In Ukraine, surrogacy has ceased to be exotic, but it is still too early to talk about wide awareness of the process. Therefore, a woman who considers the prospect of helping others become parents and being financially rewarded for it, does not always know whether she is suitable for the role of a surrogate mother. The question in the headline is one of the most common. The answer is no. Only a woman who already has a child of her own should become a surmother. What is the basis of this requirement? We tell you.
The surrogate mother must have her own children by law
In Ukraine, the surrogacy sphere is regulated by law and not by one but by several laws. Regarding the presence of children, it stipulates the following: a woman with at least one healthy child of her own may be a substitute mother. Each of the conditions outlined in the order is heavily substantiated. Including this one.
It is a concern for the health of the surrogate.
The same document says that the good health of the surrogate mother should be confirmed by a medical examination. Why else would the surrogate have her own children? In fact, pregnancy and childbirth is such a responsible process that the results of examinations and medical examinations alone are not enough. During pregnancy and delivery, a surrogate’s body undergoes serious stress and changes. One should also take into consideration the fact that surrogacy implies pregnancy through IVF. This means taking medications, transferring the embryo into the surrogate’s uterus.
However, any pregnancy does not exclude unexpected complications. And they are difficult to predict if a woman has not been previously “tested” by carrying her own baby. This explains the requirement. If the surrogate mother has already given birth, if everything went without complications and was safely terminated, it minimizes the risks of the coming pregnancy.
This provides the substitute mother with psychological comfort
The second or third pregnancy usually proceeds with great psychological comfort. The first one is often accompanied by anxiety and worry, fear of the impending birth. For a woman who has given birth, carrying a child is not accompanied by strong worries, she has already been there once and knows what awaits her. In addition, experience helps her to follow the instructions and recommendations of the obstetrician-gynecologist unmistakably. A conscious, calm approach contributes not only to a successful pregnancy, but also to an easier delivery. The woman is also psychologically prepared for the birth itself; she has no unreasonable worries about it.
Another important point concerns the time after delivery. For a woman who has not given birth the moment of giving the baby to her biological parents can be a difficult psychological experience. For a surrogate who has a child, it is easier to realize that she is someone else’s baby, she is a kind nurse.
Careful selection of surrogates in our agency is important not only for the parents-to-be, but also for the surrogate mothers themselves. It is important for us to make sure that the woman’s previous labour was natural, without caesarian section, that her previous pregnancy was not accompanied by gestosis, miscarriage threats or severe toxicosis. This gives a certain guarantee that 9 months under the surrogacy program will not be a trial for her, will not cause any harm to her body. Another of our requirements for the candidates is the same purpose: the pregnancy should not exceed three. In this case we can expect that the surrogate’s organism has enough resources, and the program will not be too much of a burden for her.
