Family Building Options
Family Building Options for Single Individuals and Couples in the LGBT Community
The Fertility Centers of New England believes that a family is love and that parenthood can be one of life’s greatest joys. Children thrive in families where they are loved and cared for; and happy families do not need to conform to any one standard. We feel that it is our ethical and moral obligation to offer our fertility services to unmarried persons, and people in the LGBT community whether they be lesbians, gays, bisexuals, or transgender. We are committed to helping you create a healthy family regardless of your marital status or sexual orientation by providing the individualized expertise you need, together with the compassionate support you deserve.
The first step is to meet with one of our experienced board-certified reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialists, who will explain the process, order evaluation tests, and answer all of your questions. Dr. Robert Weiss is particularly well recognized in New England for having provided exceptional fertility services to the LGBT Community over the past 20 years. You will also meet with your own personalized medical care team, including an experienced Financial Coordinator to learn what aspects of your care may be covered by your insurance provider. Our third-party reproductive services team meets the highest professional standards in the field as set by The American Society for Reproductive Medicine and our In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) laboratory is federally approved and internationally recognized as being among the best in the world.
Family Building Options for Men
Single men and gay couples who want to become parents can use the same assisted reproductive technologies that enable infertile straight couples to have a baby. For men, the road to their biological child will require a semen analyses, an egg donor and a surrogate. Eggs are obtained from a donor, and following insemination and in vitro fertilization (IVF), one or two resulting embryos are transferred into a surrogate. Any remaining embryos can be frozen for later use, if desired. A surrogate is a woman, also called a gestational carrier, who carries and gives birth to a baby for another individual or couple. It is possible to use donor eggs from the relative of one partner, and sperm from the other partner, so that each has a biological connection to the child.
It is important to find an attorney who is well-versed in surrogacy laws and can assist with the contract needed between you and your gestational carrier. We work with many established egg donation and surrogacy agencies and will be happy to facilitate obtaining both an egg donor and a gestational carrier. The agency will recruit and screen both the donor and the surrogate, and we will medically and psychologically evaluate the donor, surrogate and intended parents. We also closely coordinate all medical aspects with the agency and lawyer, who contracts with the surrogate. It is a complex process, but one in which we excel offering you the highest chances for a successful pregnancy.
Family Building Options for Women
Donor insemination is an option for single women and lesbian couples who wish to have a biological connection to their child. Donor insemination is by intrauterine insemination (IUI), where washed sperm are placed in the uterus with a thin catheter that is passed through the cervix. IUI is performed in the office and is a quick and painless procedure. You may use an anonymous sperm donor through a sperm bank or a known designated donor of your choosing. Many lesbian couples select a sperm donor from a male relative of one partner to be used for insemination in the other partner. In some cases, your chances of success may be maximized by ovulation induction with fertility medications or even IVF. You will be carefully monitored with blood tests and pelvic ultrasounds to prevent complications and to schedule the insemination or egg retrieval.
We also offer lesbian couples another option for those both want to be even more involved in the reproductive process. Partner Assisted Reproduction (PAR) or Reciprocal IVF is where the ovaries of one partner are stimulated to make eggs, which are then collected and artificially inseminated with donor sperm. One or two resulting embryos can then be transferred into the other partner, who then carries the baby. This procedure involving IVF gives both partners the opportunity to further share in the family building experience. Any remaining embryos not transferred may be frozen for later use by either partner, if desired.
