Considering I want to undergo surrogacy, what precautions should I take before the procedure?

Answer 1

• The actual need: The couple should be first screened on if they actually need a surrogacy. If other methods of ART have not been given a try, most of the doctors refrain from suggesting surrogacy to the couple.
• Medical and psychological screening: Screening for various infectious diseases, mental stability and the very reason behind acceptance to go ahead with surrogacy is discussed with the surrogate mother. On the other hand, the intended parents are also subjected to psychological screening, to understand if they would be really able to accept the child as their own, especially the mother. Some woman tend to monitor every aspect of surrogate’s life once the procedure is begun, counseling on this regard plays a vital role.
• Fertility drugs and their side effects: The surrogate mother might be administered with fertility drugs to keep her body in a stable state to accept the embryo; these however could cause certain side effects like mood swings, hot flushes, irritability and headache. It could also lead to ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome, which is a painful condition.
• Drawbacks of Embryo transfer: Be it using the egg of surrogate mother or of the intended mother amongst the couple, multiple embryo transfer is always preferred over single embryo transfer, since single reduces the chance of successful surrogacy. On the other hand, multiple embryo transfer might lead twins’ or triplet development. Thus, this risk is always prevalent.
• Finding the right match: Be it for the surrogate mother or the intended parents, finding the right match is what matters. Both the parties should be on the same page to successfully carry out the process, before, during and after pregnancy.

Answer 2

Surrogacy can be a boon for couples who are not able to conceive or have a child due to various medical reasons. But before opting for surrogacy, you should be aware of various precautions pertaining to legal, medical and other physical and emotional aspects. This will save you a lot of time and harassment later-

Consult with a doctor

Make sure that you are consulting with a doctor and a counselor to ensure that the entire process of surrogacy is right for you. A doctor will ensure that surrogacy is viable depending on your physical and medical conditions and whether or not there are some other alternatives available. You don’t want to hear wish I knew about this later on. Counseling also helps you get the mental strength needed to cope with the fact that someone else is bearing your child for you. In this reference, you can also ensure that the surrogate mother undertakes needed medical tests to ensure fitness levels for this pregnancy.

Workout financial aspects

Starting right from the doctor to the agency (if you are hiring from one) or paying someone for the same. The financial aspect is not only restricted to just these two. You have to also work out later costs including hospital charges, etc. Working out the financial implications now will save you the trouble of sudden financial burdens in the later part of the pregnancy. You would also want to workout vitro fertilization and embryo transfer costs in advance.

Legal Issues

Do make sure that your legal issues and contracts are sorted at an earlier stage. Often, there are surrogacy programs where signing a contract is suggested to avoid later problems. Make sure that you get clarity and legal appropriateness from the surrogate along with an egg donor (if applicable). Ensure that skilled attorneys who draft these agreements.

Having these paperwork’s and issues sorted will help you sail into the journey of parenthood.