This episode is all about discussing surrogacy and sharing the journey with your loved ones. Like any big conversation, talking about becoming a surrogate has some weight, so it’s best to be prepared to educate your family, listen to their concerns, and clear up any misconceptions as you ask them for your support. Whether you’re deciding to become a surrogate, or sharing that you have begun a surrogacy journey, I’ll cover talking this over with your significant other, children, parents, and othe...
Jun 13, 2023•19 min•Season 5Ep. 90
In this episode, I interview two-time surrogate, Jessica Adams. As a mom with small children at home, Jessica talks about not only what the surrogate journey has been like for her, but for her husband and kids as well. She talks about the relationships she developed with the Intended Parents whose children she carried. She discusses her motivation for choosing this path, issues that have come up along the way, and advice for how surrogates can best advocate for themselves throughout this process...
Jun 06, 2023•27 min•Season 5Ep. 89
This episode is all about doing your due diligence to vet any third-party reproductive agency you are considering working with. Since there is no federal oversight or comprehensive set of standards egg donation and surrogacy agencies must adhere to, it’s up to you to determine what kind of ethics and standards they have. In addition, you’ll want to find out all you can about the staff, the processes the agency they have in place, the kind of reviews they get, as well as their track record for su...
May 30, 2023•23 min•Season 5Ep. 88
In this episode, I interview Arvis Carmichael-Smith who gets raw and real about the emotional trials and tribulations of struggling with infertility and third-party reproduction for over 20 years. She shares some of the medical struggles she has gone through and how she learned to advocate for her mental and physical health along the way. She also talks about the ups and downs of all she and her husband Martin have experienced in their quest to create the family they have so longed for. It’s a t...
May 23, 2023•43 min•Season 5Ep. 87
In this episode, I’ll explore the fundamental types of commitment essential for anyone who aspires to become an egg donor or a surrogate, including physical commitment, accountability, communication, and time commitment. I will delve into the benefits of staying dedicated to the process – for everyone involved. I’ll also offer tips to establish and sustain a consistent level of commitment and open communication throughout the entire process in order to be successful in your role in the third-par...
May 16, 2023•16 min•Season 5Ep. 86
In this episode, I interview podcast host and Intended Parent Carnell Roberts. Carnell shares what the family-building journey was like for him and his husband, Gavin. He talks about the mindset that enabled them to jump through all of the emotional and financial hoops to finally get their baby girl. He shares about his surrogate and the special bond they formed with her. We also touch on aspects of the IP journey that are different for a same-sex couple. Guest Bio Carnell is a medical speech-la...
May 09, 2023•43 min•Season 5Ep. 85
This episode is all about taking the reins by advocating for yourself. Self-advocacy is the ability to speak up for yourself and ask for what you need, allowing you to have control over important decisions that affect your life. I’m going to talk about why everyone in the 3PR process – Intended Parents, surrogates, and egg donors – need to advocate for themselves to ensure the entire journey is as successful as possible. Resources ● Learn more about our podcast: Fertility Cafe ● Learn more about...
May 02, 2023•14 min•Season 5Ep. 84
In this episode, we will focus on the lack of access to surrogacy, the prohibitive cost of it, and the need to raise awareness around this issue. I will interview Zach French, co-founder of Gift of Surrogacy. The goal of this non-profit organization is to gift grants that cover the full cost of a surrogate journey to someone with a medical diagnosis that prevents them from having children on their own and would not otherwise be able to afford one. Guest Bio Zach French is an entrepreneur, lawyer...
Apr 25, 2023•28 min•Season 5Ep. 83
A lot of people in this don’t give any thought to infertility – it’s simply not on their radar. National Infertility Awareness Week is a movement that was founded in 1989 to change all of that. It’s about empowerment, community, raising awareness, and shining a light on evolving issues surrounding infertility. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the first Black-owned surrogacy and egg donation agency in ...
Apr 18, 2023•21 min•Season 5Ep. 82
In this season 5 kickoff episode, we will focus on empowerment and advocacy for everyone involved in the family-building journey including surrogates, egg donors, and intended parents. Season 5 brings us to an exciting milestone, our 100th episode, which highlights new scientific developments in infertility research. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the first Black-owned surrogacy and egg donation age...
Apr 11, 2023•5 min•Season 5Ep. 81
What is it really like for intended parents? What is the experience like? How does one cope with watching another woman carry her child? How can couples come together to share this experience and make it a positive one throughout? We'll talk to one Intended Mother about her take on these questions and more. Guest/Host Bio Amy Oguntala Amy Oguntala and her husband are intended parents via surrogacy. They are currently on their third pregnancy. Resources Rate, Review, and Subscribe! We would be so...
Jan 24, 2023•44 min•Season 4Ep. 80
Infertility is on the rise and it's leading to an increased demand for assisted reproduction technology. Unfortunately, many causes of infertility are insidious and seen as relatively harmless, such as the birth control pill. In this episode, we talked about the shocking increase in infertility and what men and women need to know if they want to have a family. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the firs...
Jan 17, 2023•13 min•Season 4Ep. 79
What is it really like for surrogates? What are their motivations for being gestational carriers? What is their experience like? How do they feel about being close - or not - with their IPs? What is the most important thing that they really need from agencies and IPs? In this episode, we'll talk to Heathyr Suhr about her take on these questions. Guest Bio Heathyr suhr Heathyr is a single mom to her 7 year old best friend. She is a 2x surrogate who loves pregnancy, helping create families, and he...
Jan 10, 2023•48 min•Season 4Ep. 78
In the egg donor community, it's known that financial compensation is often a strong motivator. But there have been many developments in recent years that impact donor and surrogate compensation. In this episode, we're diving into the nitty-gritty, perhaps uncomfortable side of egg donation and surrogacy compensation. We'll cover changes to tax law, appeals, and how compensation affects the already delicate relationship. Host Bio Eloise Drane I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the f...
Jan 03, 2023•17 min•Season 4Ep. 77
When we teach IPs about their possible pathways to parenthood, we often mention embryo donation. There are over a million embryos sitting in cryobanks around the country. But what happens to them if they aren’t used in IVF by the patients themselves? What is the embryo disposition process like; and what is the donation experience like, as a donor and recipient? In this episode we answer these questions along with others like, what is the difference between embryo donation and embryo adoption, ca...
Dec 27, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Season 4Ep. 76
Naturally, fertility issues are a sensitive subject. Most couples never imagined that they would need to go the route of third-party reproduction in order to bring their family dreams to fruition. While all IPs are grateful for the role egg donors and surrogates play in building their family, some IPs would prefer not to have a relationship with their donors or surrogates after the process is over and a child is born. Here's what donors and surrogates need to understand about this unique family ...
Dec 20, 2022•17 min•Season 4Ep. 75
As an egg donor or a surrogate, your medical history is seen as an open book. IPs and their medical teams want and expect to know everything there is to know about your medical past – often for good reason, but where is the line? Is it reasonable for a donor or surrogate to expect some degree of privacy, particularly for health-related issues that may not seem relevant to the task at hand? Is it OK for donors or surrogates to redact their medical history? Or should IPs only accept full medical r...
Dec 13, 2022•23 min•Season 4Ep. 74
Pregnancy is an important transitional time for a mother. Not only are these 9 months when her baby is developing, but also when the mother is coming to terms with the fact that she will be a mother soon... except in the case of IPs and surrogates. In this episode, we looked at how surrogacy affects an IM's ability to bond with her baby as well as things the IM and surrogate can do – either together or separately – to help the IM feel more like a mother to the baby the surrogate is carrying. Hos...
Dec 06, 2022•12 min•Season 4Ep. 73
We are all very "pro family" around here, no matter what your family looks like. But we also feel it's important to advocate for the egg donors and surrogates who are helping families become whole. In this episode, we talked to Liz Scheier, a member of the leadership team at the We Are Egg Donors advocacy group on issues she has seen be most prevalent in the egg donor community and how she hopes the fertility industry will evolve. Guest Bio Liz Scheier Liz Scheier is a 3x egg donor and sits on t...
Nov 29, 2022•33 min•Season 4Ep. 72
In Surrogacy Roadmap, we don't recommend going the international route. Here's why! In this episode, we talked about all the reasons why international surrogacy can get IPs into trouble and the few benefits that don't make the hassle worth it. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the first Black-owned surrogacy and egg donation agency in the United States. While I started Family Inceptions back in 2008, m...
Nov 22, 2022•14 min•Season 4Ep. 71
What is it really like for egg donors? What are their motivations for donating? What is their experience? How do they feel about known versus anonymous donations? We talked to one egg donor about her take on these questions. Guest Bio Rai Hyde Rai is a 6-time egg donor. Despite struggling with long-term health complications due to her donations, she is proud to be an egg donor and looks back on the process and the families she contributed to fondly. She is eager to help other donors or potential...
Nov 15, 2022•44 min•Season 4Ep. 70
What happens years after a child has been born from an egg donation process? In this episode, we answer this question along with others like what happens if the child has health issues and the IPs opted for an anonymous donation? What do IPs need to consider early in their IVF journey that may affect their child's health 10, 20, and more years down the road? Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the first ...
Nov 08, 2022•13 min•Season 4Ep. 69
We would like to think of the fertility journey as all happiness, love, and bringing beautiful new life into this world. But the fact is that there is a dark side of legal issues, persistent medical effects, and emotional distress that many donors and surrogates don't know about before agreeing to donate or carry for IPs. In this episode, we talked to Diane Tober, Medical Anthropologist and Researcher at UCSF about her research and what issues she has seen as most prevalent within the dark side ...
Nov 01, 2022•46 min•Season 4Ep. 68
We've done a lot of episodes on financing, insurance, etc., but not so much on the budgeting/cost-cutting side. This episode takes us through the Surrogacy Roadmap and explains the areas where you don't want to skimp (i.e., No DIY GSAs off of the internet!) and where you can realistically cut costs. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the first Black-owned surrogacy and egg donation agency in the United ...
Oct 25, 2022•14 min•Season 4Ep. 67
With the emergence of the Donor Sibling Registry, 23&Me, and Ancestry.com, it's nearly impossible to be an "anonymous" donor for long nowadays. Now, federal legislators are considering requiring background checks for both egg and sperm donors, which would completely eliminate any anonymity outside of an agency arrangement. In this episode, we'll talk about whether or not it is still possible to be anonymous and, if not, what damage (if any) that can do to the third-party reproduction industr...
Oct 18, 2022•33 min•Season 4Ep. 66
Postpartum depression is, unfortunately, quite common in women. However, the way society, mental health professionals, and medical professionals react to postpartum depression is vastly different for surrogates than mothers who birth their own children. In this episode, we normalize postpartum depression, talk about the unique challenges surrogates face with the condition, and offer ideas and resources to help surrogates through this tough chapter. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family In...
Oct 11, 2022•17 min•Season 4Ep. 65
We often think of terminating a pregnancy as an issue parents have to face. But in the world of third-party reproduction, we also have to consider the impact on the surrogate. In this episode, we answer questions like, what happens if the IPs and surrogate disagree? What factors are most important and should be triaged accordingly? And, how can IPs and surrogates move forward to try again after terminating a pregnancy? Guest Bio Julie Bindeman Dr. Julie Bindeman graduated from the George Washing...
Oct 04, 2022•46 min•Season 4Ep. 64
As a six-time donor and three-time surrogate, I've helped many families become whole. But only once have I had the opportunity to meet one of the children born from my multiple egg donation cycles. In this episode, I share what the experience of meeting my egg donation baby was like, what she has shared with me about how she feels about being born of assisted reproduction, and what donors need to think about long-term before making the decision to donate. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Fa...
Sep 27, 2022•20 min•Season 4Ep. 63
How does Roe v Wade affect the Fertility industry? How does it impact egg donation and freezing eggs? How does it affect freezing embryos? There is so much more detail that seems to have been missed when making the decision to overturn Roe v Wade. In this episode of Fertility Cafe, we cover these questions and more about how Roe v Wade affects the different situations that people face when choosing to explore their fertility option. Learn about how it affects surrogates who end up with a multipl...
Sep 20, 2022•21 min•Season 4Ep. 62
As the first episode of the season, we dive into a high-level discussion of this season's theme, including: In the episode, host Eloise Drane discusses the emotional burden, physical ramifications, and an overview of the commonly overlooked issues donors and surrogates need to be aware of. Host Bio I’m Eloise Drane, Founder of Family Inceptions, the first surrogacy and egg donation agency in the state of Georgia and the first Black-owned surrogacy and egg donation agency in the United States. Wh...
Sep 13, 2022•4 min•Season 4Ep. 61
