[Lotus]

Gina-First, my condolences on the loss of your twins. Second, I am not an expert and I have not gone through surrogacy myself, so I'm just guessing here. Here are few things I thought of that you might have to pay for:

1. The Procedure. Whether it's a fresh IVF or FET, along with her meds (unless Mass. covers every penny).
2. Co-Pays. Her insurance should pick up her OB visits, but you would probably pay for her co-pays. Same with the delivery.
3. Maternity Clothes. You also need to consider an allowance for maternity clothing for her.
4. Lost Wages. Most agencies charge a flat fee for "lost wages" and that number would depend on what her employer's maternity leave policy is. For instance, if she has to use any of her sick/vacation time, you might need to pay her those weeks' wages. Also, any time she misses due to doctor's appointments.
5. Lawyers' Fees. I work for a law firm, so of course I always say it doesn't hurt to hire a lawyer and get everything in writing. In fact, you might even be able to find a lawyer who specializes in surrogates who can guide you through the details.

Basically, the point is that she shouldn't have to pay anything as the surrogate. But even with everything I've listed, by cutting out the agency you are going to cut your expense WAY down.

Good luck!

[ashley84]

Just checking to see if there were anyone else out there gearing up to use a surrogate? My sister will be here the end of June and hopefully we can start trying in Oct. We have to freeze the sperm for 6 months since they are not married.

[Lotus]

Congrats and good luck! You are so lucky to have such a great sister! Make sure you keep us all updated on your progress.

I just read that Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick are expecting twin girls through a surrogate. Yay for another celebrity bringing fertility issues out in the open. The more this happens the less of a stigma fertility treatments will have.

[ashley84]

Has anyone here thought about breastfeeding their surrogate or adoptive baby? I am looking into it as a way to bond.

[Kay]

Ashley- I did attempt to BF an adopted child. He was in the NICU. While he was there I pumped every two hours and I let him latch on as often as they allowed. I did get colostorum (sp?) but my milk never fully came in. It was a bit painful and very time consumming, but it was worth a try. I have heard you can take hormones to induce milk production. I didn't want to do that after all the IVF hormones.
Kay

[ashley84]

Just wondering what the average price was that anyone payed for their surogates. I just talked to a lawyer and his fees are on the up side of $6,000.

[ashley84]

Well ladies~ I am moving to a different forum. None of the clinics will see us do to doing a traditional surrogace. SO DH and I have decided to give the IF treatments another go. This time feels different and I know it will be our turn very soon..

[Lotus]

Ashley-I'm really sorry to hear that you can't find a clinic to work with you. I've read of people having to travel out of state for surrogacy, which is a shame, especially with your living so close to CCRM.

I'll have my fingers crossed and will send lots of prayers your way for this round of IF treatments.

[cagirl2003]

love your blog it makes me so happy and feel much more peaceful about this process.