What Happens During A Surrogate Pregnancy?

Your pregnancy will be different from someone else’s, but any experienced surrogate will tell you that it’s basked in a unique kind of pregnancy glow that you won’t get enough of!

One of the best ways to describe surrogacy pregnancy is like a long-term babysitting agreement. A surrogate loves and cares for the baby, but ultimately she (and everyone around her) knows it isn’t her baby. 

Modern surrogacy has been developed with strong boundaries in mind.  

Your pregnancy will be different from someone else’s, but any experienced surrogate will tell you that it’s basked in a unique kind of pregnancy glow that you won’t get enough of! Below we’re breaking down the who, what, and how a surrogate pregnancy usually unfolds. 

Who is a part of surrogacy? 

There are 5 people associated with surrogacy:

1. You, the surrogate

2. Us, your faithful community of support

3. Your surrogacy agency

4. Your intended parents

5. The medical professionals

Everyone has a role in the surrogacy journey, and each depends on one another to cross the milestones that lead to the successful delivery of a healthy baby.

How does a surrogate gets pregnant

You can dive into a step-by-step guide on surrogacy here, but here are quick deets: 

• You go to the intended parents' IVF clinic for a full screening to be medically approved

• You begin IVF medications to ready your body for pregnancy 

• An IVF clinic readies an embryo (created with the biology of the intended parents or donors)

Once you get the medical green light, you will travel to the intended parents' IVF clinic for embryo transfer day — don’t forget your lucky socks!

Are surrogates related to the babies they carry?

In the simplest terms, gestational surrogates do not share biological ties to the baby they are carrying. The embryo is created with the intended parents’ (or donor’s) biology. This is the type of surrogacy that you are reading about on our website and the only type of surrogacy we do. (In traditional surrogacy, the surrogate shares DNA with the baby, but that is rarely practiced these days).

While surrogacy laws vary state by state, gestational surrogacy is the go-to standard for modern surrogacy.

Is a surrogate pregnancy different from your personal pregnancy

While the physical pregnancy itself will feel relatively the same as with your keepers, how you get pregnant and the emotions surrounding a surrogate pregnancy are different. As noted above, you will take IVF medications to ready your body for the pregnancy. These start prior to the embryo transfer (to get your uterus ready) and continue after the transfer until about week 10 or 12 to ensure that little embryo is going to stick.

Emotionally, your surrogate pregnancy is a whole different ball game. There are the excited emotions over what you’re doing; there are nervous emotions that you want everything to stay positive and work out; and the compassionate emotions as you deepen your relationship with your intended parents and become even more invested in who you are helping. Then, add in almost every other emotion you can think of! They may all show up! But knowing you have so much support from your agency and us – and the family and friends you’ve built up around you – we know you can handle whatever comes your way.

You’re already a pregnancy expert, so a natural next step in considering becoming a surrogate is to understand how a surrogacy pregnancy works and how it’s different from your personal pregnancies. As always, our experienced team is here to answer questions and guide you in the right direction.