Why do same-sex couples consider surrogacy (especially male couples) when the road is filled with so many decisions, hurdles and problems when you can adopt? One of the most obvious reason is the biological tie to the child. The second reason is the obstacles a same-sex couple face adopting a non-biological child. Co-jointly adoption for same-sex couples became legal since 2001 but your options are still limited as biological mothers rarely chose a same-sex couple as adoptive parents. Your options are limited to trans-cultural/racial adoption should you look at adoption as a white same-sex couple. Majority of couples prefer to adopt within their own race group due to other issues involved. Social workers advise same-sex couples to first identify the child they want to adopt and then start the proceedings. Your chances are limited, if not nil on a waiting list. Intercountry adoptions are littered with politics and work agreements; sadly many of them do not cater for same-sex couples.
Surrogates get mostly use by a male same-sex couples or a single male. A surrogate is somebody that is willing to carry a child for a couple for the duration of the pregnancy and then hand the child over, once he/she is born. It is very important for you to know the
laws of the country on surrogacy and to safe-guard yourself.
A surrogate is an unique type of person who is willing to give life to somebody else. There are two types of surrogacy available: Traditional Surrogacy and Gestational Surrogacy.
Traditional Surrogacy:
Not as common and many agencies steer clear of this type of surrogate. A Traditional Surrogate will use her own eggs and a donor sperm to conceive. As a Traditional Surrogate the woman will have biological ties and has to relinquish her rights to the commissioning intended parents.
Procedure: The fertilization gets done through
AI/insemination. This surrogate will mostly need no medication, except for occasionally hormonal treatments such as HCG or Clomid to increase the number of eggs produced. Because medical influence is limited, the procedure is less costly and the trauma to the woman, the least.
The person: A Traditional Surrogate must be able to give a child up that biologically belongs to her. It takes a certain person to be a Traditional Surrogate. This type of surrogate should be thoroughly screened and your legal stuff must be well in place.
Gestational Surrogacy:
As a Gestational Surrogate, an egg donor will be used during the procedure with the donor sperm or intended father’s sperm. The children will not biological belong to the woman and she has no legal rights on the child. There are normally more Gestational Surrogates available than Traditional Surrogates.
Procedure: IVF or In Vitro Fertilization gets done to impregnate the woman. The egg donor will have to take hormonal treatment to ensure she produce enough eggs. Upon harvesting or retrieval of the eggs, the eggs will be fertilized outside the body. The fertilization process can take up to three days. After fertilization has been confirmed, a certain amount (a doctor will advice you as too many can result in multiples that can endanger both the woman and unborn children) of the embryos will be transferred into the uterus of the surrogate. The surrogate needs bed rest for a period of up to 72 hours for the embryos to implant themselves to the uterine wall.
The person: Although the child will not biologically belong to the Gestational Surrogate, this woman will still carry a life for 9 months and will experience movement of the child within her womb. A psychological screening will assist to determine if she will be able to give up the child and live a healthy and balanced life afterwards. Some agencies prefer or have policies that their surrogates must have had a child of their own.
