For lesbian couples, trying to get pregnant and build a family can be an overwhelming process. When you’re in the same gender relationship, there are some added factors to navigate.
If you’ve been asking this question, “pregnancy for lesbian couples is it really true?”, this article is for you.
Thanks to assisted reproductive technology, several resources, and various options, you and your partner can decide which one works best for your family building goals.
Insemination with Donor Sperm
Donor sperm insemination is one of the options pregnancy for lesbians and the least invasive procedure and is the primary method of conception for lesbian couples who do not have infertility issues. One option is intravaginal insemination at home, time with urinary ovulation predictor kits. Alternatively, insemination performed by a clinician in a medical facility is typically IUI, in which donor sperm are placed directly inside the uterus on the day that the woman is determined to be ovulating. IUI serves to deliver the maximum number of sperm to the fallopian tubes where fertilization of the oocyte takes place.
IUI may be done with or without the use of fertility medications. Most lesbians who do not have fertility issues may do donor sperm IUI without the use of fertility medications. However, lesbians who have ovulatory dysfunction may benefit from the use of fertility medications such as letrozole, clomiphene, or injectable gonadotropins. There is an increased risk of multiple gestations in pregnancies resulting from the use of fertility medications.
IVF with Donor Sperm
Some lesbian couples are unable to conceive with donor sperm IUI because they have an infertility issue such as endometriosis, pelvic adhesive disease, advanced reproductive age, or unexplained infertility. For these women, they may benefit from treatment with in vitro fertilization (IVF), just like any woman who has infertility.
IVF with Partner’s Oocytes
A lesbian who is unsuccessful in conceiving with her own eggs owing to primary ovarian insufficiency
(premature ovarian failure), diminished ovarian reserve, advanced reproductive age, or another infertility diagnosis may potentially conceive with IVF using oocytes provided by her partner. This process has been referred to as partner-assisted reproduction.
Reciprocal IVF
Some lesbian couples who have never attempted conception with donor sperm insemination and do not have infertility may choose to have children with IVF using the eggs from one partner, inseminated with donor sperm, and have the resultant embryo(s) transferred into the uterus of the other partner who then gestates the pregnancy and gives birth.
This enables both partners in the relationship to be directly and physically involved in having their child(ren) and is an appealing concept for many lesbian couples.
After the birth of their first child, they may choose to repeat the reciprocal IVF process, but reverse roles so that the partner who gestated the pregnancy for their first reciprocal IVF cycle then provides her oocytes for their second reciprocal IVF cycle, and the partner who provided oocytes for their first reciprocal IVF cycle then gestates the pregnancy.
Some couples choose to use reciprocal IVF if one of them has no intention of ever being pregnant, so this is an option for her to have a genetically related child without having to be pregnant. After they have a child successfully with reciprocal IVF, the partner who gestated the pregnancy may then return to conceive her genetically related child with donor sperm insemination so they each have genetically
related child(ren).
IVF with Donor Eggs
Some lesbian couples who want to get pregnant may need to use donor eggs from a third party because of the absence of ovaries or the inability of both women to produce viable oocytes. In this situation, their egg donor may either be a known or directed donor (family member, friend, or acquaintance), or an egg donor recruited by an approved egg donor agency or frozen donor eggs from a frozen donor egg bank.
IVF with Gestational Surrogacy
In rare situations, some lesbian couples may need to use a gestational surrogate because of the absence of a uterus or the absence of a normally functional uterus in both women, or the presence of other medical impediments to a healthy pregnancy. In this situation, embryos may be created with oocytes provided by either of the two women, inseminated with donor sperm, and the resulting embryo(s) are transferred into the uterus of a gestational surrogate.
For more information about pregnancy options for lesbian couples, you can contact our Facebook page.