2SLGBTQIA+ Family Planning: Options to Consider
Deciding to start or expand your family is a special time for an individual or couples but it also comes with a lot of planning. As an 2SLGBTQIA+ individual or couple, there are many choices for you or/and your partner to make, and those choices may range from exciting to overwhelming. (Decision fatigue, anyone?). Tripod Fertility’s Third Party team is here to inform you of your choices and guide you through the third-party reproduction process.
The first step is to look at and understand all options for achieving parenthood. Some options might fit while others may not be a fit, but it’s worth being aware of what’s possible. Fertility and family planning journeys aren’t always straight lines from point A to point B, our team is here to help you have a great experience building your family.
The primary categories of family-building options for 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals or couples are:
- Egg donation, where an egg is used from a donor outside your partnership.
- Sperm donation enables pregnancy for a single woman or same-sex relationships.
- Surrogacy, where someone outside your partnership carries your pregnancy (which may or may not contain your own and/or your partner’s genetic material)
- Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) procedures, including in vitro fertilization (IVF), and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Each of these procedures is done using donor sperm.
Procedure options using Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART):
IUI
IUI stands for intrauterine insemination, which is a type of artificial insemination. In this procedure, a physician injects sperm directly into your uterus during ovulation. First, we will insert a speculum so we can see your cervix. Then we will place a soft, thin catheter through your cervix into the uterus. Using a syringe, we will introduce the washed sperm into your uterus through this catheter. The IUI procedure only takes about five minutes. It is not painful and does not require pain medication. The entire appointment takes about 30 minutes.
IVF
In vitro fertilization is an ART procedure that uses hormonal medication to stimulate ovulation in the gestational surrogate. Then, in procedure known as an egg retrieval, donor eggs are harvested, and if preferred genetically tested for quality. Using viable donor eggs, the fertility lab will fertilize these eggs with your donor sperm by incubating them over a period of time. The ideal result will be an embryo or several embryos, which can be frozen for later use or donation.
On the fertile date, your physician will perform an embryo transfer, in which the embryo is implanted into the gestational surrogate’s uterus using a syringe and a catheter.
ICSI
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is an add-on procedure with IVF. It takes place during the fertilization stage of the process. Instead of placing the egg and sperm together in a laboratory to create an embryo, the physician extracts a single healthy sperm from the donor sample and inject it directly into the mature egg. ICSI increases rates of fertilization and viable embryos, particularly in cases where previous IVF cycles haven’t been successful or in instances of male factor infertility from the donor.
Planning Your Family
As you consider your family planning options, there are many considerations: timeline, and the emotional side of each choice, and expenses. Only you and/or your partner, with a trusted advisor like your fertility physician and third-party team, can decide exactly what is best for you and your family. With reviewing all the information, you can make an informed decision.
Looking for more information about 2SLGBTQIA+ family planning?