Are you considering using gestational surrogacy to build your family? You’re certainly not alone. Many couples facing fertility issues, single parents and LGBTQ families work with gestational surrogates.
If the world of surrogacy is new to you, it’s understandable if you find the topic daunting at first. Fortunately, fertility clinics around the country, including Fertility Solutions, are experienced in working with patients and their chosen surrogate. So, a process that was once foreign and overwhelming becomes straightforward and exciting.
Why would a gestational surrogate be needed?
- In cases where the female partner does not have a uterus
- In cases where the female partner is unable to carry a pregnancy to term (recurrent miscarriage)
- In cases where a medical condition that does not allow for a pregnancy is present
- For same-sex male couples
How does gestational surrogacy work?
The first step in the surrogacy process while working with Fertility Solutions is to schedule a consultation to discuss surrogacy with your physician. If surrogacy is the recommended option for your growing family, the second step is to choose a surrogate mother. Patients have the option of working with a surrogate who is a close friend or family member, or they can be matched with a surrogate through a third-party reproduction agency. Fertility Solutions can provide an agency referral in the event one is needed, so please let us know.
Once you are matched with a surrogate mother, the surrogacy contract, or agreement, is created. Both the intended parents and the surrogate will work with attorneys who specialize in reproductive legalities to craft this agreement. Fertility Solutions can also provide a referral for an attorney if you’d like. After the legal agreement is complete, you can begin the medical side of the process.
Per the medical side, your gestational surrogate will be provided with medications to align her menstrual cycle with the intended mother’s cycle or in protocol with donor eggs. Sperm from the male intended parent(s) will be used with the retrieved egg(s) to create an embryo (in vitro fertilization), which will be implanted in the surrogate’s uterus. Any remaining embryos created during the IVF process can be cryopreserved for future use if the intended parents desire that to be done.
Once a pregnancy is confirmed, the surrogate will continue obstetrical care with an obstetrician for the duration of her pregnancy.
If you’d like to learn more about gestational surrogacy, please contact Fertility Solutions.