There are a number of reasons why people may elect to hire a surrogate to bring a baby into the world. They are private ones, and if you face that scenario yourself, you have every right to keep it to yourself. But you should know everything about the process of hiring a surrogate, including what sort of money you need to set aside to finance it, including the child’s schooling. Here’s what you need to know about hiring a surrogate.
It Can Take Longer Than a Year
According to Elevate Baby, a realistic timeline for hiring a surrogate and getting to hold your newborn in your arms is roughly 12 to 13 months, or maybe more if there are circumstances that would lengthen the process. While you might have people in mind, like a friend, you can also go through an agency. If you try to do everything yourself, then you can expect to expend a lot of time and effort. If you use an agency, they will put in the work vetting the potential surrogate, finding out their health history, among other things.
You can also get help and support by finding surrogacy groups, whether online or in person. They will have people who can guide you through the whole process. You won’t have to go through all of this alone, which can be very stressful.
Once you’ve found a surrogate and had them approved by surrogacy, you have to wait for the duration of the pregnancy, which is around nine months. So, you can expect to wait about a year from start to finish. Then you have to go into the real hard part, which is raising your child.
The Costs Can Vary
There’s not a specific amount that you should budget for hiring a surrogate. That’s because you have to think about a number of factors, such as whether you’re going to have to find an egg donor, the number of babies in the pregnancy (like twins), any individual expenses that your surrogate may incur, and whether the surrogate is going to need to get more medical attention than usual throughout the pregnancy.
You are going to need to work with a surrogacy clinic, along with a surrogacy attorney, even if you want to use a friend as a surrogate. That’s because you need to cover yourself in case there are any complications along the way. Not doing that will open the door to a lot of legal issues. Also, using reputable people will help shield you from fraud, which can be a big risk.
You Have to Think About Schooling
Your baby is going to grow into an infant and then, it may feel like the blink of an eye, they will be ready to go to school. Do you want to send them to a public or private school? In America, according to Census.gov, 10% of children are enrolled in private schools. There are pros and cons to either one, so you need to decide which one is best for your situation.
This may seem like a lot, and it is. The best thing you can do is talk to surrogacy professionals and listen to what they have to say. They can guide you through your situation and give you advice. Do a lot of research, too, and make sure that the sources are trustworthy. This will help ensure that you make the most informed decision about who will be carrying your baby to term.
The surrogacy journey can be an emotional one, from aiming to make sure that you’ve found the perfect surrogate match to monitoring the pregnancy to getting ready to welcome a new life into the world. Once you’re holding your newborn in your arms, it will all be worth it.