Surrogacy

Blog #14: And the pregnancy test says… I absentmindedly picked at the sticky bandaid residue left on my skin from my blood draw earlier in the day. My mind was not focused on the meeting I was attending. Really, trying to think about budgets and risk management while waiting for phone call from the clinic […]

Oregon, the surrogacy state on OPB/NPR Oregon has become something of an international center for surrogacy. In this five-part series, OPB’s Kristian Foden-Vencil explores why this is the case, especially for gay Israeli couples. Northwest Surrogacy Center (with offices in Portland, OR, Denver, CO and San Francisco, CA) is proud to have contributed to this

Blog #13: Trying to not be gross on embryo transfer day I feel like I’m watching a movie. Is this really happening? Months of meetings, contracts, medications and tests had all led up to this point – it was embryo transfer day! Upon arriving at the fertility clinic, I’d donned a surgical gown and cap,

Blog 12: Overcoming unexpected delays Tapping my fingers impatiently on the steering wheel, I marveled at the speed at which my small town was growing. My 7 minute drive home from work was now a 15 minute drive. Then my phone beeped it’s cheery song at me – it was the fertility clinic! I pulled

Surrogacy Blog #11: The final weeks of not being pregnant and Thanksgiving dinner conversation Some of my favorite things in life cannot be enjoyed while pregnant. So as the date of my surrogacy embryo transfer approached, I made sure to run as often as possible, eat sushi, drink my favorite coffees and wrestle around with

Surrogacy Blog #10: Beginning the medications to prepare for surrogacy & pregnancy My personalized box o’goodies from the Portland pharmacy had arrived via USPS bursting with vials, syringes, pills, disinfecting wipes, directions and more. I laughed as I rummaged through it. This is a lot of medicine! My naive reproductive system had no idea what

Surrogacy Blog 9: Surrogacy in the workplace & telling my boss Taking a deep breath, I clasped my hands tightly in my lap. My boss, Van, gave me a quizzical look as I hesitated. It was a rare occasion for me to appear so nervous in our weekly meetings. I was beginning my IVF shots

Surrogacy Blog Part 8: Injections! Oral Meds! Vitamins! Learning about the IVF medication process. Today was the appointment with the fertility clinic to learn about the cocktail of oral medications and intravenous shots I would take to prepare for the embryo transfer in a few short months. My excitement was sky-high and I’m sure my

Surrogacy Blog Part 7: Time to tell my parents about my epic plans My poor fingernails had taken the brunt of my nervousness and chips of the dark grey polish lay littered on my bedspread. So far, mentally preparing to tell my parents about my decision to do surrogacy had been the hardest part of

Surrogacy Blog Part 6: Whew! The surrogacy screening process. “Please be aware that these questions are worded so we’ll know if you’re trying to make yourself sound good and will help us identify any inconsistencies.” That was one of the last things the psychiatrist told me as I began the written personality test of my