Single and TTC

[DefenceAgainstTheDarkArts]

Hi

I am going to be trying for a baby next year but I am not in a relationship.

I wondered if anybody else on here had done this or was planning to do it? I'm trying to work out my options!

Many thanks

If I was going to do this, I have heard from a friend recently that one increasingly popular way in Scandinavia (among single career women) is to visit a clinic in Denmark, as they have anonymous donors still. And I am sure you could choose from a variety of types, so it wouldn't have to be tall, blond...

Yes, I did this. But in Spain where they still have the anonimity rule also.
Tips would be to give yourself plenty of time to get pregnant in the first place.

I believe that you can source sperm here in the UK that is "fresh" rather than frozen. Worth looking into.

Have had no regrets.

Yes. I have. ID release donor.

There are three choices (and this goes for sperm or egg donor)

1. Completely anonymous donor for which you would have to travel outside the UK as this has been outlawed here since 2005.
2. ID-release donor: A donor whose identity will be released to the offspring when they turn 18 if they so request. This does not necessarily mean any contact will take place. ID-release donors most commonly available in the UK, US, and in some Scandinavian banks, including the European Sperm Banks. Foreign donors come with far more information than their UK counterparts, including, sometimes, pictures. If the donors abide by EU rulings they can be imported into the UK. This is the case for some Xytex donors (US) and some European Sperm Bank donors. The sperm has to be sent to a clinic and the insemination performed there.
3. Known donor - either a friend/aquaintance, or someone who is willing to impregnate you that you meet on the internet.

I would say that 1 is inadvisable given that all the available research shows that not having the option of identifying information can be detrimenta to the emotional well-being of the DC child (and adult they will become). There is no real reason to use a completely anonymous sperm donor, but some people feel that this option is necessary for them for egg donation as egg donors are in such short supply in the UK.
ID release donors are a pretty good idea, in my view.
Known donor, fantastic if it works, but worth bearing in mind that in the eyes of the law the donor can claim rights as a parent (unless he donates to a bank on your behalf and the sample is frozen for six months and he becomes a 'donor' rather than a partner... the act of donation severing parental rights). Fresh sperm from stranger can also be a health risk.