Becoming a surrogate is an extraordinary act of kindness but there are a lot of steps involved to make it happen. Let's take a look at what some of the requirements and steps involved are.
Step 1: Application and Profile is created.
Once your online application is received by the surrogacy agency office, your information will be reviewed and an intake interview will be set up, either by phone, Skype or in office. A surrogate must meet certain requirements to be able to move on to the next phase of meeting intended parents. You will receive an email with important documents to complete prior to the interview. Medical records (prenatal and delivery) from all past pregnancies will be requested from your doctor.
A profile will then be created based on your interview and application information (with identifying and private information removed) which will eventually be provided to prospective Intended Parents (IP’s) to view. Since this is the main source of information the IP’s will view about you, it is recommended that you let your personality show through as much as possible.
Step 2: Matching Process
The time line of the matching process can vary. You may be on the database for less than a week or it may take months. Some of the factors that can have an impact on this:
1. Location – your preference for a local or long distance (international) intended parent
2. Preference for intended family structure (ex: couples only, individuals, same sex or heterosexual)
3. Whether or not you are comfortable with decisions to terminate and/or reduce pregnancies and what situations would affect your decision-making process.
It is essential you take the time to think about what your personal beliefs and needs are in order to ensure the match is compatible with your value system. Once there are interested IP’s whose profile is complimentary with yours, you will be contacted by your Coordinator. At this time you will be provided with information about the prospective IP’s. Once there is mutual interest we try to arrange for a Match Meeting. Depending on the situation, this meeting may be via video chat or sometimes in person. It is after this meeting that you and the IP’s will decide if there is a compatible match and a desire to go forward together.
Step 3: Medical & Psychological Screening
A full medical screening, at the Intended Parent’s IVF clinic, will be scheduled upon being matched. This will include a vaginal ultrasound, referred to as a hysteroscopy, and a full panel of blood tests, including drug and STD. If travel is required, your Case Manager will assist you with making necessary travel arrangements.
You will be contacted by one of our psychologists to set up your psychological evaluation. Expect this test and interview process to be at least 3-4 hours.
If applicable, your significant other/sexual partner will need to participate in medical and psychological screening, as well.
Step 4: Contracts
Once you have passed medical screening, the drafting of your legal contract will begin. You will receive an Engagement letter from your attorney so he/she may represent you. Once the contracts have been completely drafted, your attorney will forward this draft to you for your review. This contract will be between you and your IP’s. We highly recommend that you make notes on the draft of the contract to be certain you understand it and have any questions noted prior to your review. The contract review will be done over the phone or in person. This is when your attorney will go over the entire contract to ensure you understand it and have no other revisions.
Once you agree with the contract, it goes back to the IP’s attorney. This is the stage where the contracts are finalized, and everybody signs and notarizes them. Once the contract is finalized there is NO changing it. This is the document that all payments and decisions are made by.
Step 5: Start of IVF Cycle & Medications
Once you have legal clearance, meaning all parties have signed and notarized and returned the copies to their respective attorneys, we will notify the clinic to receive a cycle calendar. This calendar will provide you with a timeline of when you will begin to take medications and schedule your monitoring appointments, in preparation of the embryo transfer.
Step 6: Embryo Transfer
The embryo transfer happens approximately 4 weeks after the start of injectable medications. The transfer itself is about a 10-minute procedure. Some doctors will use ultrasound guidance during this procedure.
Step 7: Pregnancy
Most IVF Physicians will perform the first blood pregnancy test approximately 10 days after the transfer, depending on how the calendar falls. You will have two blood tests and one or two ultrasounds, to detect fetal heartbeat, confirming a positive pregnancy.
Step 8: The Delivery
When a surrogate approaches the birth it can be emotional since everything you have been working for during the past year is almost at a close. While this is the end of the pregnancy it is the start of a new life, a new family and a moment you have made happen.
Step 9: Postpartum
Surrogacy postpartum will be different from the postpartum experienced with the birth of your own child(ren) since most significantly, there is no baby to focus your attention on. Although many surrogates claim that not having a newborn to care for when recovering from a birth is one of the benefits to surrogacy, it is normal to have conflicting feelings.Remember it typically takes six (6) to eight (8) weeks to fully recover from a birth and enjoy not having those night-time feedings.
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