Foundations of Gestational Surrogacy for Surrogates

When considering an agency for gestational surrogacy it is important that you work with an agency that is comprised of caring staff that both understand the surrogacy process and have experience working within the legal frameworks of your state.

There are protections and rights in place for women who become gestational surrogates and an agency that cares for you and ensures that you know your rights and is able to give you advice and information on them is paramount. The right agency will help to ensure that you have the right lawyer, help you with contracts to ensure that they have built in protections for you as well as uphold your rights to medical treatment and decision-making capabilities. Your support team will walk with you through the process and ensure that your questions are answered and your concerns are addressed.

At Gestacy, we ensure that our surrogates are put first, treated with both respect and dignity as well as supported and cared for throughout the process by a team of experts and experienced surrogates who can help guide you through the process.

The ultimate goal of surrogacy is to help create a family for an individual or couple who are unable to conceive and create a family without a little help. Who doesn’t need a little help sometime?

As surrogates you have the right and power to choose. Among the many choices you get to make are:

Surrogacy is a long and beautiful process, one that can lead to amazing bonds with the intended parents. For this reason, it is important that the surrogate chooses an individual or couple that she is comfortable with and feels supported by. At Gestacy you will be given the opportunity to see profiles and choose the couple or individual that you want to carry for, this choice is yours to make.

You have the right to choose your own legal counsel, this is not a decision that is made or should be made for you. It is important that you feel you have a lawyer that is working in your best interest and protecting your rights. At Gestacy we will make recommendations and give you options on lawyers that have a proven track record within the field of surrogacy and working with surrogates; But the final decision is yours to make.

As a surrogate you have the right to make decisions about your medical care, who your doctors are, and which hospital you want to work with as well as which treatments and procedures you are willing to undergo. While it important to work with the intended parents to ensure that all parties are on the same page and comfortable with the decisions made, the final decision resides with the surrogate.

Being a surrogate does come with some responsibilities, as any legal and medical process will. Knowing your responsibilities and being willing to meet them is important to the surrogacy process.

Surrogates are responsible for ensuring all their paperwork is completed. This paperwork includes your application, medical and pregnancy records, medical insurance policies as well as completing your psychological and medical evaluations. These records are essential to completing the surrogacy process and the sooner they are all completed the quicker you can begin the process with your intended parents.

It is important to consider your views on potential invasive procedures you may be asked to undergo throughout your journey. The list provided is examples or potential procedures you should understand and decide if you are comfortable with or not: termination, selective reduction, amniocentesis, multiple births. At Gestacy we do our best to match you with intended parents who match your views on these to ensure that our surrogates feel no pressure to change what they are comfortable with or undergo any medical procedure.

Being pregnant and taking care of yourself is essential in any pregnancy, and this does not change through the surrogacy process. You are responsible for ensuring proper medical treatment is being sought, avoiding foods and substances that could potentially harm the baby as well as risky activities that could pose danger or cause unnecessary complications during pregnancy.

You are responsible for ensuring that you cooperate with the legal proceedings and submitting the necessary legal paperwork to ensure that the intended parents are named as the legal parents to the baby you are carrying. This both removes any potential responsibility on the part of the surrogate after the baby is born as well as provides peace of mind to all parties involved.

Surrogacy can be a stressful and complicated process. Mutual respect is a cornerstone of surrogacy, as surrogates you are deserving of both respect and appreciation. It is important to also understand that this is a very scary and nervous time for your intended parents as well. Mutual respect goes a long way in making this not only a successful journey but a rewarding and fulfilling one as well. As surrogates you are responsible for ensuring that you both involve your intended parents on the level you all discussed and keep them up to date on the pregnancy as well as all the medical processes you are going through.

After considering your options and choosing which family you want to carry a child for, the gestational carrier agreement becomes your framework for your individual surrogacy journey. This agreement is the basis of protection for all parties involved, insuring that you are legal covered, your rights are upheld and your decisions are respected throughout the process.

Gestational surrogacy can be both emotional and difficult at times throughout the journey, it is important that the right supports are in place to ensure that you have someone to talk to, hold your hand and support you throughout the process. Gestacy ensures that you have support from within the agency, from other surrogates who have both completed or are going through the process, as well as the clinic you are working with. It is also important to have support at home; family, spouses, children and friends can all help you through any difficult moments that can arise. Please see our blogs on talking to children and family about surrogacy if you need help putting these supports in place.