Q and A with James on being a supportive partner to a gestational carrier

James and Kate smile at a restaurant

Partners like James are an important source of support for gestational carriers.

When someone has a successful pregnancy and is interested in becoming a surrogate to help another family, their partner is a huge source of support for that decision. We talked to some of the partners of Forward Fertility’s gestational carriers to ask them about their role, the questions they had during the process, and what they learned. 

James and his partner, Kate, matched with parents-to-be this year. While the COVID crisis added a few new questions and concerns, the role of James as a supportive partner didn’t change. Here’s more about his experience.

Q. What was your initial reaction when Kate mentioned pursuing surrogacy and what questions did you have (i.e. safety, compensation, insurance, etc.)?

A. I wasn’t even slightly surprised! It had come up early in our relationship and I knew Kate enjoyed being pregnant and was born to be a mother. It only made sense that she wanted to help someone else become a mother. I think compensation and just general process questions were what I had the least knowledge of on the topic.

Q. How did you provide support to Kate during the process?

A. Kate and I are a team in everything we do. So I would more so say we supported each other through the process and continue to do so as we await legal and transfer dates! We pretty much have tag-teamed everything we could from application submission, to signing and scanning documents, picking up medications, etc…

Q. How do you plan to support Kate during pregnancy, delivery and post-partum?

A. Just like I did with our three children. I don’t expect it to be any different! I will attend all of the OB appointments that I am available for, continue to pick up medications, etc… I want to be involved in every step of the process.

Q. What have you enjoyed so far during this process and is it what you expected?

A. Learning about the whole process has been very enjoyable. On top of that, meeting all the people we have already met in the process has been wonderful. Had I been able to predict a global pandemic however we may have postponed the whole thing a while. The delays with legal and medical have been a bit difficult to deal with for a couple that is always on top of things and moving quick!

 

READ MORE FROM OTHER SUPPORTIVE PARTNERS:

Q&A with Greg about how he finds ways to support his wife as she helps another family grow.

Q&A with Travis about how he finds ways to support his wife as she helps another family grow.

 

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