Surrogacy Info

 

Traditional surrogacy used to be the only way for a couple to use a surrogate, and is still used by many people. Artificial insemination is easy, mostly painless and significantly less expensive than IVF. There is typically a high success rate when the surrogate has proven fertility and the rebound time after a failed attempt is just weeks (unlike IVF, where it's often months).

There are a few ways of actually performing the inseminations: doctors may perform intrauterine inseminations (IUIs) or cervical inseminations (ICIs) depending on a few factors. The quality of sperm, whether they're working with fresh or frozen sperm and the physician's personal preference may play a role in decideing whether to try IUI or ICI.

ICIs are basically the "turkey baster" method many people imagine when speaking of artificial insemination. The "baster" is actually a small catheter that is inserted into the vagina and deposits semen by the cervix.

IUIs are done only with washed sperm - that's semen that's been sent through a centrifuge and spun until the seminal fluid is removed from the sperm and only the strongest little swimmers remain. A catheter is threaded into the vagina, through the cervix where the sperm are inserted directly into the uterus.

 

Another option is home inseminations, where the surrogate simply does an ICI at home with the sperm. This is a very cost-efficient method and allows multiple attempts without injections or hormonal supplements. Some couples find that this is an important time to bond with the surrogate during the crucial time leading up to fertilization.

 

In general, traditional surrogates do not have to be on any special medications. She charts her menstrual cycle and plans inseminations around when her body naturally ovulates. In some cases, intended parents and their surrogate will choose to use mild fertility drugs, such as Clomid, to plan the timing of ovulation or increase the chance of multiples. Similar to a natural attempt to acieve pregnancy, many surrogates and intended parents will closely monitor the surrogate's monthly cycle using different methods. Tracking her basal body temperature, measuring cervical mucus, and using ovulation prediction kits or fertility monitors are just a few ways to help achieve fertilization. If you plan to use at-home ovultation prediction kits and home pregnancy tests, it's much more economical to buy them in bulk.