I am a single parent, can I access surrogacy?

Can I access surrogacy?

It is increasingly common among the population, single-parent families, where the head of the household is represented by a single father or mother. But, logically, when it comes to being parents, single men or women need external help, and surrogacy is an option.

Surrogacy, in addition to offering the opportunity to heterosexual or homosexual couples, also protects single people, as long as the person meets certain requirements that allow them to make use of this practice.

For single men, surrogacy can occur with or without their own genetic material. In case it contributes the sperm or not, it must go through a series of physical and mental examinations, so that its stability to have one or more children can be demonstrated.

These are steps that each agency handles according to its policy. But it is important to know in advance some general aspects that surrogacy entails.

For single women, they can only make use of surrogacy if they have a disorder that prevents them from procreating naturally and she must have used less complicated methods, but without success.

Surrogacy is often defined as a complicated practice, but beyond that it represents a series of steps that despite being shorter compared to adoption, constitutes a series of legal and medical laws. In addition, not all countries approve them, increasing its cost, which is already high compared to other methods.

The fundamental steps in the practice of surrogacy are:

• Investigate if the country of origin allows surrogacy. If not, check which countries and costs are within the person's preferences. For this step it is important to know that in many of the averages for the cost of surrogacy, the travel and accommodation expenses that are probably necessary are not immersed.

• Search the selected country for the surrogacy agency that will give you the opportunity to become an intentional parent. People are advised to do some research that they should carry a surrogacy contract, some do not include legal procedures or a higher fee in case the pregnancy fails in the first session. And if the person travels abroad, it is recommended that all legal procedures are resolved, so that uncomfortable situations do not arise on the return.

• Planning the first appointment, for people who must go to an agency abroad, some centers schedule the first visits via the internet, so that they are close to it and can make sure that it provides the necessary confidence for the patient.

• Psychological and medical examinations. In the case of men, the necessary tests are carried out, such as semen extraction, analysis questions and study to determine their mental state. If you meet the requirements you can proceed to the next step. In the case of women, proof of failed attempts with other assisted reproduction techniques, such as ultra-uterine fertilization or any previous medical treatment, is requested. And it is verified that the patient can opt for surrogacy.
• Signing the contract, one of the most important phases, since it encompasses the entire legal and medical process that will take place in the coming months. It is important to verify that they cover all legal or medical aspects.
• Choose the egg donor. The patients, in conjunction with the surrogacy agency, proceed to choose an egg donor that is compatible with the sperm. This greatly increases the chances of success. Then the genetic material is inseminated in the pregnant woman that will carry the pregnancy until birth.

• At the end of the birth, the next steps will depend on the contract with the surrogacy agency and if the internship took place abroad. If the contract encompasses the subsequent legal process, the intending parents need only retain an attorney to obtain full custody of the child. This happens if the person is from abroad.

• In cases where the subrogation was carried out in the same country of origin. Only legal documentation similar to the adoption process is carried out. All this procedure is to ensure the child socially, since the surrogate mother, before starting the surrogacy, signs a document that grants the rights to the intentional father who requested the surrogacy.

The decision to intentionally parent through surrogacy is a fascinating idea for people who for various reasons want to have children, even though it is still a reserved practice and triggers negative comments in society. But people who opt for this method, seek new ways to fulfill their dream. A child who will maintain genetic information from the intentional father, and who will transcend to other generations.