The Surrogacy Podcast Episode 60: Claire and Cassandra. My sister Claire, and her wife Cass, welcomed their daughter Aria earlier this year, with the help of a friend who was their sperm donor. Claire provided the egg, and Cass carrying the pregnancy. Some people might call this ‘egg sharing,’ which often occurs between lesbian couples. It is a very different from a surrogacy arrangement, as the intention was always for the birth parents, Claire and Cass, to be Aria’s parents.

Claire, Cass and Aria are close with their donor and his family, whom they call the ‘donuts.’ Some donor families call each other ‘diblings,’ but each family is different and donor conceived people have their own opinions on what they would prefer to call their donor and donor siblings.

Some things we talked about in this episode and that may be of interest:

• Donor conception and donor agreements. If you are entering an arrangement with a sperm donor, you should get legal advice before conception.
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• Podcast interviews with egg donors, including Amber, Carla and Emma-Lee. You can find them and more under the donor conception category.
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• How to decide on the donor arrangement that works for you, including using a known donor, or clinic recruited donor, or in some cases a donor you meet on social media. There’s a lot to consider, but the child’s interests must be at the forefront of everyone’s minds.
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• VARTA Counsellor Kate Bourne met me on the Podcast to talk about the importance of telling kids they are donor conceived and giving them access to information about their donor.

You can find more information in the free Surrogacy Handbook, reading articles in the Blog, by listening to more episodes of the Surrogacy Podcast. You can also book in for a consult with me below, and check out the legal services I provide.