All About Surrogacy

When we talk about surrogacy, many times we forget to talk about surrogacy, we do not want that to happen, so today we want to talk about surrogacy, make it as clear as possible what it consists of, the techniques used, and the different types of surrogacy that exist.

What is surrogacy?

Surrogacy is when a woman is pregnant and will later give birth, however the baby belongs both genetically and legally to other parents.

Surrogate motherhood

What techniques are used to achieve pregnancy?

To reach the stage of pregnancy, the surrogate mother, gestational or carrier (as it is sometimes called), techniques such as in vitro fertilization, or artificial insemination are used, the choice of one technique or another depends on the particular case.

In vitro fertilization (IVF)

In vitro fertilization (or also called IVF), is an artificial fertilization technique where the fertilization of oocytes by sperm is sought.

This type of assisted fertilization occurs outside of the mother’s body. In this way, by extracting one or more oocytes from the maternal ovaries, the fertilization of the spermatozoa in the liquid medium is sought. When the Oocyte has been fertilized (generally this is called a pre-embryo), it is transferred to the woman’s uterus, seeking that it nests in the uterus itself, and continues its development until delivery.

Artificial insemination

Insemination is a method of assisted reproduction, which consists of depositing sperm unnaturally in the future pregnant woman.

How does the deposition of sperm occur? This type of technique is usually produced with specialized instruments, using techniques that replace copulation itself, with the sole purpose of achieving a pregnancy.

What types of surrogacy are there?

 The types of surrogacy that exist differ according to the objective of the mother who provides the womb, and the monetary factor that exists in between. On the other hand, it can also be categorized based on the genetic makeup of the baby itself (that is, the people who provide both the egg and the sperm). In this way, surrogacy itself can be of two types:

Traditional Surrogacy

The traditional surrogate provides her egg, but the father comes from the intended father or a donor. In this case, the baby is usually conceived by artificial insemination or in vitro fertilization.

Gestational Surrogacy

In this case, both the egg and the sperm are provided by the intended parents requesting the surrogacy. In this case, the pregnant woman has no genetic relationship with the baby. By what name is this mother known? It is usually called a gestational mother or a carrier mother. In this case, pregnancy occurs through in vitro fertilization.

On the other hand, you can also make another differentiation, considering the finances that may be involved, which may be:

Altruistic surrogacy

In this case, the woman who is going to get pregnant does so without profit (she does not get money). However, the biological parents themselves are responsible for both medical and legal expenses.

Commercial surrogacy

In this case, the gestational mother agrees to become pregnant in exchange for a sum of money.

A surrogacy professional will be able to give you more information about the different types of surrogacy.