Michelle's Second Journey as a Gestational Carrier

​It was with great excitement and anticipation that I was able to announce that my second journey as a gestational carrier would be beginning. There were many people who gave me sidelong glances, wondering if I’d lost my mind, but even more people congratulated me and wished me and the IP success in the following year long process

My previous surrogacy had ended well, with a healthy set of twins, and the family has communicated with me to share their joy in certain milestones, such as first words or first steps. I proudly show off pictures of the twins to family and friends whenever they ask. 
While the first journey was certainly fulfilling enough for a lifetime, I realized that I did not want to be done yet. I am still healthy, and at 33, I am relatively young. Couple that with my “proven uterus” and I am capable of offering hope and a child to another deserving family. I contacted Tinawith TSE to let her know that I wanted to be part of another journey. I would never consider embarking on a surrogacy without her unwavering guidance and support. She let me know what steps I would need to complete before she could find me another match, and I would be on my way. 
Paperwork, labs, and doctor’s appointments are a huge part of this process even before it can officially begin. In my previous surrogacy, I had to give birth via c-section, and there were some minor complications. The concern of TSE was that my uterus (and every other part of me) had healed effectively and would be capable of safely carrying a baby and myself through another birth process. In my initial meeting with my doctor I found that in order to safely carry again, I should carry only one baby this time, and that I should deliver via planned c-section. Both of these I was perfectly fine with because I found healing from a c-section to be a bit easier than from a vaginal birth, and of course one baby is a less stress on the body and energy than twins. Once my personal Ob-Gyn had cleared me and sent all of the documentation to the fertility clinic that I would likely be working with, I was good to go. 
Finding a match was quick and painless. Tina, as always, knows and understands the importance of values to both the gestational carrier and the intended parents, so she sent me a couple of different family profiles that she thought would work well with me and my family, and I chose the one that I was most comfortable with. My first choice this time is very different from the last journey because it was a single intended father as opposed to a couple. 
From there, Tina sent my profile to my first choice, and we waited to see if the IF (Intended Father) was comfortable with our profile too. It didn’t take long to hear back, and we scheduled a phone conversation to see if we were really a match. Tina facilitates those initial calls and asks the difficult questions while being sensitive to all callers. I knew halfway through the call that this particular IF was a perfect fit. He was friendly, easy to talk to, and super interesting. My husband and I agreed within minutes of ending the call that we would love to work with him. I can’t remember exactly how long after the call I waited to email Tina of our decision, but her-almost immediate- response was that we were an official match!
I can’t explain how elated I was to become a gestational carrier once more. I know I have written this before, but I see it as a huge honor to be trusted with the ultimate care and growth of someone else’s child. The responsibility involved in this kind of extreme nannying is immense. I know I can meet the challenge, and I can’t wait to truly begin this, my second surrogacy journey and share it all with you.

---