The Benefits of Working with a Surrogacy Agency
When asking, “Can you be a surrogate for a family member?” the answer is usually yes. Although surrogacy laws vary from state to state, many states allow you to pursue gestational surrogacy for a family member.
Before we continue, you can always contact a trusted and experienced surrogacy specialist online. The information and guidance you’ll get will help you better understand your surrogacy journey and surrogacy for family members.
What to Know Before You Begin
If you’re considering becoming a surrogate for a family member, there are several important things to know:
- What surrogacy entails
- How being a surrogate for a family member might affect your relationship
? - The importance of working with ethical professionals to explain how to become a surrogate for a family member and help with the legalities of surrogacy
In becoming a surrogate for a family member, you’re giving a relative a special gift. However, there are potential and impactful changes to your relationship that can occur.
Check out these six questions to ask when considering family member surrogacy.
It’s important to continue reading to find out what surrogacy means for your relationships and why working with a trusted agency can help you navigate potential speed bumps along the way.
Remember, more information on gestational surrogacy and being a surrogate for a family member is just a click away.
Family Member Surrogacy and the Impact on Your Relationship
Whether for a family member who is single, a member of the LGBTQ community or a couple faced with infertility, you are one of many heroic prospective surrogates considering giving that family member the greatest gift in life.
Your decision to help a family member who is unable to carry a baby to term might be made for a variety of reasons. Aside from helping a family member, you might be in a position of already having completed your family, and you want the experience of being pregnant again.
Through gestational surrogacy, you can carry a family member’s child to term without the genetic connection of being the biological mother. It’s an arrangement that benefits both you and the intended parents, but what are the potential risks as a family member?
Carrying a Baby for a Sister, Brother, Cousin or other Family Member
Becoming a surrogate for a family member and carrying a baby with no genetic link removes any legal relationship with the child. Because of this, you can focus on giving this lifelong gift to the intended parent.
Still, there are legal, emotional and financial challenges that come with surrogacy, regardless of surrogacy within the family. For example, in some cases, an intended parent such as a sister or female cousin can develop jealousy issues for not carrying a baby themselves.
Also, your commitment to carrying a baby that isn’t yours, as well as the legal and medical process of surrogacy, is a big decision. Knowing the intended parents doesn’t necessarily mean the process then becomes easy.
It’s important to create a level of trust with the intended parent and understand that you are going on this surrogacy journey together. The ultimate goal is to have a safe, healthy and successful pregnancy.
Thinking about whether surrogacy is right for you is the first significant step. That includes getting all the necessary information to understand surrogacy and its process.
You can do that by filling out this contact form online. There, you will get connected with a surrogacy professional excited for the chance to answer questions you have about family member surrogacy and the surrogacy process.
How Will My Relationship with a Family Member Change?
Every situation and relationship is different, but because you likely already have a closer relationship with your intended parent, you are now entering an arrangement that will create a deeper connection.
Because you are carrying a child for your sister, brother, cousin or another family member, it’s crucial to be patient, understanding and aware of the emotions everyone is experiencing.
As the surrogate, you are going to experience the range of emotions that come with pregnancy. In addition, you’re carrying a baby that isn’t yours, which presents a different set of emotions. The intended parents are likely feeling an intense desire to be parents; they will be stressed and want to know how you’re doing, what you’re feeling and more.
Establishing boundaries while still maintaining important communication is a balance that can positively impact the health of your pregnancy, as well as everyone’s mental health during your surrogacy journey. However, establishing boundaries with a family member can be tough. That’s where surrogacy professionals can help.
Working with an experienced surrogacy agency can help ensure your physical and mental health are addressed and they can even serve as a mediator between you and the intended parents if needed. You can get in touch with a professional today by completing this online form.
Until then, here’s how you can become a surrogate for a family member.
How to Become a Surrogate for a Family Member
The surrogacy process is long, and there is a crucial screening process for a surrogate. These are four key steps to become a surrogate for a family member:
- First, decide if surrogacy is right for you: Making such a big decision requires research, speaking to a professional and even reading and listening to stories from former surrogates to get a better feel for what the experience might entail.
You can always get in touch with a surrogacy specialist online to get more information before making a final decision.
- Find out if you meet surrogacy requirements: Before committing to being a surrogate for a family member, speak to a surrogacy specialist to find out if you meet the medical, physical and mental health standards of surrogacy.
Can you answer “yes” to these questions?
- Have you had a successful complication-free pregnancy in the past?
- Are you currently raising a child in your home?
- Are you at least 21 years of age?
- Do you have a BMI of less than 32?
- Have you been on any anti-depressants or anti-anxiety medication within the past 12 months?
Want to get more information on the requirements to become a surrogate mother for a family member and the screening process? Remember, you can always get in touch with a surrogacy specialist online. They are ready to answer all of your important questions.
- Work with surrogacy professionals: You’ve contacted a surrogacy agency to determine if you meet all requirements to be a surrogate. Now, you will work with your professional and an attorney to create your legal contract for surrogacy within the family.
Your surrogacy contract determines your financial compensation, addresses the possible risks of pregnancy and the expectations for your journey between both parties involved.
Despite becoming a surrogate for a family member, your contract is the most important thing you’ll do before you officially begin.
- Begin in vitro fertilization (IVF): After you sign your legal contract, you will begin fertility treatments before transferring the embryo. Once the embryo gets transferred and a viable pregnancy with a heartbeat is heard, you will continue forward with prenatal care and creating hospital plans.
During the third trimester, the intended parent—depending on your state—may obtain a pre-birth order to establish parental rights.
Are you ready to get more information on how to become a surrogate for a family member? Fill out this online form and get connected to a surrogacy professional that can give you the information you need about surrogacy for family members, how to find out if you’re qualified to be a surrogate and the surrogacy process.
What If I Don’t Want to be a Surrogate for a Family Member?
If you ultimately feel as though being a surrogate for a family member isn’t right for you during the decision-making process, but you remain open to surrogacy, consider another intended parent.
Your desire to experience pregnancy again and give an amazing gift to someone dreaming of becoming a parent is still possible with gestational surrogacy.
You can work with a surrogacy specialist to find an intended parent hopeful for the chance of matching with a heroic surrogate like you and experience a life-changing journey.
The process doesn’t change, and you will still need to go through the medical, physical and mental screening required to be a surrogate. By choosing to be a surrogate for a non-family member or friend, you can avoid any difficult changes in your relationship.
Want to find out more about how to be a surrogate for an intended parent outside of your family? Complete this online form to get connected with a surrogacy specialist ready to help guide you through every step to becoming a surrogate.
So, why does working with a trusted surrogacy agency make a difference?
You Can Have a Safe and Ethical Surrogacy Experience
By working with a trusted and experienced surrogacy agency and professional, your journey is backed by legal and ethical practices as well as a matching process that brings qualified surrogates like you and amazing intended parents together to share an extraordinary journey.
Because gestational surrogacy is relatively new and the screening process is so important to create the right environment for both parties, you deserve to work with an agency capable of providing you with all of that and more.
You can always contact a surrogacy professional for more information on being a surrogate for a family member by filling out this online form. Or, if you’re interested in becoming a surrogate for an intended parent outside of your family, you can get started on your journey today!