5 Reasons to Choose a Gestational Carrier

If you’re facing infertility, you may have a lot of questions about how you’ll still become a parent. Fortunately, you have a lot of options. You can still become a parent through a variety of means.

One of your options is choosing a gestational carrier, also known as a surrogate. In this case, you may choose to use either or both parents to provide genetic material to the baby, or you may not. Dr. Edward J. Ramirez of the Fertility & Gynecology Center — Monterey Bay IVF in Monterey, California, explains more about choosing a gestational carrier for your baby.

The role of a gestational carrier

A gestational carrier is one who carries a pregnancy to term on behalf of another person. Whether the gestational carrier has any biological connection to the parents who will raise the baby varies according to the individual case, but usually, the gestational carrier does not have any biological connection to the baby.

Sometimes, the man in a heterosexual couple can’t conceive children, so the couple might use donor sperm and the eggs from the woman in the couple. Or they may use the man’s sperm and use the gestational carrier’s eggs to conceive the child. When it comes to choosing to create a child, many possibilities for conceiving are available.

Gestational carriers provide options

Couples may have other reasons for choosing a gestational carrier. Some of the circumstances in which you may choose to use a gestational carrier include the following:

Same-sex family building

If you are in a same-sex relationship and want to conceive a baby, a gestational carrier can provide options for you. You can use sperm or an egg from one of the biological parents if you want to have a biological connection to the child, but this is not necessary.

Single-parent family building

Not every family has two parents. If you decide that you want to raise a child, you can do so via surrogacy. You can still create a child using donor sperm or the eggs from the gestational carrier. In many cases, you develop a close relationship with the person who’s carrying your child.

Your lifestyle doesn’t allow for pregnancy

You may know that you want a baby, but your lifestyle is too busy to allow for pregnancy. Pregnancy is a major commitment, and not everyone can spare time from their busy careers to devote to carrying a child. A gestational carrier can help you conceive a child and carry it to term without disrupting your career.

You have medical conditions that make pregnancy inadvisable

You may be advised not to conceive or carry a baby to term if you have certain medical conditions. These conditions are varied and individual. They may include if you’ve had a hysterectomy or if you have conditions requiring medications that are incompatible with pregnancy.

How to choose a gestational carrier

Choosing the right person to be your gestational carrier is not necessarily simple. You want to be sure that your gestational carrier is healthy and willing to commit to maintaining a lifestyle that will ensure as healthy a baby as possible.

This should include making the following choices:

Taking prenatal vitamins, including folic acid
Not smoking
Committing to getting regular prenatal care
Eating a healthy, well-rounded diet
Getting regular exercise

You will work with a third-party gestational carrier, who is usually very well-vetted before beginning the process.

If you are looking at alternative options to build your family, you may find that using a gestational carrier is suitable. Contact Dr. Edward J. Ramirez at the Fertility & Gynecology Center — Monterey Bay IVF today or request an appointment online.