three days later, on December 2, Arlena was born at the same hospital. 

Kimberly was delivered quickly after her heart rate began to go down while her mother was in labor while the Twiggs were told they had given birth to a healthy baby girl.

Right as they were about to check-out of the hospital however, the Twiggs were told their daughter had a heart problem, something they had previously had experience with and which had caused the death of a previous child. 

Arlena's heart began to fail just days after leaving the hospital, leading to problems with her lungs, but the newborn managed to survive and hold on for nine more years.

While undergoing a blood test in her childhood years the Twiggs learned that Arlena was not their daughter, but at the time decided to focus on their daughter's health, which was rapidly deteriorating as she got older.

She passed away in 1988 during open-heart surgery. Shortly after the Twiggs set out to find their lost child.

They went public with their search, which soon revealed that only two white babies had been born in the hospital during the time of Arlena's birth.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3339699/Florida-woman-switched-birth-opens-divorcing-biological-parents-blowing-million-dollar-settlement-mom-six-children-four-different-fathers.html#ixzz3t174Z7y7 
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