Hello All! I'm new here and we are excited to be (very, very) early in this journey. My wife (K) and I (B) have decided that we definitely want to have a baby in the next couple of years. As two women, we feel very overwhelmed by the options and choices. Any LGBTQ members out there who have navigated this process?
Our current sticking points:
Realistically I know we won't be looking into this in great depth until at least 6 months from now - I don't think we're quite ready yet. But I'm nervous to hold off too long after that, because I think this process is significantly more time consuming and complicated for LGBTQ families than hetero families.
Thanks to all for any advice and support!
Our current sticking points:
- How do we find a sperm donor? Are the sperm banks reliable in actually screening the donors? I keep thinking of that Parks and Rec episode where anyone can be a 'Harvard educated' donor...
- How do we find a donor who we might be able to have one or two children with, but who hasn't been such a prolific donor that our children end up with a surprise 40 half siblings? Is it selfish and/or hurtful to our future children to think that way?
- Is it reasonable to do a home insemination? We are both healthy and in our early 30s - do we have to do IUI? I think I would prefer to do a home insemination (less clinical, more private, etc.), but will it be successful? For the cost of the sperm, should we just opt for IUI to boost our chances of success?
Realistically I know we won't be looking into this in great depth until at least 6 months from now - I don't think we're quite ready yet. But I'm nervous to hold off too long after that, because I think this process is significantly more time consuming and complicated for LGBTQ families than hetero families.
Thanks to all for any advice and support!
